This valley adjacent to Shirakawa-go Valley forms the enchanting backdrop to several hamlets with majestic and rustic gassho-zukuri, which stretch along the Sho River. As Gokayama is more difficult to reach than Shirakawa-go it gets about half as many tourists. A bucolic tranquillity envelops the thatched cottages serving as inns, with dinner around the fire and the frog song penetrating the night.