NAGANO JAPAN

Lying nearby Karuizawa, Kusatsu Onsen is one of Japan’s most famous ‘onsen’ (hot spring) towns. For many if not most Japanese, the town is instantly recognisable due to its immense ‘yubatake’, an...

When thinking about your future travel to Japan, it’s a great time to consider heading outdoors and exploring some of Japan’s beautiful natural landscapes. Whether you are first-time visitor or s...

When researching and planning a visit to Japan, understanding the regions and which areas are nearby others, can be a little confusing – particularly for first-time visitors. While some n...

Snow Monkey Resorts is happy to advise that the Jigokudani Monkey Park has reopened and is again welcoming visitors. Due to the ongoing impact of COVID-19, the park requests that visitors respect the ...

As a precaution against the spread of coronavirus, the Jigokudani Monkey Park will be closed from this Saturday April 18th until Sunday May 15th 2020. It is possible that the date of re-opening will...

As March draws to a close it is certainly quiet in the Jigokudani Monkey Park. While the park remains open, visitor numbers are extremely low given current circumstances impacting travel to and from...

The impact of the coronavirus on daily life around the globe is now dramatic. We wish everyone well and please follow the advisories in your home countries and regions, to ensure your health and saf...

As the coronavirus continues disrupt daily life around the world, many are wondering about its impact in Japan and their plans to travel to Nagano. As included in our previous blog, the following we...

We are now well into the second half of winter and life goes on, much as usual, at the Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park. This year’s weather is much warmer than usual and from day-to-day, conditions at t...

Known as 'sakura', cherry blossoms are synonymous with Japan and are seen to embody the fragile beauty of life itself. As the weather warms in spring, the flowers bloom and Japan will emerge from th...

Happy New Year from Snow Monkey Resorts! It's been a strange and frustrating start to the year here in Nagano and at the Snow Monkey Park. Temperatures remain unusually high for January with relativ...

As host of the 1998 Winter Olympics and home to around 80 ski resorts along with the famous hot spring-bathing monkeys of Jigokudani, Nagano is synonymous with winter. Offering abundant snow in clos...

Winter has arrived at the Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park! As temperatures continue to drop and the first flutters of snow powder the valley, here’s our final photoblog for 2019! The start of Decembe...

It's a typical November here at the Snow Monkey Park. The temperature is dropping quickly with strong hints of winter in the air. But before winter arrives, we are being treated to a typical Novembe...

We are now one month on from the typhoon which affected Nagano and it’s a good time to provide an update. While Nagano City was relatively unaffected, areas nearby experienced a significant impact a...

As already reported, the Snow Monkey Park has now reopened to the public and we are happy to the report, the monkeys have now returned! After an unusually long absence from the park after the typhoo...

Given the recent impact of Typhoon Hagibis on Nagano Prefecture, we are receiving many enquiries about the availability of our tours, access to the Snow Monkey Park, and ability to travel to and fro...

We are happy to announce that the Snow Monkey Park is open again and accepting visitors. Due to recent damage to the park and trail, visitors may encounter ongoing repairs. Please be careful to foll...

The Snow Monkey Park is again closed today - Monday October 14th 2019 - due to ongoing repairs required after Typhoon Hagibis left significant damage across Nagano. The trail leading to the park h...

Typhoon Hagibis has now passed Nagano. Unfortunately it has left a significant amount of damaes to the trail leading to the park and the park itself. Due to this damage, park staff have decided to...

Typhoon Hagibis is expected to impact on Nagano today and all residents have been advised to take necessary precautions to remain safe. For that reason, the Snow Monkey Park will be closed as heav...

Sales of “Snow Monkey Pass” for 2019 Green Season finished on Sep 30th. For winter season, it will be re-sold from 7th December....

Another September has rolled around at the Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park and we are now feeling the first of the cooler autumn weather. Strolling to and from the park along the beautiful forest trai...

August has been a hot and at times wet and wild month in the Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park. In the middle of summer, the winter days of cold and deep snow seem like a dream and for visitors to the p...

It’s a little later than usual – let’s face it, a whole lot later than usual! – but here, finally, is our July photoblog for the Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park. Summer has arrived at the park and in ...

Recognised as one of the Top 10 Experiences in Japan with a 2019 TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice Award, guests based in Hakuba this winter will be able to join our most popular tour through use of o...

As Nagano's No.1 tour and charter operator we are always looking for ways the experience we provide our guests on our tours. Awarded a 2019 TripAdvisor Travelers' Choice Award as one of the Top 10...

As recently featured, Shiga Kogen is not just Nagano’s but also Japan’s largest and highest ski resort. With 79 ski runs serviced by 51 chairlifts and gondolas, Shiga offers the largest expanse of...

As host of the 1998 Winter Olympics, Nagano is home to around 80 independent ski resortsand blessed with some of the best powder in the world. Whether you are visiting Nagano for the first time o...

Nestled high above the Snow Monkey Park within the beautiful surrounding of Joshinestu Kogen National Park, there is a ski resort which is Nagano’s sleeping giant and the next big destination for ...

The world will turn its focus to Japan this autumn, as it hosts the Rugby World Cup from September 20th to November 2nd 2019. With 13 host venues spread throughout Japan – from Hokkaido in the nor...

June in Japan is known as the rainy season and as such, is always a little wet, wild, and unpredictable. The days are steadily getting warmer and humid, punctuated by downpours as the springtime c...

Snow Monkey Resorts is happy to announce our 1-Day Snow Monkeys, Zenko-ji Temple & Sake Tour has been recognized as one of Japan’s best tour experiences winning a 2019 Tripadvisor Travelers’ Cho...

Winter is never far away – or at least never out of mind – here in Nagano. With the past winter having come late but then refusing to call it quits, and ultimately blessing us with a massive amoun...

As Nagano’s No.1 tour operator, Snow Monkey Resorts continues to welcome new and old friends into the region, as more and more people discover the seasonal beauty of Central Japan. There’s never a...

  *The illumination event scheduled for December 2019 has been moved to February 22nd to March 1st 2020. As a result, our tour will operate on the same days in February and March 2020. It ...

May has been another great month in the Snow Monkey Park with the introduction of the first baby monkeys of 2019! At first slow to emerge as their nervous mums inch back into the park, it's now ba...

We are very happy to announce that the first babies of 2019 are now being welcomed to the Snow Monkey Park! Expectant mothers give birth from late-April to early-June each year, making spring one ...

It’s funny. It doesn’t seem so long ago that the snow still had a hold on us and the monkeys (just like us), were shivering away in the last clutches of Nagano’s beautiful but long, cold winter. N...

March is always an enjoyable time in the Snow Monkey Park and a great time to visit Nagano`s most famous furry residents! It`s a time of two seasons, with the first days of spring wrestling with t...

It's been a strange old winter here in Nagano and at the Snow Monkey Park. The usually reliable snowfall came as late as anyone can remember but when it did eventually arrive, it fell in abundance...

Spring in Japan brings beautiful weather and a welcome end to the cold of winter. As the weather warms and winter clothing is shed, the spirits lift and the world seems fresh and new again. A popu...

Happy New Year from everyone at Snow Monkey Resorts and let's jump into the new year with our first photoblog of 2019! While the snow was late this year January has delivered with its reliable dumps o...

With the snow now falling in Nagano we are gearing up for another big winter and with that, we are happy to offer our popular 1-Day Snow Monkeys & Snow Fun in Shiga Kogen Tour from December 22...

The snow has finally arrived in the monkey park and with it, the monkeys are straight back into onsen as they welcome another cold season and many new visitors this winter! The photo above was take...

Visiting the famous Snow Monkey Park is one the highlights of any visit to Nagano and an experience perhaps best enjoyed in winter. After all, 'snow monkeys' don't really live-up to the name without a...

We are now officially into winter and while the snow is a little late this year, sooner or later it will begin to fall in abundance. Most famous as a winter destination, Nagano has so much to offer ...

*Please note that in 2019, this service has been extended to now be available all year round for guests joining us in Nagano City. Up-to-date information can be found at: 1-DAY SNOW MONKEYS, ZENKO-JI ...

With the temperature steadily dropping and the clouds puffing-up and rolling-in, the question many people ask is when will it start snowing in the monkey park?   Affectionately known as...

Autumn is reliably the least reliable season in the Snow Monkey Park as the monkeys trade their beloved hot spring for the promise of food and love in the forest. October through November is matin...

Nagano and the surrounding regions that make-up central Japan are a place of natural beauty, typified by high mountain peaks, and deep culture found in its historic towns, temples and castles. Often o...

Viewing autumn leaves, called koyo in Japanese, is after cherry blossom-viewing the most beloved seasonal activity for the Japanese. If you're planning on visiting the Snow Monkey Park in fall, we rec...

Autumn has arrived and with that, the temperature is dropping and the landscape is shifting in color and hue. It's a beautiful time of year to visit the Snow Monkey Park and through early-October, the...

Sales of "Snow Monkey Pass" for 2018 Green Season finishes today (Sep 30th). For winter season, it will be re-sold from the beginning of December (Dec 1st, if it will be as has happened in the past...

Snow Monkey Resorts is excited to announce our award-winning 1-Day Snow Monkeys, Zenko-ji Temple & Sake Tour is now available to guests based in Hakuba this winter, with a daily shuttle servic...

Another month has slipped-on by and with that, summer has ended and the early hints of autumn are in the air. With the summer heat having faded away, days have regularly been punctuated by drizzle and...

The prime time to visit Nagano Prefecture is in winter, when the snow comes falling from the sky in abundance. We suggest to make Senjukaku, a ryokan close to the Snow Monkey Park, your base. The ryok...

Many visitors headed to this region see the famous Snow Monkey Park as the primary destination and don't allocate time to explore other sights nearby the park. Given the global fame of the hot spring-...

August is a busy time in the Snow Monkey Park as the resident macaques enjoy the late summer warmth, preoccupied with their constant grooming, foraging, and swimming. This year’s baby monkeys a...

As we head into the second half of summer it’s the right time to continue our series of articles focusing on the many great reasons to visit the Snow Monkey Park in July and August. The days remain ho...

For those thinking of visiting the Snow Monkey Park in summer, there's one big reason - or should we say, many small, adorable reasons - to do so, baby monkeys, lots of them! Since April, we ha...

As highlighted in our recent blog article, the monkeys come to the park throughout the year including summer, and they typically come in big numbers. The monkeys – Japanese macaques to be exact – are ...

Summer has arrived at the Snow Monkey Park with the usual heat and humidity you'd expect. While the days can be a little hot, July is a great time to visit the park. The monkeys have been coming in bi...

Summer is here. The weather is hot and humid, cicadas are buzzing, and the mountains are lush and green. The deep snow and cold of winter are now distant memories, indeed it’s difficult to imagine tha...

The cuteness has continued unabated here at the Snow Monkey Park through June, as the seasons babies continue to emerge and we move into Japan’s rainy season. The days are punctuated by bursts of sun ...

While the sun is shining here in Yamanouchi and we head towards another hot summer, we can’t help but turn our minds to the coming winter and another highly anticipated snow season in Japan... and we ...

May has been a month of unremitting and undeniable cuteness at the Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park. As the weather continues to warm and move we steadily into the Japanese spring, we continue to welcome b...

*Please note that in 2019, this service has been extended to now be available all year round for guests joining us in Nagano City. Up-to-date information can be found at: 1-DAY SNOW MONKEYS, ZENKO-JI ...

We recently (and happily) reported that the first baby monkeys of the year had been cited in the Snow Monkey Park. At that time we hadn't yet been able to capture our first photographs of these adorab...

As dedicated publicists of the Jigokudani Snow Monkeys, we are always excited when our favourite furry residents make international news. Over the past few weeks they have been making headlines follow...

Spring is one of the best times of year to visit the Jigokudani Monkey Park for one very important (and exceptionally cute) reason – baby monkeys! April and May are the months during which expectant m...

The weather this April is very much up and down at the Jigokudani monkey park. Some days have been very warm – nearing 30°C – while others have seen the return of cold, wintery days. The shifting weat...

A visit to the Jigokudani Monkey Park is one of Nagano's most enjoyable experiences. For most people, the journey will begin at Nagano Station from where they have the option of heading to the park ...

In Japan the season of spring is heavily celebrated. The most famous habit the Japanese display is sitting under colorful cherry blossoms and just watching the blossoms bloom while drinking a beer, et...

Winter is officially with the last bits of snow disappearing in the Park. With the changing of the seasons the opening times of the Snow Monkey Park have changed as well. The opening times of t...

The month of March has seen a rise in temperature. Some days really feel as though we're in spring already. Other days though, it's snowing and the monkeys are hiding from the cold in the pool or in b...

The beginning of February was still very cold and saw quite a few monkeys taking a bath or rummaging around for barley. The monkeys in the two photo's below were exactly doing that; digging in the sno...

It's a new year and a new monkey season! The Snow Monkey Park is now completely covered by snow. As you can see by the photo directly below, the snow is not only in the park, but also on the tr...

Senjukaku is celebrating their 90th year and has decided to provide an extra service to those coming to stay at the ryokan. In order to get to Senjukaku, you'll have to travel from JR Nagano Station t...

The Snow Monkey Park is absolutely a must-visit when you’re in Japan. The monkeys are incredibly cute and cuddly. They are still wild monkeys though, so some caution is advised. We will explain all th...

Winter is coming! The first snow of the season has fallen around the 20th of November and this has had an impact on the behavior of the snow monkeys of Jigokudani as they now have to make sure ...

It has snowed in the Snow Monkey area! Winter has finally begun with the first snowfall of the 2017/2018 season. The people living in this area woke up in a wintry world, with more snow than pe...

The Japanese macaques don't have the innate habit of swimming in hot water, they didn’t even need to do it to warm themselves. So why did the monkeys start getting into the hot spring? The answer i...

The rangers of the Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park have changed the Park opening times from 8:30 to 17:00 to 9:00 to 16:00. This because of the shorter days. The monkeys have a habit of coming down...

The Kanbayashi route to the Snow Monkey Park is open from today! This is good news for bus and train travelers, as this route is the closest and easiest one to the Park. After the typhoon on th...

Nagano is in the midst of a typhoon at the moment which makes traveling to the Park not safe enough to open. The heavy rainfall could even cause small-scale landslides. Thus, for safety reasons the Pa...

The Japanese macaques have a strong hierarchical society, with every monkey holding a certain position. At the top of the food chain the alpha male, the monkey boss. The number 1 monkey of the Jigokud...

It's October! The temperature has gone down quite a bit compared to September and this is noticeable in the behavior of the monkeys. Some of them have started to get into the hot spring to warm themse...

Autumn is a wonderful season to visit the snow monkeys of the Jigokudani Monkey Park. The leaves of the trees in and around the park start turning red, orange, and yellow, and the monkeys inch clo...

It is September which means another blog about this month's monkeys!   The monkey below was kept on watching the exit of the Jigokudani Monkey Park, and tried to sneak his way into the room...

The page is completely dedicated to the adorable snow monkey babies. The last baby has been born last month in the Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park, so we thought it was time to introduce you to some o...

The month August has started and the heat is still continuing. Slowly but surely though, the temperature is going down and becoming more comfortable. The monkeys now sometimes dare to go from their sa...

While the snow monkeys tend to be relaxed, they are not docile. There is a strong hierarchical system amongst the monkeys which is maintained with vigor. When the position of a certain macaque is thre...

A shift in power has occurred within the Jigokudani monkey troop. Togura 95, who has been in power for the past 6 years, has been displaced by Tomamu 96. This has caused the balance of power to shift....

It's summer! It's getting hot in the Snow Monkey area (though still relatively cool compared to places like Tokyo and Kyoto) and the Jigokudani monkeys are feeling the arrival of summer. They've taken...

The Boss of the Jigokudani Monkey troop (named Togura 95, nicknamed Little Black because of his dark fur) hasn't been seen for almost three weeks now. It is not unusual for male monkeys to separate fr...

The month of June has begun and brought with it whole new monkey behavior. The new-born baby monkeys of the Jigokudani Snow Monkeys have become a little bit more confident, finally pulling away from t...

The Snow Monkey Resorts Info and Gift Shop is the shop that is found right in front of the trail entrance to the Jigokudani Monkey Park. It is the last stop before you begin your 30-minute long journe...

It's beginning to get warm in Japan, with all the snow on the mountains slowly but surely melting to finally make the high peaks accessible hiking paths. The behavior of the monkeys has changed wi...

Even though this region is called the Snow Monkey area, we have more than six months without snow. Our Spring, Summer, and Autumn all have their own attractions. In this article we will expand on the ...

The blossoms are finally blooming in the town of Yamanouchi, the town closest to the Snow Monkey Park. Here are a few photo's to give you an impression of the colorful trees.   Here you...

Most of Japan have now seen the last of the sakura blossoms. The cherry flowers in places like Tokyo and Kyoto have fallen from the trees. The trees in Yamanouchi (also known as the snow monkey area) ...

The sun is out and the monkeys are here for the sunshine! While many people think that the monkeys only appear in winter, they are here all year round. Spring is a lovely time to see the Japanese maca...

The Japanese macaques of Jigokudani Monkey Park are known as the "Snow Monkeys". There is however, plenty of time in the year without snow. There is snowfall from the end of November until the beginni...

Snow Monkey Park situation updated (January 22nd 2017) The onsen pipe line has been fixed yesterday late afternoon and the snow monkey park is back to regular business today. There are tons of snow...

Autumn is only just starting, but here in Japan's mountainous region winter will come sooner than you think. Some of you reading this might be in the process of planning your trip to the snow monkeys ...

Welcome to Snow Monkey Resorts in Nagano, Japan ! Here at Snow Monkey Resorts we would like to on top of your great experience with the snow monkeys make your stay in the area, or even your day-trip, ...

A day-trip is never complete without eating some really good food! So you are about to go up or you just got back from the snow monkeys and you are looking for someplace to eat and/or drink? Please lo...

  Since it is getting colder every day, SNOW MONKEY RESORTS INFO & GIFT SHOP located next to the entrance of Snow Monkey Park is providing rental service for winter wear. To be able to...