Japan (Lonely Planet, 11th Edition) - Chris Rowthorn [205]
Practically in its own forest uphill from the bus station, the sprawling onsen ryokan Hirayu-no-mori (; 89-3338; www.hirayunomori.co.jp; r per person with 2 meals from ¥8000, bath day use ¥500) boasts 16 different rotemburo pools (gender separate), plus indoor and private baths. After 9pm, they’re exclusively for overnight guests. Rooms are Japanese-style, and meals are hearty and local.
The dignified Hirayu-kan (; 89-3111; www.hirayukan.com; r per person with 2 meals from ¥13,800) has 60 rooms (Japanese, Western and combination style), plus a splendid garden and dreamy indoor and outdoor baths. All rooms have private facilities. It’s a short walk past the turn-off for Tsuyukusa.
To reach the small Hirayu Camping Ground (; 89-2610; fax 89-2130; camp sites per adult/child ¥600/400, parking ¥1500; end Apr-Oct), turn right out of the station, and it’s about 700m ahead on the left.
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FUKUCHI ONSEN
0578
This relatively untouristed onsen town, a short ride north of Hirayu Onsen, has rural charm, a morning market and two outstanding baths.
Yumoto Chōza (; 89-0099; fax 89-2010; www.cyouza.com, in Japanese; r per person with 2 meals from ¥21,150), one of Central Honshū’s finest onsen ryokan, is reached by a long, rustic, covered walkway. Exquisite mountain cuisine is served at irori and you’re surrounded by elegant traditional architecture and five indoor and two outdoor pools. Half of the 32 rooms have en-suite irori. Reservations are essential. By bus, get off at Fukuchi-Onsen-shimo.
A restaurant-cum-onsen, Mukashibanashi-no-sato (; 89-2793; bath ¥500; 8am-5pm, closed irregularly) is set back from the street in a traditional farmhouse with fine indoor and outdoor baths, free on the 26th of each month. Out the front, there’s an asa-ichi (morning market; 6-10am daily Apr-Nov, Sat & Sun Dec-Mar). By bus, get off at Fukuchi-Onsen-kami bus stop.
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SHIN-HOTAKA ONSEN
0578
The reason to visit Shin-Hotaka Onsen, north of Fukuchi Onsen, is the Shin-Hotaka Ropeway (; 89-2252; www.okuhi.jp/rop/frtop.html; one way/return ¥1500/2800; 6am-5.15pm 1 Aug-last Sun in Aug, 8.30am-4.45pm late Aug-Jul, additional hours at peak times). At 1308m, this two-stage cable car is Japan’s – some say Asia’s – longest, whisking you 2156m up Nishi Hotaka-dake (2909m). The entrance is a few minutes’ walk uphill from Shin-Hotaka Onsen bus station.
Assuming clear weather, views from the top are spectacular, from observation decks and walking trails – in winter, snows can easily be shoulder deep. In season (only, please!), fit, properly equipped hikers with ample time can choose longer hiking options from the top cable-car station, Nishi Hotaka-guchi, including over to Kamikōchi (p280, three hours), which is much easier than going the other way.
Adjacent to the bus terminal is a spartan public onsen (; admission free; 9.30am-4pm). During summer it’s crowded with tourists, but in the off-season your only company is likely to be a few weary shift workers from the nearby hydroelectric plant.
Information is available at Oku-Hida Spa Tourist Information Centre (; 89-2458; 10am-5pm) by the bus terminal. There is only one (unappealing) hotel in Shin-Hotaka; visitors are better off bussing in from Kamikōchi, Fukuchi Onsen or Hirayu Onsen. For transit info, see the boxed text.
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NAGANO-KEN
Known as Shinshū in earlier days, Nagano-ken is one of Japan’s most enjoyable visits, for the beauty of its mountainous terrain (it claims the title ‘Roof of Japan’), traditional architecture, cultural offerings and unique foods.
Japan Alps National Park is the big draw, along with several quasi national parks that attract skiers, campers, hikers, mountaineers and onsen aficionados. Nagano, the prefectural capital, boasts a nationally important temple and makes a useful base for day trips, while Nagano-ken’s second city, Matsumoto, mixes culture, outdoor pursuits and a National Treasure castle.
If you’re travelling in Nagano-ken via the JR Chūō Line (which links Nagano with