Karuizawa

A summer retreat since the Meiji era, with the Stone Church in the forest, autumn colors at Kumobaike Pond and the Prince Shopping Plaza, about 1 hour from Tokyo on the Hokuriku Shinkansen.

Karuizawa sits on a plateau about 1,000 m above sea level at the southern foot of Mt. Asama in eastern Nagano Prefecture. After Canadian missionary Alexander Croft Shaw introduced it to his foreign friends in 1886, it grew into Japan's most famous summer resort, with villas, churches and art museums scattered through the forest. The area divides roughly into four parts: the Prince Shopping Plaza and ski resort at the south exit of Karuizawa Station; from north of the station to Kyu-Karuizawa, with Kumobaike Pond, Ginza-dori, the Shaw Memorial Chapel and St. Paul's Catholic Church; Naka-Karuizawa to the west and its Hoshino area (Harunire Terrace, the Stone Church, Tombo-no-Yu hot spring and the Wild Bird Forest); and Shiraito Falls in the north and Onioshidashi Park on the Gunma side, plus Karuizawa Taliesin and the Hiroshi Senju Museum in Minami-Karuizawa. Best seasons: in July–August the average temperature is around 20°C, making it peak summer-escape season, though crowds and prices are high; autumn colors peak from late October to early November; in winter the Prince ski resort opens as early as November and there are Christmas illuminations in December, but many shops in Kyu-Karuizawa close for the season. Getting there: about 1 hour 10 minutes from Tokyo Station on the Hokuriku Shinkansen, or about 3 hours by highway bus from Shinjuku. Cycling is a good way to get between sights (several rental shops by the station; with plenty of hills, consider an e-bike); free shuttle buses serve the Hoshino area, and Kusakaru buses run to Shiraito Falls and Onioshidashi Park. Allow 1–2 days; you can add the Usui Pass Megane Bridge and Komoro, or head about 1 hour north by car to Kusatsu Onsen.

Top sights

• Kumoba Pond – A long, narrow pond nicknamed “Swan Lake.” In autumn, red maple leaves are reflected on the water, making it Karuizawa’s most photographed…
• Karuizawa Prince Shopping Plaza – A large outlet mall right next to the south exit of Karuizawa Station, with about 240 shops set around a lawn and ponds, and views of Mount…
• Kyu-Karuizawa Ginza – The old main street of Karuizawa, the birthplace of the resort town, lined with jam shops, bakeries and cafés. At about 600 meters long, it…
• Shiraito Falls – A curtain-shaped waterfall about 3 meters high and 70 meters wide, where groundwater from Mount Asama seeps out of the rock like white silk…
• Harunire Terrace – A wooden-deck shopping street beneath more than a hundred spring elm trees along the Yukawa River, with about 16 cafés, restaurants and gen…
• Stone Church (Uchimura Kanzo Memorial) – An organic-style building of stone and glass arches designed by American architect Kendrick Kellogg, in memory of the thinker Uchimura Kanz…
• Shaw Memorial Chapel – Karuizawa's oldest church, honouring Canadian missionary Alexander Croft Shaw, the “father of Karuizawa as a summer resort.”
• St. Paul's Catholic Church – A wooden church with a pointed roof, designed by Antonin Raymond, whose steep gables and bell tower form one of Karuizawa's signature views.
• Karuizawa Kogen Church – A wooden church with a triangular roof in the forest of the Hoshino area, most atmospheric during the summer candlelight night and Christma…
• Former Mikasa Hotel – A purely Western-style wooden hotel completed in 1906, designed and built by Japanese craftsmen and designated an Important Cultural Proper…
• Usui Pass Observatory (Miharashidai) – A viewpoint on the Nagano–Gunma prefectural border at about 1,200 metres, with views of Mount Asama, Myogi, and the Southern Alps all at on…
• Kumano Kotai Shrine – A shrine straddling the Nagano–Gunma prefectural border, with one sanctuary split between two prefectures and two shrines, and a sacred lin…
• Hoshino Onsen Tombo-no-Yu – A day-use onsen run by the Hoshino Resorts group, with an indoor bath and outdoor rotenburo set among the forest, next to Elm Street.
• Karuizawa Wild Bird Forest – A roughly 100-hectare national wild bird forest, home to around 80 bird species, with optional Picchio guided tours to spot flying squirrel…
• Karuizawa Taliesin – A cultural park centred on Lake Shiozawa, housing the Karuizawa Highland Library, the Peynet Museum, and relocated historic villas.
• Hiroshi Senju Museum Karuizawa – A glass museum with undulating curves designed by Sejima Kazuyo, showcasing Hiroshi Senju's “Waterfall” series and a garden courtyard.
• Karuizawa New Art Museum – A white glass art museum north of Karuizawa Station, showing post-war and contemporary Japanese art and international artists' special exhi…
• Karuizawa Prince Snow Resort – A ski resort about a 10-minute walk from Karuizawa Station, where day-trippers from Tokyo can ski and return the same day.
• Mount Asama – An active volcano at 2,568 metres, the iconic backdrop of Karuizawa, best viewed from the outer rim peak Kurofuyama or other lookout points.
• Usui Daisan Bridge (Megane-bashi) – A four-arched brick railway bridge completed in 1893, the largest surviving brick arch bridge in Japan and an Important Cultural Property.
• Usui Pass Railway Heritage Park – A railway park converted from the former Yokokawa engine shed, displaying the EF63 locomotive and others, where visitors can drive a real l…
• Komoro Castle Ruins (Kaikoen) – The ruins of a “cave castle” set lower than the castle town, with well-preserved stone walls and the Third Gate, and a spot on the Chikuma…
• Yagasaki Park – An open park with a large pond near Karuizawa Station, where you can see the Mount Ryozan across the water; the closest place for a stroll…

Where to eat

• Kawakamian Honten – A popular soba shop at the entrance to Old Karuizawa Ginza, listed among Tabelog's top 100 soba restaurants. Nihachi so…
• Mampei Hotel Café Terrace – The café of the century-old Mampei Hotel, where John Lennon was also a fan. Traditional apple pie and royal milk tea ar…
• Sawamura Bakery & Restaurant, Old Karuizawa – A bakery-restaurant in the forest famous for slow, low-temperature fermented bread. Open from breakfast to dinner, with…
• Suju Masayuki – A Japanese set-meal restaurant beside the Old Karuizawa roundabout. Rice is cooked in a copper pot and served with Shin…
• Kastanie Karuizawa Roast Chicken – A roast chicken specialist near Karuizawa Station. Kagoshima chicken is marinated overnight and roasted for about an ho…

Itineraries

• Tokyo City, Kawagoe, Mount Takao and Karuizawa – Spend four days exploring central Tokyo, plus three day trips to Little Edo Kawagoe, Mount Takao and Karuizawa
• Ikaho, Kusatsu & Karuizawa Hot Spring Drive – A self-drive trip from Tokyo through Gunma's two major hot spring towns, descending to Karuizawa through volcanic lava…
• Grand Kanto & Shinshu Loop – A loop from Tokyo covering Hakone, Mt. Fuji, Matsumoto, Kamikochi, the Snow Monkeys, Kusatsu, and Karuizawa.
• Tokyo, Hokuriku, Takayama & Kyoto Northern Route – Skip the Tokaido route and travel via Karuizawa, Nagano, Kanazawa, Shirakawa-go, and Takayama to Kyoto.