Nozawa - Kansai

Hi There!

You could start giving advice here too, as your plan is exactly as I would do it! Osaka to Tokyo is the most expansive part of your journey so that would have to be covered in any event (which you do). 3 days in Nara is kinda long (most people visit as a day trip) so you could cut one day out there and stay longer in Tokyo to cover your trip Tokyo - Nagano as well.

Have you looked into getting to Nagano/Nazawa yet? Read our blog post about wintersport in Yuzawa, which is partly the same route.

Enjoy the snow!
Daniel

Thanks Dan, I am planning to head out from Nara early on 4 Feb so it will be closer to 2 days. If I have everything right I will be in Nara for Setsubun.
I haven't planned the Tokyo-Nozawa leg yet so any assistance you can give would be great. Thanks!!

Hi There!

Going to Nozawa is not that hard but does require a little planning upfront. There are two ways to travel there from Nagano.

First you would want to go to Nagano of course. To get there, take the Shinkansen from Tokyo. This shinkansen line is still pretty new and makes for a pleasant ride, it is covered by the JR Pass if you have one.

From Nagano, there are two options. Either the bus or the train.

Going there by bus, this is probably the best option if you have a lot of luggage as the express bus between Nagano and Nozawa has a special luggage compartment. Buses leave the station 4-6 times a day and cost 1,400-1,900 yen depending on the season. The downside is that information is only available about buses online in Japanese, so the best thing to do is to travel to Nagano and ask the tourist information there for help with the bus.

Going there by train, there's a direct local train connection between Nagano and Nozawa, however train times are a little irregular so be sure to plan ahead. The station for Nozawa is called TOGARINOZAWA-ONSEN, so be sure to look for that when planning with Hyperdia (you would end up somewhere totally different if you went to the station called Nozawa). Trains cost ¥ 740 and take about one hour. This part is also covered by the JR Pass. I would ask your accommodation for further directions from here.

I hope this helps!
Daniel