Seasonal Change Nozawa Japan Seasonal Shift – Summer Vs Winter in Nozawa These two shots are of the same little house on the main road into Nozawa. Slide to see the difference! Taken a few years apart and in totally different seasons. The first shot in the winter February 2016 and the second a few days ago. The old couple in the photo certainly had their work cut out for them that year. The season just gone was probably more snow. If you can see the open grill in the front, there is running water under the ground and they shovel the snow into the pit so it melts and is carried away to the bigger river below. Seasonal Change […]
Latest News from Nozawa Onsen
Hike Nozawa Green Season
Hike Nozawa Green Season The Green Season is here in Nozawa It is amazing how quickly the landscape changes around here from white to Green. Always beautiful to see the transition and witness Mother Nature pull on her green coat. The temps have been up and down and still some cool nights but the days are warm. Great weather for Hiking and Nozawa has some amazing hikes. You can explore them by just walking out the front door of your lodging. Wander through the forests, up the mountains and discover temples and more. Beautiful day hikes then come back at the end of the day and soak in an onsen and grab some delicious food at one of the many […]
Mountain Climbing Mecca Japan
Mountain Climbing Mecca Japan Still snow in Japan if you go high enough. Kamikochi is a Mecca for hikers and mountain lovers in Japan. Have been meaning to get there for a while and luckily managed to get there this week. With the Spring season in full swing it is the perfect time to visit. The valley floor is green and fresh mountain water runs deep through its veins. Above 1700m there is still plenty of snow so need to be prepared with crampons and mountain gear if venturing up high. Kamikochi is just over a 2 hour drive from Nozawa via Matsumoto. Public transport will take a fair bit longer and either way you need to take the Alpico […]
Summer Holiday Nozawa Japan
Summer Holiday Nozawa Japan After the lifts stop rolling in Nozawa Firstly a huge Arigatou gozaimasu to everyone that visited Nozawa Onsen this season. It was a pleasure having you and hope you really enjoyed all the amazing snow this winter. It was a big one, one of the biggest and best for snow in over a decade. Very encouraging in these times of global warming that we can still have so much snow. There were days when we thought it was never going to stop falling. There was lots of action on the slopes and on the shovels in town to keep ahead of the amazing onslaught from Mother Nature. Summer Holiday Nozawa Japan The Corona affect naturally still […]
Japan Open June 2022
Japan Open June 2022 Japan to further ease border restrictions. Looks like you may be skiing in Japan next Winter Don’t like to count our snowflakes before they fall but an announcement by Kishida san the Japanese Prime Minister just yesterday in London is the strongest indication for a while that Japan will reopen to tourists in June. He has vowed to follow other G7 nations in making entry for overseas guests much smoother. According to the Nikkei News, the Japanese government is looking at lifting the ban on tourist visas soon. Officials want to see what impact the Golden Week holidays have on coronavirus case numbers before making a decision in two weeks’ time. It’s possible the border will […]
Children Ski Japan Nozawa
Children Ski Japan Nozawa Children’s Day, celebrating with a beautiful day in Nozawa Children’s Day is a Japanese national holiday taking place every year on this day the 5th of May and is the final celebration in the Golden Week holiday. It is a day set aside to respect children’s personalities and to celebrate their happiness. Lots of Koi Nobori or Carp Streamers flying high around the village. They symbolize parent’s wishes for their children to grow up healthy and strong as the carp make their way up stream. Children Ski Japan Nozawa Plenty going on for kids around Nozawa today. Can head up the gondola for a ski, down to the lake for a paddle. Also lots happening outdoors […]
Last Week Season Nozawa
Last Week Season Nozawa The Last week of the Ski Season in Nozawa Fun time to be in Nozawa at the moment, the streets starting to buzz with Golden Week guests. It has been constant but not flat out yet. However think tomorrow all that is going to change with most guest houses in town saying they are pretty full tomorrow night. Probably will be a few busy days then pretty quiet to see in the end of the season. It has been pretty cool too. In town is nice when the sun is out but at night has been Jacket weather for sure. Single digits up on the slopes too. These cold temps have helped to preserve the base […]
May Ski Nozawa Japan
May Ski Nozawa Japan Welcome to Nozawa Golden Week Beautiful start to the holidays today with plenty of sunshine in Nozawa, We even got a few centimetres of snow up top overnight. A good amount of people enjoying the outdoors up on the slopes and around town. Even a bit of a lift line up the top at Yamabiko, have not seen that for a while. All the lifts up top operational with the Skyline connector, Uenotaira and Paradise lifts also rolling today. The snow is naturally slushy and slow on the flats but there are pockets of fun to be enjoyed including the natural half pipes up top. May Ski Nozawa Japan Temps at a respectable 7 degrees above […]
Spring Best Place Japan
Spring Best Place Japan Golden Week ready to kick off in Nozawa Tomorrow Friday is the first day of the long Japanese Golden Week holiday, a collection of four national holidays within seven days combined with some well placed weekends. Checking the bookings and looks like a few arriving in town tomorrow for a night or two then busy again on the 3rd and 4th of May. Spring Best Place Japan Many guest houses, cafes and restaurants along with the Ski Resort are getting ready to welcome everyone for a great week ahead. Still 120cm of base up top at Yamabiko a lot more than many seasons thanks to the stellar Snow Fall we had this year. Nice sunny day […]
Sakura Cherry Blossoms Nozawa
Sakura Cherry Blossoms Nozawa Sakura Fubuki – Cherry Blossoms falling like snow Have not seen much fresh snow fall in Nozawa for a while now but lots of Cherry Blossom petals as this beautiful fleeting flower reaches its peak bloom. Looking out the window it almost looks like snow falling. No chance of that at the moment though with the mercury at the front door hitting 25 degrees yesterday. Still a fun slushy ski up on the slopes with plenty of snow but definitely poor mans powder now. Fun and still reasonably fast on the steeps at Yamabiko early but the lower flatter slopes are slow going. A Big arigatou to all the crew that turned out on the weekend […]