Golf in Japan: A 75 km Drive That Took 3 Hours on a Holiday Weekend

October 10, 2026. The first day of a three-day holiday weekend in Japan.

Today, we’re heading to Olympic National Golf Club for a round of golf.

The sky is clear, the autumn weather is beautiful, and it looks like a perfect day for golf.

But there’s one thing I’m worried about.

It’s the first day of a long weekend, and with weather this good, the expressways are bound to be crowded.

Our tee time is 9:58 AM, which is relatively late for a morning round.

The golf course is about 75 km from home. Normally, the drive takes around 90 minutes.

Still, expecting heavy holiday traffic, I decided to leave extra early.

6:22 AM Departure. Did I Leave Too Early?

I left home at 6:22 AM.

According to my navigation system, the estimated arrival time was 7:56 AM.

If everything went smoothly, I would arrive about two hours before our tee time.

“Maybe I left a little too early?”

That’s what I was thinking.

But as soon as I entered the Tomei Expressway…

Traffic jam!

It was the first morning of a three-day holiday weekend, after all.

Apparently, getting to the golf course wasn’t going to be quite so easy.

[PHOTO 1] Expressway traffic or navigation screen

25 km of Traffic Between Sagamihara and Uenohara!

Eventually, I made it through the congestion on the Tomei Expressway.

At 7:07 AM, I was approaching Atsugi, with about 47 km left to drive.

Then I noticed a worrying message on an electronic highway information sign.

Apparently, an accident was contributing to the congestion.

The area where the Ken-O Expressway connects with the Chuo Expressway is a well-known traffic bottleneck.

On weekends and holidays, many drivers head toward the Chuo Expressway, making this route particularly busy.

And when an accident occurs on top of the usual holiday traffic, things can get much worse.

Two and a Half Hours Later, Still 20 km to Go!

After joining the Chuo Expressway from the Ken-O Expressway, I was finally getting closer to the golf course.

But even after approximately two and a half hours of driving, I still had another 20 km to go.

My navigation system had revised the estimated arrival time from 7:56 AM to 9:17 AM.

Our tee time was 9:58 AM.

I still needed to check in, change my shoes, get my clubs ready, and hopefully warm up a little.

There wasn’t much time to spare anymore.

Earlier that morning, I had been wondering whether I would arrive too early.

Now I was wondering whether I would make it in time!

Finally Arrived at 9:20 AM. Almost Three Hours for 75 km!

I finally arrived at the golf course at 9:20 AM.

Having left home at 6:22 AM, the journey took 2 hours and 58 minutes — almost three hours!

That left just 38 minutes before our tee time.

Leaving early had definitely been the right decision.

If I had planned to arrive just one hour before our tee time, as I normally might, I could easily have been late.

[PHOTO 2] Olympic National Golf Club

Our Actual Driving Record

Planning a Golf Trip in Japan? Allow Extra Time on Holiday Weekends

This experience reminded me of something important: normal driving times can be very misleading during Japanese holiday weekends.

The Tomei, Ken-O, and Chuo Expressways can become particularly congested when holiday traffic is heavy.

An accident can make an already busy route even worse.

Unlike sightseeing or shopping, golf has a fixed starting time.

Arriving late is something every golfer wants to avoid.

Especially on a beautiful autumn day, I’d much rather arrive early, enjoy a coffee, and prepare for the round without rushing.

75 km. Almost three hours.

That was my journey to the golf course on the first day of Japan’s three-day holiday weekend.

If you’re planning to play golf near Tokyo during a national holiday, give yourself plenty of extra travel time.

A little extra time in the morning can make a big difference to the start of your round!