1.Express train from Osaka to Kii Tanabe 2 hours, regular train 3 to 4 hoyr max, airport bus to Wakayama, change train to Tanaba no more than 4 hours. Info center open 9am to 6pm, in order to get your credential for your next day hike, you have to watch your time. I took 1:57pm express train out of Osaka KIX airport, arrival 3:29pm. If slower train or bus might not have enough time for info. 9am is too late for start. At Takijiri center same opening schedule.
2. Bilingual sign all along the road, same standard, every 500meter marked with a number, so if you see 20 means 15k, 26, 13k.Map listed those numbers. No Japanese is not a concern.
3. Accommodation opens for all, pilgrims or not. They were full, i could not book my first choice in two places; however, I was mainly alone on 3 days, the last day to Nashi, had to rely on bus to get to the trail head, only bus scheduled in the morning on sunday, ran into more people. I realized that when I took the earlier bus out the first day from Tanabe were 5 hikers including me, the next time from Yonume obsen just me. Ran into a big American women group, but nothing more, very peaceful.
4. 3 onsen villages and other main places can be booked through other regular hotel booking, I did JHopper Hostel in Yunome onsen, highly recommend, has its own outdoor hot spring. Japanese traditional home share bath and bathrooms. But what I got close to shops, bus stations. The one at Santo cafe, out of Koguchi gave us free hotspring ticket for bath, very nice, outdoor, indoor hot spring farcilite, 5 min walk.
5. Trails have lots of stone steps, elevation gain and loss at places, was hard on my knees.
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