With rural Japan experiencing severe depopulation, unstaffed railway stations and vacant properties are being turned into places for tourists to stay - and it is proving a success.

The rural lines are legacies of Japan’s economic boom through the 1970s, but failed to adapt to rural depopulation, as younger people left for cities and some villages emptied altogether.

The rural lines are legacies of Japan’s economic boom through the 1970s but failed to adapt to rural depopulation, as younger people left for cities and some villages emptied altogether.

With rural Japan experiencing severe depopulation, unstaffed railway stations and vacant properties are being turned into places for tourists to stay – and it is proving a success.

When planning a trip to Japan, tourists are most likely to pack destinations like Mount Fuji, Kyoto and Akihabara all into the space of a few days.

CHIBA, Japan -- In late November, Kenichi Kitayama, 74, was enjoying the autumn colors from the window of an Isumi Railway train as he rode through Chiba Prefecture near Tokyo.

On a rail trip that strays far from the high-speed routes, Caroline Daniel finds rural villages struggling with depopulation but hoping art, craftsmanship and tourism will provide a lifeline ...