2-Day Snow Monkeys & Snow Fun Winter Tour inc. Luxury Onsen Hotel

Available from December to March, this family-friendly two-day tour highlights the best of Nagano in winter with a visit to Zenko-ji – one of Japan’s oldest and most important Buddhist temples – and visit to the Jigokudani Monkey Park on Day 1, followed by a morning of snow fun activities in Japan’s largest ski resort – Shiga Kogen – and early afternoon return to Nagano on Day 2. Including accommodation at one of Nagano’s best hot spring hotels and all led by a locally-based guide.

Highlights

• Visit Nagano’s near-1400 year old Zenko-ji Temple followed by a guided ‘sake’-tasting, lunch and early afternoon visit to the Jigokudani Monkey Park on Day 1

• Experience traditional Japanese comfort and service with an afternoon and evening at the finest ‘ryokan’ (traditional guesthouse) in the Snow Monkey Park area including its acclaimed ‘kaiseki’ (multi-course fine dining) and unwind in the hotel’s refined ‘onsen’ (in/outdoor natural hot springs)

• Discover Shiga Kogen – Japan’s largest ski resort! – and have fun snow-scooting, snow-biking, and sledding in the beauty of the snow-covered landscape before enjoying lunch before returning to Nagano in the early afternoon on Day 2

• Including transport lunch on both days, dinner, breakfast and led by a locally-based, English-speaking guide

Want to join this tour from Tokyo? It’s easy to do! Scroll to the bottom for our FAQs including train services that you can use to join the tour!

Want to join this tour from Hakuba? In winter, we offer pick-up and drop-off at three points in Hakuba – see below for details.

Description

The tour begins at Nagano Station at 09:35, where your guide will greet you and once all guests have arrived, you’ll be on your way to nearby Zenko-ji Temple. As a registered National Treasure, the temple is the most important cultural site in Nagano and one of the oldest and most important Buddhist temples in Japan. You will be guided around the temple before your guide will give you the opportunity to explore the surrounding precinct by yourself before leading you a guided ‘sake’-tasting. Home to a huge number of breweries, Nagano is synonymous with sake and no visit to the region is complete without delving into Japan’s most famous beverage (non-alcoholic options are also available).

Lunch is at nearby Monzen Terrace Enya with the menu varying my season, from your choice of a warming beef, chicken, or vegetarian hot pot in the winter months, to mixed vegetarian sushi plates and Nagano-style chicken or seasonal grilled vegetables through spring, summer, and autumn.

It’s then time to head-out of Nagano, as you are transported to the Jigokudani Monkey Park. Your guide will take you along the forest trail which leads to the park and into Jigokudani – rather dramatically translating to ‘Hell’s Valley’. Home to the only troop of monkeys in the world known to bathe in hot springs, there are no barriers separating you from the wild monkeys, making this a unique and memorable experience.

Your guide will introduce these truly curious creatures and provide you time to enjoy the unique experience of observing them at close proximity. Following your visit to the park, your guide will accompany to your accommodation and say their goodbyes, leaving you to enjoy the comfort and indulgence of a traditional ‘ryokan’ (guesthouse).

Accommodation

Hotel Senjukaku is one of Nagano’s best hot spring hotels – a place to relax, unwind, and indulge in traditional Japanese service. Checking-in around 16:00, the late afternoon and evening are yours to enjoy including the indoor and outdoor hot springs and ‘kaiseki’ (traditional multi-course) dinner. Please note, that this tour comes with a Japanese Standard Room including futon (on-floor) bedding and private bathroom but does not have a hot spring in the room. You can choose to upgrade your room – dependent on availability – including rooms with Western-style bedding and in-room ‘onsen’ however please note that it will increase the price of the tour substantially.

Day 2

The second begins with breakfast at your hotel before you guide collects you at 09:30 from where you’ll head directly to the Maruike ski fields of Shiga Kogen for a morning of snow fun with an activity area sectioned-off for you to enjoy using snowscoots, snowdrives, and good old-fashioned sleds and tubes. Suitable for the whole family, guests who get their confidence up have the option of heading-up the nearest ski run, accompanied by the guide, who will race to back to the bottom.

While there, you’ll enjoy lunch at a nearby restaurant – options including ‘katsu’ curry, ‘katsudon’, hamburger steak, pizza, ‘sansai soba’, and different types of ‘udon’ are available – looking onto the ski field and have plenty of time to take photographs among the winter landscape before heading back down from the mountains toward Yudanaka Station, where you will board the Snow Monkey Express train back to Nagano Station, where your tour ends at 14:40 – allowing you to continue your Japan journey onto your next destination.

MEETUP POINTS

This tour operates to and from Nagano Station with the option of also joining from three points in Hakuba:

1  / HAKUBA TOKYU HOTEL, WADANO @ 07:40

Please wait at the entrance of the hotel lobby. This is a group tour with multiple pickup points to follow. Please ensure you are at the hotel entrance prior to the meeting time and look for the guide wearing a SNOW MONKEY RESORTS tour tag. The tour cannot wait and will need to depart on-time.

2  /  HAKUBA HAPPO BUS TERMINAL @ 07:55

Please wait inside the bus terminal and stay warm. Several tours operate from the bus terminal be sure to look for the guide wearing a SNOW MONKEY RESORTS tour tag and confirm that you’re joining the correct tour. Please ensure you are at the terminal before the meeting time. The tour cannot wait and will need to depart on-time.

3 / ECHOLAND BASE CAMP HAKUBA @ 08:05

The final pickup point in Hakuba is Hakuba Base Camp Echoland. Please wait at the main building. Several tours operate from the bus terminal be sure to look for the guide wearing a SNOW MONKEY RESORTS tour tag and confirm that you’re joining the correct tour. Please ensure you are at the terminal before the meeting time. The tour cannot wait and will need to depart on-time.

4 / HOTEL KOKUSAI 21 @ 09:10

Please wait at the entrance of the hotel lobby. This is a group tour with multiple pickup points to follow. Please ensure you are at the hotel entrance prior to the meeting time – as the guide will not have time to wait or have reception call you room – and look for the guide wearing a SNOW MONKEY RESORTS tour tag. The tour cannot wait and will need to depart on-time.

5  /  NAGANO STATION @ 09:35

The meetup point is inside the station, in front of the Information Board directly across from the Shinkansen ticket gates. Be sure to look for the guide wearing a SNOW MONKEY RESORTS tour tag and ensure you are there prior to the meetup time as the tour will need to depart by 09:40.

6  /  PATIO DAIMON / ZENKO-JI AREA @ 09:55

The meetup point is outside of the restaurant called ‘Monzen Terrace Enya’. Please stand on the wooden decking / outdoor seating area directly in front of the restaurant and be sure to look for the guide wearing a SNOW MONKEY RESORTS tour tag. Please also ensure you are there prior to the meetup time as the tour will need to depart by 10:00.

NOTES

Included

• Transport on from / to Hakuba and Nagano and all listed destinations / activities

• Entry fees to the snow activity area in Shiga Kogen and Jigokudani Monkey Park and guided experiences at Zenko-ji and ‘sake’-tasting

• Lunch on both day (vegetarian options are available)

• Accommodation at Hotel Senjukaku (standard room with futon bedding) inc. dinner and breakfast)

• English-speaking guide

Excluded

• Additional food, snacks & drinks

• Private hot spring option at hotel (however it can be arranged at check-in for additional JPY1500 for 45 min. per group)

• (If required) Rental boots and clothing at the ski resort – these can be provided for an additional cost of JPY500 per item.

• Skiing or snowboarding at Shiga Kogen

• Shinkansen / ‘Bullet Train’ tickets to/from Nagano

What to bring

• The temperature in Shiga Kogen is cold and could be as low as -5°C to -15°C. Please be dressed in warm, waterproof clothing and boots for snow activities. If required, clothing including snow jackets, pants, gloves and snow boots can be rented at the Snow Monkey Park. Please note that there is limited availability for snow outfits, so if you have waterproof, warm clothes fit for snow activities, please bring these with you on the day of the tour. 

• Guests are required to walk in and out of the monkey park along a 1.6km / 1 mile trail. In winter, the trail and park will be affected by snow and ice. This walk should not be attempted by anyone who is mobility impaired, in a wheelchair or cannot confidently walk an extended distance over snow and ice. Snow fun activities also require guests to be of reasonable fitness and mobility to enjoy. If you have concerns about your or a member of your groups ability to handle the conditions, please contact us to discuss prior to booking. Rental boots (JPY500) are available close to the monkey park, if required. Crampons (metal spikes that attach underneath your shoes/boots) can also be purchased, if required.

Other Information

• This tour includes a reasonable amount of walking over the two days, including snow activities in Shiga Kogen and a 1.6 km / 1 mile unsealed trail leading to and from the Jigokudani Monkey Park. It is suitable for anyone of reasonable fitness.

• This tour is not wheelchair accessible and may not be suitable for mobility-impaired travels. Should you have any concerns about your ability to join the tour, please contact us to discuss prior to booking.

• This tour uses different forms of transport including van, microbus or bus and train.

• This tour includes lunch at Monzen Terrace Enya on Day 1. On rare occasions it may not be possible to use this restaurant in which case we would switch to another, comparable location. Please note that the restaurant may change their menu from time-to-time and lunch may differ to the description included.

• On Day 2 of this tour following snow fun activities and lunch in Shiga Kogen, you will be transported to Yudanaka Station to take the Snow Monkey Express train back to Nagano Station. The cost of this train is included in the tour price. Please note, the second day of the tour will join our 1-Day Snow Monkeys & Snow Fun in Shiga Kogen Tour. Should there be other guests on the day who have joined our 1-day tour, the guide and other guests will disembark the bus at the monkey park and the driver will then drop you at nearby Yudanaka Station – only 5 minutes drive. You can then jump straight onto the train to return to Nagano – unaccompanied but with your fare already paid. Should there be no 1-day guests on that day, your guide will accompany you back on the train.

• On Day 2 of the tour, the itinerary can be reversed and we may visit the monkeys first followed by lunch and Shiga Kogen, depending on weather and road conditions and other factors on the day. It is unlikely that this would happen however we keep the option open in an effort to provide guests the best possible experience on the day.

• This tour does not include skiing or snowboarding, nor is there the time to arrange your own skiing and snowboarding while at the resort.

• Entry to the snow activity area including use of the gear – such as snowdrives, snowscoots, sleds, and tubes – is included in this tour. Should they be required, googles and gloves should also be available free of charge. Rental snowboots, pants and jackets are available but at a fee of JPY500 for 1 item or JPY1000 for 3 items. We cannot however pre-book or guarantee the availability and size of rental gear therefore we encourage all guests to come dressed and prepared as best as possible.

• This tour includes lunch at the restaurant of Maruike Hotel on Day 2. On rare occasions it may not be possible to use this restaurant in which case we would switch to another, comparable location. Please note that the restaurant may change their menu from time-to-time and the tour lunch may different to description included

• During the winter it is common to see the monkeys enjoying the hot spring there is no guarantee that there will be monkeys in the bath including from spring to autumn.

• There are a few days in the year that the monkeys might not come down to the park or that the monkeys leave the park early. While this is unlikely to happen, it is possible and is outside of our control.

• Infants (0-5) will not receive lunch at either restaurant on Day 1 and Day 2. Should you require a meal for your infant, please order and pay the restaurant directly.

• This tour is insured however as the guest, you are required to have your own travel insurance which covers snow activities including riding chairlifts and using snowdrives, snowscoots, sleds, and tubes. Please confirm that your insurance policy covers this activity prior to the tour.

• This tour includes a Japanese Standard Room with traditional futon (on-floor) bedding. It is possible to upgrade your room and/or extend your stay at Hotel Senjukaku however please note to do so, the tour price is likely to substantially increase. If you are interested in this option, please contact us at to discuss prior to booking.

• Infants aged 3-5 years are subject to a charge of JPY12,100. This pays for general amenities including a separate futon and both dinner and breakfast.

• Infants aged 0-2 year are subject to a charge of JPY6,600. This pays for general amenities including a separate futon but does not include dinner or breakfast. If you require dinner and/or breakfast for an infant aged 0-2 you will need to select payment of JPY12,100. Please include this information in the Special Requirements field.

• If you wish to apply as a single traveller, the hotel applies an additional fee of +JPY11,000 to the tour price.

• Pricing of this tour varies depending on which date you choose to stay at Hotel Senjukaku and the hotel rate on that day noting that weekends, public holidays and other peak times equate to higher accommodation rates.

• This tour is booked by request. Once you submit your booking request, we will reply within 24 hours but typically, much sooner.