YAMADA ONSEN · NAGANO
YAMADA ONSEN · NAGANO
Journal
Saunas, free-flowing hot spring water, and the fire of the irori hearth.
Notes on how to enjoy a trip, from an inn with a spring first opened 700 years ago.
Latest
2026.09.04
Takayama lies in northern Nagano, Japan's top wine-grape prefecture. Low rainfall, cool air and a wide day-night gap suit the vines. Here are the grape varieties and the land that shapes them.
2026.09.03
From the Tenku Sauna you look over the sun setting into the Matsukawa Gorge and a night sky ranked third in the world. Yamada Ranch, 1,500m up, is a sunset spot in Takayama Village.
2026.08.31
Autumn photography starts with where and when you stand. This guide lines up Takai Bridge, Kaminari Falls, Yataki Falls and Yamada Ranch by altitude and peak dates.
2026.08.24
New to saunas and unsure how long to stay or whether you must take the cold bath? At the Forest Sauna the 110C room is about ten to twelve minutes, and you can choose 85C or 110C. Here is the order the staff suggest, written for first-timers.
2026.08.25
A nine-room hot spring ryokan in Nagano with a free-flowing indoor bath, two public bathhouses nearby and two saunas, and the order for enjoying onsen and sauna across one day.
2026.08.29
MATSUKAWAKAN in Takayama Village, Nagano, fills its indoor bath entirely with free-flowing spring water. The two public bathhouses a short walk away draw the same Yamada Onsen source, and a wooden paddle cools the hot water without diluting it.
2026.08.28
MATSUKAWAKAN in Takayama, Nagano is a day-use onsen you can visit without a reservation. Reception runs from 11:00 to 19:30, and after your bath you can rest in a semi-private room.
2026.08.30
Autumn colour in Takayama descends over a month, from the high passes down to Yamada Onsen. Plan the day around the day-use bathing hours, so you can see the leaves and then soak before you head home.
2026.08.30
At the height of autumn the car parks around Takayama Village fill up and the roads jam. Here is how to time an early start and where to wait out the crowds in a hot spring.
2026.08.23
At The TOJI.ba MATSUKAWAKAN, the saunas are enjoyed in a swimsuit. Swimsuits, ponchos and towels can all be rented on the day, so you can arrive with empty hands. Here is what to bring and what you can borrow, before you book.
2026.08.17
The upper Matsukawa Gorge around Shichimi and Goshiki Onsen is at its best around 15 October, about ten days before Yamada Onsen at 900m. Here is how to catch the high colours first.
2026.08.17
Yataki is the second waterfall of the Matsukawa Gorge. At 1,000m you see the whole falls from a viewing platform, with parking for 13 cars. The platform is closed by snow from late November to early May, and the cherry and autumn timing are covered too.
2026.08.17
Mount Kasa turns around 5 October, Yamada Onsen around 25 October. The colour walks down 1,100m of altitude, so the gorge holds it for about a month. With the driving order and the car parks.
2026.08.17
A drop of about 30m, with a path that runs behind the water. Entry is free, parking is six spaces, and it closes for winter. Fifteen minutes by car from Yamada Onsen.
2026.08.17
A plateau called the Tyrol of Shinshu. The sun setting into the Northern Alps, stars at 1,500m, autumn colour around 10 October, and a ski area in winter. Fifteen minutes from Yamada Onsen.
2026.08.17
Oyu opens from 6:00 to 21:00 and closes on the third Wednesday. The hot and mild pools, the three footbaths, the 1.3km path along the river, and where it all sits from MATSUKAWAKAN.
2026.08.17
Eight hot spring settlements line the Matsukawa Gorge. How to take in Kaminari Falls, Yataki Falls, Yamada Ranch and Yamada Onsen from a base at Yamada Onsen, with timings and seasons.
2026.08.17
30.3 km and about 50 minutes by car from Jigokudani Yaen-koen. Park hours and fees, the walk in, what closes in winter, and the private saunas waiting at the end of the day.
2026.08.17
About 55 minutes by car in the ski season, about 43 when the mountain road is open. 18 linked ski areas on one lift ticket, and free-flowing hot spring water afterwards.
2026.08.17
Heat, cold bath, open-air rest, and totonoi. Why swimsuits mean men and women go in together, plus prices, rentals, manners and tattoos.
2026.08.17
90 to 100 minutes from Tokyo on the Hokuriku Shinkansen, then a free shuttle three times a day for overnight guests. Car, train and bus routes explained.
2026.08.17
How to divide the 120 minutes, the order of cold bath and outdoor cool-down, what to bring and what it costs to rent. Explained with the two private saunas in Takayama Village.
2026.08.17
Bathing on its own needs no reservation. Order lunch and the bathing is free, with the semi-private space and rest room open until 16:00. Including how to order the hours of your day.
2026.08.17
How much time you get, private or shared, what you can see while cooling down, and how deep the cold bath is. Settle those four first and you will not go wrong. Explained with the two buildings in Takayama Village.
2026.07.19
A rare rice raised on spring water, a fermented dashi drawn from umeboshi, and local gibier taken by hunters. Notes on the ingredients that carry the food at MATSUKAWAKAN.
2026.07.19
Oyu, one minute on foot from MATSUKAWAKAN, and Takinoyu, thirty seconds away. Walking the public bathhouses rooted in the village — a pleasure particular to Yamada Onsen.
2025.04.15
A private sauna, with no strangers in it. The Forest Sauna and its fire, and the private Tenku Sauna above the gorge. One night and two days of settling, in water from a spring first opened 700 years ago.
The journal grows a little at a time.
We will keep writing about how to enjoy the saunas and the onsen, and about the seasons here. We hope you will look forward to it.
Reservation
Forty minutes by car from Nagano Station, with a free shuttle available.
A night of fire and hot spring water awaits.
Prices are subject to change; please confirm on the booking site.