The mountainous city of Nagano is famous for its old town, with the beautiful Zenko-ji Temple, and its snow monkeys in the mountains outside the city. In this report, I show you how I spent my day at the snow monkeys. And how I combined them with the nice small town of Obuse.
Snow Monkey Pass and transportation
The best option for your money is the Snow Monkey Pass as it includes both the transportation and the entrance to the park. It’s valid for two days and costs 3,600 Yen. The single entrance to the Snow Monkey Park is 500 Yen when you don’t need public transportation. With the pass you can use the Nagano Dentetsu Train line, the Nagaden local bus, and the Nagaden Express Bus. But you have to be aware that you can visit the Snow Monkey Park only once during that time.
Another thing you have to think of is that you have to buy the pass at the entrance to the Nagano Dentetsu Line in the underground station slightly outside of Nagano Station. It was very confusing for me at first, and I spent a few minutes walking around the station.
The way to the Snow Monkey Park
To make the most out of your day and don’t be in a hurry, I would recommend to take the express bus to the snow monkeys in the morning. It departs at the Nagano East Bus Terminal at the ast exit of Nagano Station. It takes around 45 minutes until you arrive at the bus station a little farther in the mountains. The walk to the monkeys starts from there.
The path is very well signed, so you don’t have to be scared to get lost. It goes through a town at first and passes a few onsen resorts on the way until you see the entrance to the forest in which the park is located.
You should prepare good walking shoes for the forest trail, and preferably ones that can get dirty. Although it didn’t rain during my visit, the path was very wet and slippery. But overall, it’s a nice hike through the nature without any big difficulties. When the forest ends and you see a long stairway up a hill, you know that you’re nearly there.
At the park
I arrived at the entrance and showed my pass, I couldn’t wait to finally see the monkeys. After the entrance, I still had to walk a few metres to the actual sight. Along the way you can already spot the monkeys. I spent some time there and got my first closer look of them. You just have to be careful not to touch them and get too close as they’re still wild animals.
The monkeys you see are Japanese macaques which are the most northern monkeys in the world. In contrast to many other monkey species they don’t live in a warm climate and can survive temperatures of -20 C degrees. The special thing about the monkeys there is the fact that they gather in the hot springs. So you can see many of them taking a hot bath.
When you arrive at the hot springs, you can see two different viewing platforms. One of them is on the left side of the hot springs where you can look down on the monkeys who take a bath. The other one is downstairs in front of the hot springs. You’re on the same level as the monkeys there. I’ve spent a good 30 minutes looking at the monkeys which are bathing and relaxing in the water. You just have to wait a few times to get into the front row as it can get busy. A fun fact, there is a live webcam on which you can see yourself on the internet. I even overheard the guy standing next to me calling someone to check the website. So I might be in his travel memories.
The way to Obuse
After spending some time with the monkeys, I decided to go back to the bus station. But firstly, I stopped at the info centre to read some more about the monkeys. Unfortunately, the building is very small and when there are too many people you can’t freely move around anymore.
When I got back to the bus station, I checked the timetable there and catched a bus to Yudanaka Station. The trains of the Nagano Dentetsu Line depart to Nagano from that station. The trains run slightly irregular at times, but normally they run more or less every 30 minutes. I didn’t return all the way to Nagano, because I decided to make a stop in the small town of Obuse.
The town of Obuse
Obuse is a city famous for its apple/chestnut plantations and products and the Japanese artist Hokusai Katsushika who spent a few years near the city. You can visit a museum in the city centre which displays some of his works.
My first destination was the city centre which has a small town vibe. It wasn’t busy during my visit and I often walked alone on the streets. You’re able to buy some delicious local apple or chestnut products from a few shops in the city centre. Overall, the old town is very small and when you don’t visit the shops or museums you’ll be quickly done with it. Although I recommend to get at least one small product. Many of them aren’t too expensive and taste great.
I also decided to visit two older temples outside the town at the bottom of the surrounding mountains. The way to them is already quite nice as you’re walking next to the plantations and farms. It’s a few kilometres to the eastwards of the city centre.
First, I went to Jokoji Temple. It’s a very old temple from the 15th century and is located slightly in the forest. It had a mystical and abandoned feeling when I walked up the long old stairway to the temple.
The second temple I visited is the most famous one in Obuse, Ganshoin Temple, which is famous for its big phoenix painting by Hokusai. It’s a peaceful temple which has some beautiful features. For example, the entrance gate or some waterplays around the entrance of the temple.
The way back to Nagano
It was already getting darker, and I walked back to the train station during sunset. At that time school ended as well. So I came across a few pupils who greeted me which was a nice sign. Back at the train station, I waited for my train back to Nagano.
I recommend you to take the limited express as it’s very comfortable and faster than the local train. It won’t cost you more when you have the Snow Monkey Pass.
Depending on where you stay you can get off before Nagano Station. Gondo and Zenkojishita Station are both closer to the old town.
