Good little travel article in an Australian Newspaper “ The Sunday Mail – Escape Section” about a Holiday in Japan on the weekend, called a Yen for Japan. It features 25 things about travelling in the Land of the Rising Sun and what makes it such a safe, interesting and easy place to have a holiday.
No mention of Nozawa Onsen which is not always such a bad thing!
It does mention the importance of doing your research before you go, make sure you know your way around the big cities and understand the unique customs that make Japan so special.
Great if you can study up a bit of the language too before you come. Japanese is not as hard as some people may think. The speaking and listening are just like any other language. The reading and writing are a bit more complex but you can learn the basic Hiragana and Katakana with just 46 symbols in each. If get into it can have a grasp of it in a few days of study. Then can read basic signs etc. Kanji with over 5000 symbols is a whole other ball game.
More people in Nozawa now speak a bit of English but still many shop and restaurant owners cannot. But that is half the charm of travelling in a quaint Japanese Village.
Many rural parts of Japan and even in the big cities like Tokyo if you have some Japanese it will be a whole different travel experience and the locals will really appreciate you making the effort.
Please let us know if have any questions on Japan or Nozawa can check out the Nozawa Holidays site Nozawa Holidays Ski Japan or drop us a mail to team@nozawaholidays.com