Geography
Nagano Prefecture is located in the center of the island of Honshu, in the area where the ridges of the Northern, Southern and Central Japanese Alps meet. Many of the peaks of this powerful mountain complex rise to more than three thousand meters. Due to the distance from the sea, the climate here is drier and colder, which makes these places ideal for active winter activities.
History
The city of Nagano was founded as a temple settlement at the famous Zenkoji Monastery, erected in the middle of the seventh century. Nagano Prefecture is renowned for its natural beauty, making it one of the most popular winter resorts in Japan. In 1998, the Winter Olympic Games were held here. Nagano thus became the second Japanese city after Sapporo to host the first White Olympics in Japan.
Culture, attractions
and entertainment
There are a huge number of winter and ski resorts in Japan, and Nagano is probably the largest and most famous of them. The leading role here is played by proximity to Tokyo: from the capital to Nagano it is faster to travel than to Niigata or, especially, Sapporo.
The city of Nagano itself is the center of Joshinetsu National Park, where there is a powerful winter entertainment industry with a convenient transport infrastructure that connects almost all the main resort destinations with bus routes. As a rule, every ski resort also has hot thermal springs - onsens - which makes your vacation complete and varied.
Major tourist centers include Hakuba, Shiga Kogen and Nozawa Onsen. All these places offer a combination of winter sports, primarily skiing or snowboarding, with thermal springs. Separately, it is worth noting that the Shiga Kogen ski resort gained worldwide fame during the Olympics: it was here that the Olympic slopes were laid. This is the largest ski resort in Nagano, with 21 routes, all connected by ski lifts and cable cars.
And at the foot of Shiga Kogen there is also the world-famous Jigokudani Onsen. It is here that you can admire Japanese macaques, or “snow monkeys” as they are called here, taking hot baths in the open air. The best time to visit here is at the end of winter, when the frosts have already subsided and the monkeys still spend time in the hot waters of the onsen.
However, Nagano Prefecture is famous for more than just its ski resorts and onsens. The main prayer hall of Zenkoji Monastery, where the city was founded, has the status of “National Treasure of Japan”. It is here that Japan's first image of Buddha is kept, which was brought to the country in the seventh century. Usually the image is not available for viewing, even its duplicate is exhibited once every six years.
Another famous landmark in this region is Matsumoto Castle, one of the best preserved medieval Japanese castles and also one of the four most famous castles in Japan.
The most convenient way to get from Tokyo to the prefectural capital, Nagano, is by the Shinkansen super express train in just 1 hour and 30 minutes.
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