Tag: Nagano

Skiing in one of Japan’s largest ski area: Shiga Kogen

Icihnose Ski Resort in Shiga Kogen photographed by by Native Expat 2025

Last Tuesday, Feb 11 was National Foundation Day - 建国記念の日 (Kenkoku kinen no hi) and a public holiday in Japan so we ventured out to 志賀高原 (Shiga Kogen) for some skiing. More about the public holiday in my previous blog: https://nativeexpat.home.blog/2020/02/15/3-days-skiing-in-tsugaike-hakuba-japan/ About Shiga Kogen Shiga Kogen is located in Nagano prefecture and is Japan’s largest … Continue reading Skiing in one of Japan’s largest ski area: Shiga Kogen →

Ski weekend turned onsen weekend in Nozawa Onsen

Months ago, my husband booked the season's first ski weekend in one of our favourite onsen town, Nozawa Onsen. As the international tourists are now back like pre-pandemic era and Japanese are 'revenge' traveling to catch up on the missed travels during the pandemic, everywhere is booked well in advance. As I unpacked my ski … Continue reading Ski weekend turned onsen weekend in Nozawa Onsen →

1,350 year old onsen town, Yudanaka Onsen

Last weekend, we visited a yet another onsen town in Nagano, Japan called 湯田中温泉 (Yudanaka onsen) through autumnal mountainside in Nagano region. About Yudanaka Onsen Yudanaka onsen source was discovered 1,350 years ago and in a walkable region, there are 5 different onsen towns:1. 湯田中 (Yudanaka)2. 新湯田中温泉（Shinyudanaka）3. 星川(Hoshikawa)4. 穂波(Honami)5. 安代 (Andai) Each region have plenty … Continue reading 1,350 year old onsen town, Yudanaka Onsen →

Nagano’s Bessho onsen and natural wine bistro

November 23rd being a public holiday in Japan and the following day being my husband's birthday. He likes onsen♨️, beef🥩, natural wine🍷, nature🍁 and traveling🧳 so we headed for a quick getaway in Nagano for a celebrate his birthday at Bessho onsen and a natural wine bistro. Bessho Onsen Bessho onsen is the oldest onsen … Continue reading Nagano’s Bessho onsen and natural wine bistro →

Anniversary trip to Nagano and Gunma

We took last Friday off to celebrate our wedding anniversary💒 and decided to visit Nagano/Gunma prefectures for what we love: good food🍴, nature🌳 and onsen♨️. Start with good food at a rare cured ham maker in Japan On Friday, we visited 高山村 (Takayama Village) 45 minutes drive east from Nagano train station. A population of … Continue reading Anniversary trip to Nagano and Gunma →

White Christmas in Nozawa Onsen

Merry White Christmas from Nozawa Onsen! 🎄🎄I was dreaming of spending Christmas with my family who lives in Australia and Germany but it wasn't much of an option to be together, again.Nevertheless, my husband and I decided to make the most of spending the holiday season in this beautiful (and so far relatively Covid-19 safe) … Continue reading White Christmas in Nozawa Onsen →

Tokyo weekend getaway: Hakuba, Nagano

In the last week's Tokyo weekend getaway: Karuizawa, Nagano post, I shared the highlights from Karuizawa part of our 3 nights 4 days trip and in this post, I’ll share the highlights from Hakuba part of the same trip. About Hakuba Hakuba is located in the Northern Alps region in Nagano prefecture and people have enjoyed skiing … Continue reading Tokyo weekend getaway: Hakuba, Nagano →