Warning:
There was a surge of bear attacks in northern Japan in late 2025. While there are far more traffic collisions, we note that some countries have issued travel warnings to their citizens because of bear attacks. Please familiarize yourself with and follow the standard precautions. Here is a well-written article by Tim Dowling from The Guardian.
Directions:
From Narita or Haneda international airport, you may take a domestic flight to Akita airport. Then you take a bus (which costs about 900 yen) to Akita station of JR (Japan Railway company). From there, take Uetsu-line to arrive at Ugo-honjo station. Beware that trains come less frequently than once an hour. It takes less than 10 minutes on foot from Ugo-honjo station to the venue, Cultural Center Kadare.
For your reference, here are some phone numbers of taxi companies:
Honjo Taxis: +81 184-22-2236
Hikari Taxis: +81 184-22-1111
If you are keen on reducing your carbon footprint, you can first go to Ueno station or Tokyo station from wherever your international airport is. Then you can take Akita Shinkansen (Bullet Train) from there to Akita station, which takes something like 5 hours.
Accomodations:
Honjo Grand Hotel: Standard.
Hotel Iris: Maybe slightly more luxurious than Honjo Grand? Unless you take a taxi, some noticeable distance from the university.
Honjo Station Hotel (Honkan/Bekkan): Less expensive. Very close to the train station. This also means some noise coming from the trains.
Anraku Onsen: Totally Japanese style Ryokan with hot springs. There are other Ryokans in the area. If you are into this kind of thing, contact us.