Activities Autumn in Ikeda Town Japan Travel Kyoto, Nikko and Fuji Five Lakes are some of the best places to see autumn leaves in Japan. Take a look at these incredible v...
Activities Sakura Season at Komoro Castle Park Kim Bergström From around Early to mid-April each year, the Komoro Castle Park is home to a sakura festival to celebrate the beauty of arou...
Accommodation Yamaura Stay Nannini Cristina Perched in the foothills of the Yatsugatake Mountains in Nagano is Yamaura, a lovely rural area that looks straight of an ol...
Food Uoriki: Japanese Dining in Nagano Peter Sidell In the centre of Nagano city in central Japan, Uoriki is a friendly little place serving hearty, tasty and very affordable Ja...
Culture Nagano Olympic Museum Kim Bergström Nagano played host to the Winter Olympics in 1998, and the Nagano Olympic Museum was created to inspire interest in the Games...
Activities Icicles of Light and Winter Lanterns 2025 Kim Bergström Running from the start of February until the end of March, the Icicles of Light and Winter Lanterns event features illuminate...
Food Singing Norwegian Wood at "Rizanbo" Jonathan Hewitt There are secrets in the forest of Karuizawa. One of them involves an Englishman, his Japanese wife and their seven year old ...
Culture A Hokusai on the Ceiling Robert Grey Ganshoin Temple, located in northern Nagano's town of Obuse, contains one of the best kept local secrets around -- a large ce...
Activities A Tomb with a View Robert Grey Those interested in Japanese culture and history may be familiar with kofun, the ancient burial mounds found all over the cou...
Beauty & Spa A Hot Spring Bath at 700 Meters Robert Grey At an altitude of 700 meters, you won't find many hot spring baths in Japan so far above sea level, and few will offer the br...
Food The Best Soba in Togakushi Robert Grey It has been said that Togakushi is the birthplace of soba. So why not go with the best of them all: the centuries-old, family...
Activities Togakushi's Lake Kagami-ike Robert Grey A little off the beaten path in Nagano City's Togakushi District is the breathtakingly beautiful Kagami-ike, an artificial re...
Activities Climbing Mount Ontake - 1 Steve Morton A hike through snow covered peaks on Mount Ontake, a very holy mountain. Part 1
Activities Meet the Real Wasabi in Nagano Suwannee Payne Many people might think the wasabi we eat at Japanese restaurants or the green wasabi powder that has to be mixed with water ...
Activities Climbing Mount Ontake - 2 Steve Morton Climbing Mount Ontake during the snowy season. It is a beautiful, holy mountain. Part 2.
