Visitors heading to Nagano in the first-half of 2022 have the chance to join one of Japan’s great Buddhist festivals, with the city’s near-1400 year old Zenkoji Temple hosting the ‘Zenkoji Maedaichi Honzon Gokaicho’ or more simply, the ‘Gokaicho’. Held every six to seven years, the festival celebrates the history and heritage of the temple – one of the oldest and most important Buddhist temples in Japan – over several months.
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The festival was due to take place in 2021 however due to the ongoing impact of COVID-19, was postponed until 2022 with the scheduled extended from late-March until late-June. In that time numerous events and ceremonies will take place, as the temple attracts millions of visitors from around Japan and the world. For full details, see our ‘Zenkoji Gokaicho 2022: Everything You Need to Know’ main page.

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Day Tour

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1-Day Tour: Snow Monkeys, Zenkoji Temple & Sake in Nagano

Spots:
NaganoSnow MonkeyHakuba
Pick-up:
Nagano CityHakuba
Drop-off:
Nagano CityHakuba
¥17,800
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Throughout the festival period, our 1-Day Snow Monkeys, Zenkoji Temple & Sake Tour will operating everyday – a great way to enjoy the temple at one of the most special times in combination with ‘sake’ tasting, lunch and an early afternoon visit to the Jigokudani Monkey Park. The early stages of the festival should coincide with temple’s cherry blossom trees blooming and with the year’s baby monkeys typically appearing in the park from late-April onward, the tour promises to be especially worthwhile in 2022 while the Gokaicho is in full-swing.

Multi-day Tour

Tea Ceremony and Zenkoji Experience Tour with ‘Shukubo’ Stay

Spots:
Nagano
Pick-up:
Nagano City
Drop-off:
Nagano City
¥33,800
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