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Stay in a Koyasan ‘Shukubo’ (Temple Lodging)
Known as ‘shukubo’ in Japanese, temple lodgings often surround important temples throughout Japan. Intended to provide accommodation to pilgrims, most shukubo are open to guests of any faith or background, regardless of whether than are there on pilgrimage or visiting for other reasons. Mount Koya is one of the most popular places to experience staying in a temple lodging with over fifty temples offering accommodation. Lodgings typically offer private Japanese-style rooms featuring tatami matting, sliding doors, on-floor futon bedding and shared bathrooms. Dinner is usually served around 17:30 to 18:00 with guests welcome to join morning prayers around 06:00 before enjoying breakfast around 07:00. Food is usually vegetarian, in-keeping with […]
Magome-juku
Magone-juku is a historic post town – known as ‘juku’ or ‘shukubamachi’ – that once serviced a 70km trade route through the Kiso Valley, part of the greater 500km ‘Nakasendo Road’ that connected Kyoto and Edo – now called Tokyo. As one of five official highways between Kyoto and Edo, the road was busy with government officials, merchants and pilgrims, typically forced by the shogunate to move on foot. As a result, post towns developed along the road to service the needs of travelers. The town center has been extensively restored including a broad stone walkway and ban on vehicles entering during the day. Magome is spread along a steeply […]
Narai-juku
Narai-juku is a historic post town – known as ‘juku’ or ‘shukubamachi’ – that once serviced a 70km trade route through the Kiso Valley, part of the greater 500km ‘Nakasendo Road’ that connected Kyoto and Edo – now called Tokyo. As one of five official highways between Kyoto and Edo, the road was busy with government officials, merchants and pilgrims, typically forced by the shogunate to move on foot. Located at the midpoint between Edo and Kyoto, Narai was the wealthiest of the 69 towns that marked-out the Nakasendo Road. Today, much of the town remains and visitors relish in the extent of the preservation. Historic buildings stretch on much […]
Photoblog: Jigokudani Monkey Park in February 2022
The snow continued to fall through the second-half of January and now, well into February; and with that, it’s time for our monthly photoblog! The park is looking with huge amounts of snow piling-up, especially on the southern side of the park which gets little sun during the winter. Indeed some of our guides have been remarking that the snow in early February was the most they had ever seen in the park. The regular snowfall this winter has meant that not only is the park looking great but the forest trail leading to it has stayed in great condition. During the course of winter, the many visitors walking along […]
Photoblog: Jigokudani Monkey Park in January 2022
It’s a very heart-felt Happy New Year from the Jigokudani Monkey Park! We hope our friends all over the world had a wonderful New Year and we wish everyone all the best for the year to come! The year has gotten-off to a tremendous start at the park, with plenty of snow blanketing the area and monkeys engaging in their usual winter antics. Over the New Year, plenty of visitors took the chance to head to the park and enjoy seeing the unique sight of monkeys going about their lives amongst the snow. As always in winter, the monkeys have been coming in big numbers and spending most daylight hours […]
Photoblog: Jigokudani Monkey Park in December 2021
It’s Christmas Eve and with that, a very Merry Christmas from the Snow Monkey Park! It’s been something of a strange start to winter here at the Jigokudani Monkey Park. We had some good dumps of heavy snow early-on, blanketing the park in the white stuff and sending the monkeys into the usual winter behaviour of soaking in the hot spring. But then, the snow stopped and other than the occasional flurry, there hasn’t been a whole lot of action since. One side of the park – the side that doesn’t receive sunlight through winter – remains buried in snow while the other side, over the river, is patchy with […]
Photoblog: Jigokudani Monkey Park in October 2021
After something of a hiatus with back with our October photoblog for the Jigokudani Monkey Park. Thanks to COVID, the past few months have been exceedingly quiet around Nagano and at the park. But as we enjoy the beauty of autumn and look towards winter, this a looking positive as things gradually open-up and visitors are trickling back. For anyone headed to Nagano in the next week or two, you still have a chance to see some beautiful autumn leaves around the park and Nagano. A little later than usually, the leaves are looking fantastic right now with the mountain rising-up behind the monkey park putting on a spectacular show […]
#GOTOTRAVEL: The Snow Has Started Falling in Nagano – Plan & Book Your Nozawa Onsen Ski/Snowboard Trip for Winter 2020/21!
Once best known for its hot springs and as a place of healing, Nozawa Onsen has in more recent years emerged as one of Nagano’s most popular ski resorts, offering great powder, a good mix of terrain and a lively village at night. Our ‘Nozawa Onsen Snow Resort’ page has everything you need to know about the resort including all the stats, operating dates, highlights, ticket info, rental and ski school, facilities for families, accommodation info and how to get there. Boasting around 300 hectares of terrain, the resort is particularly well-suited to snowboarders and international visitors, who flock to Nozawa each winter. A such, the resort caters well to […]
#GOTOTRAVEL: Shiga Kogen – Everything You Need To Know About Japan’s Largest Ski Resort & ‘Go To Travel’ Deals for Winter 2020/21!
Just over an hour from Nagano Station, Shiga Kogen is Japan’s largest and highest ski resort offering over 600 hectares of terrain spread across eighteen ski areas. Covered by an all-mountain pass, Shiga is equally well-known for the reliability of its snow and length of its season – the longest of any resort in Nagano. Our ‘Shiga Kogen Ski Resort’ page includes everything you need to know about Japan’s largest resort including a breakdowns of ski areas and runs, statistic and highlights, 2020/21 ticket prices, rental and ski school info, facilities for families and children, accommodation and transport information. For residents of Japan, our ski and snowboard packages for winter […]