Karuizawa is an international highland resort that stays cool even during the summer. Its atmospheric shopping streets, museums and cafes are surrounded by lush forests and mountains. Take in the fresh air of the countryside while shopping or dining, cycling through wooded streets, or visiting tranquil ponds and waterfalls.

Location and Access

Karuizawa is a small resort town that sits on the border of Nagano and Gunma prefectures, just an hour from Tokyo Station by the Hokuriku Shinkansen bullet train. The same train departs Karuizawa heading towards Ueda Station (18 min.), Nagano Station (30 min.), Kanazawa Station (2 hrs.) and Tsuruga Station (3.25 hrs.), while the local Kita-Shinano line train connects Karuizawa to nearby cities such as Komoro and Tomi.

By car, it takes about 2.5 hours to drive to Karuizawa from Tokyo (depending on traffic). The closest exit is the Usui Karuizawa IC exit on the Joshin-etsu Expressway, about 35 minutes away from Karuizawa Station.

Getting Around Karuizawa

The majority of Karuizawa’s sightseeing spots and shopping streets are accessible from Karuizawa Station either on foot, by bicycle or via bus. Several bicycle rental shops can be found near the station.

Major stops on the local bus include Shiraito Falls, Kyu-Karuizawa Ginza Shopping Street, and Onioshidashi Park.

When to Visit

Due to its easy access from Tokyo, Karuizawa can be quite busy during Golden Week (the first week of May), the summer months from July to August, and autumn for fall foliage season (early October to early November).

Winter (early November to late March) is one of the least busy times to visit Karuizawa, and is a great time to enjoy skiing, snowboarding or other snow activities like sledding. Some facilities close for part or all of winter, so check their schedules before traveling.

Cherry blossoms bloom around mid- to late April in Karuizawa and neighboring cities. Small clusters of cherry blossoms can be found around Karuizawa proper, and some of Nagano’s most popular cherry blossom spots, specifically Ueda Castle Ruins Park and Komoro Kaikoen Castle Ruins Park, are easily accessible by train.

Things to Do

Karuizawa strikes a fine balance between the region’s refreshing natural environment and urban amenities such as cafes, shopping plazas and art galleries. Enjoy the outdoors, hop around the town’s numerous museums, or go cycling along its retro streets.

Shop and Dine at Karuizawa Prince Shopping Plaza, Kyu-Karuizawa Ginza Street or Harunire Terrace

The Karuizawa Prince Shopping Plaza

Kyu-Karuizawa Ginza Street

Harunire Terrace

The Karuizawa Prince Shopping Plaza, adjacent to Karuizawa Station, has 220 stores (at time of writing) including a range of luxury brands, popular fashion labels, outdoor and sports goods retailers and more. Taking advantage of the surrounding natural scenery, the plaza features an open-air design with expansive green lawns. You could spend a whole day here walking around and perusing to your heart’s content.

Further north from the station is Kyu-Karuizawa Ginza Street, the former main street of town with its own selection of souvenir shops, boutique stores, cafes and restaurants. The brick-paved road has a retro vibe reminiscent of the mid- to late 20th century (Japan’s Showa period).

The Harunire Terrace sits beneath a tree canopy near Hoshino Resort’s Tonbo no Yu hot spring and the Picchio Visitor’s center in Naka Karuizawa. It is a great place to soak up Karuizawa’s forest scenery while having a coffee at one of the cafes or restaurants here.

Visit Karuizawa’s Historical Hotels and Churchs

Around the aforementioned Kyu-Karuizawa Ginza Street are numerous monuments to the area’s history.

The Karuizawa Shaw Memorial Chapel was established by Alexander Croft Shaw, a missionary who visited Karuizawa in 1885 and was enamored by its lush nature and cool summer weather. The area soon after became a popular summer retreat among foreigners in Japan.

Several hotels with western architecture speak to this history, such as the Mampei Hotel, whose current building was built in 1936 and is still in operation to this day; and the former Mikasa Hotel (closed for renovations until Autumn 2025), built in 1905 in the American stick style of architecture and remained in business until 1970.

Diving even further back in Karuizawa’s history, you can take a walk along the Nakasendo Trail, which connected Kyoto and Edo from the 17th to 19th century. For a scenic trek through the area’s history, walk between the post-towns of Karuizawa-juku and Sakamoto-juku and climb over old Usui Pass along the border of Nagano and Gunma.

Take in the Natural Scenery of Shiraito Falls, Kumoba Pond or Old Usui Pass

Shiraito Falls

Kumoba Pond

The view from old Usui Pass observation platform

There are plenty of places around town to enjoy Karuizawa’s natural beauty.

The most well-known natural oasis in Karuizawa is Shiraito Falls, a 70-meter-long silky curtain of flowing water. The surrounding forests change with seasons—in summer offering vibrant greenery and in autumn offering fantastic foliage in vivid shades of red, yellow and orange. In winter, you can also see the waterfall illuminated at night.

Kumoba Pond is a popular destination in autumn for the fall foliage of the trees along the shoreline. It is also easily accessible by bike from Karuizawa Station.

If you’d like to stretch legs while taking in the fresh air, walking the 4-km-long nature trail from Kyu-Karuizawa to the top of old Usui Pass is a great way to spend the day (comfortable closed-toed shoes recommended). A delightfully retro red bus also runs from Kyu-Karuizawa to the old Usui Pass observation platform from late April to late November (see official website [machine-translated] here).

Visit Local Art Museums

Karuizawa New Art Museum

The Birch Moss Chapel

Musée Ando à Karuizawa

Hiroshi Senju Museum Karuizawa
Photo by Daici Ano ©Hiroshi Senju Museum Karuizawa

In addition to enjoying the outdoors or shopping around town, you can stop by one of Karuizawa's many museums to appreciate the works of Japanese and international artists, such as at the Karuizawa New Art Museum, which opened in 2012. It hosts a variety of rotating exhibitions and also offers viewing hours to the Birch Moss Chapel, a collaborative work between architect Kuma Kengo and French contemporary artist Jean-Michel Othoniel.

The Musée Ando à Karuizawa exhibits the works of Tsuguharu Foujita, a Japanese artist who perfected his craft while living in Paris in the early 20th century. The museum has a collection of 200 of his paintings.

The serene paintings of waterfalls, rivers and oceans of Hiroshi Senju are exhibited in an elegant hall bathed in natural light by its inner courtyards with floor-to-ceiling glass panes. Combined with the organic curves and sloping floor of the museum, its space the blurs the line between indoor and out. See the Hiroshi Senju Museum Karuizawa’s official website here.

To become a work of art yourself, you can head to the Karuizawa Trick Art Museum at the entrance of the Kyu-Karuizawa Ginza Shopping Street and step into any of its 13 optical illusions, including the Magical Zoo, the Strange Aquarium or the Mirror Labyrinth.

Winter Activities such as Skiing, Ice Skating or Curling

Skiing at the Karuizawa Prince Ski Resort

The Kera-ike Skating Rink

Curling at Karuizawa Kazakoshi Ice Park

When thinking winter activities in Nagano, places like Hakuba, Nozawa Onsen or Myoko may be first on your mind, but Karuizawa is home of the earliest opening ski resort in Japan! The Karuizawa Prince Ski Resort opens for skiing and snowboarding in early November, and sledding is available throughout the winter season as well.

At the Keraike Skate Rink next to the Picchio Visitor’s Center above the Harunire Terrace, you can go ice skating from mid-October to the beginning of March. The open-air rink is a great place to breathe in the chilly winter air and enjoy the surrounding scenery.

At Karuizawa Ice Park in Karuizawa Kazakoshi Park, you can try your hand at curling any time of year. Reservations are required. See the facility's official website (Japanese language) for details.

Get in touch with local wildlife through a Picchio Tour

Trekking to Kamoshikadaira on Picchio's Japanese Serow Sightseeing Tour

Spotting deer on a Wildlife Night Drive tour

Finding bear markings on a Animal Trail Walking Tour

The Picchio Wildlife Research Center practices conservation efforts in numerous regions of Japan, including Karuizawa. They offer a variety of tours to observe local wildlife, such as Japanese serows (Kamoshika), Japanese flying squirrels, deer, bear and birds.

Nearby Sightseeing

Komoro Distillery

In neighboring Komoro City is the Komoro Distillery, one of Nagano’s newest whiskey distilleries having opened in July of 2023. The distillery’s first batch of whiskies will be available in 2026. However, the inhouse bar offers visitors to try their newmake as well as “newborn” whisky (whisky aged less than 3 years). In addition to the bar, the distillery also offers a whisky academy and regular tours through the distillery.

Learn more about Komoro Distillery and Nagano's other whisky distilleries.

Access
From Karuizawa Station, take the local Shinano line to Komoro Station (25 min.), then a take 10-minute taxi to the distillery. Or, you can take a taxi directly from Karuizawa Station to the distillery in about 30 minutes.

Komoro Castle Ruins Park

In the neighboring town of Komoro is Komoro Castle Ruins Park. While the castle itself is gone, its labyrinthian stone walls remain. In spring, cherry blossoms bloom around the park, and in autumn, the surrounding woods show exquisite fiery colors.

Access
Komoro Castle Ruins Park is adjacent to Komoro Station, just 25 minutes from Karuizawa Station on the local Shinano line train. 

Ueda Castle Ruins Park

Ueda Castle was originally built in 1583 by Sanada Masayuki, a samurai leader known throughout Japan. The castle is historically significant in that it saw attacks by the Tokugawa army not once, but twice. A park has been developed around the castle remains, and in springtime it becomes quite festive with people coming to see the cherry blossoms. In fact, Ueda Castle Park is one of Nagano’s top cherry blossom viewing destinations and numerous events are held in mid-April every year as part of the Ueda Castle Sen-Bon Sakura (1000 Cherry Trees) Festival.

Access
Ueda Station is just 20 minutes away from Karuizawa Station on the Hokuriku Shinkansen line or 55 minutes via the local Shinano line train. From the station, it is an 11-minute walk to the castle.

Kusatsu Onsen and Manza Onsen

Just over the border in Gunma Prefecture are two hot spring areas: Manza Onsen and Kusatsu Onsen. The former sits at altitudes of 1,800 meters high in Joshin’etsu-kogen National Park, while the latter is located at the base of the mountains with a charming and easy-to-walk townscape packed with hot spring inns, cafes and restaurants. Both are accessible from Karuizawa by bus; however, buses do not run between Karuizawa and Kusatsu Onsen during winter.

Access
From Karuizawa Station, take the Manza Onsen/Kusatsu line bus from the north exit of Karuizawa Station and get off at Manza Bus Terminal for Manza Onsen (45 min.) or Kusatsu Onsen bus stop (75-85 min.).　See bus timetables here.

Onioshidashi Park

An otherworldly landscape of lava rock at the base of Mt. Asama, the result of a volcanic eruption here hundreds of years ago. Small patches of hardy green shrubbery have taken hold among the pumice here like natural bonsai trees. In the middle of the park is a crimson and white temple, dedicated to appeasing the volcano's wrath.

Access
Onioshidashi Park is 40 minutes away from Karuizawa Station by bus via the Karuizawa—Manza Onsen/Kusatsu line (see bus timetables here).

Where to Stay

By Karuizawa Station and Kyu-Karuizawa Ginza

Karuizawa Prince Shopping Plaza lays at the south exit from Karuizawa Station, and beside it is the Karuizawa Prince Hotel used as a G7 venue, with over 700 rooms in total. Between Karuizawa Station and Kyu-Karuizawa Ginza there are also a variety of hotels.

In Naka-Karuizawa

Northbound on Route 146 from Naka-Karuizawa Station there is not only the pricy but popular resort Hoshinoya Karuizawa and the Hotel Bleston Court located next to a church with unique architecture, but also a number of fashionable hotels and pensions or lodges.