Shibu Onsen Kokuya - A Hidden Gem

Shibu Onsen Kokuya - A Hidden Gem

During my trip across Japan, I visited many fascinating places; from the busy streets of Shibuya and Shinjuku, to interesting museums such as Miraikan and teamLab Planets. But one of the places that I enjoyed the most was Shibu Onsen and the traditional ryokan at which I stayed called Kokuya. Shibu Onsen is a small mountain town located in Nagano Prefecture, only a one hour train ride from Nagano itself. It is famous for its many hot springs and monkey park called Jigokudani where you can see Japanese snow monkeys bathe in hot spring water. 

If you have been following my blog, you know quite a lot about Kokuya by now, but if you're reading this post first I will introduce you to it quickly before moving on. Kokuya is a traditional Japanese ryokan that was established in 1625 and is currently overseen by the 16th generation of owners. Other than great traditional rooms, Kokuya has six public and two private baths that use free-flowing hot spring water from six different spring sources. Guests of the ryokan can also enjoy full-course kaiseki meals made from local ingredients. The town of Shibu Onsen is a place that truly fascinated me. You could feel the history all around you walk its stones streets and tiny alleys. To me, it looked like I had traveled back in time or perhaps to a Ghibli film. And when the sun sets down and the lanterns lit up all across town, the whole place looks even more magical.

As I already said the town is famous for its many hot springs, because of that it is filled with many different ryokans and onsens. There are also 9 Public Baths all across town which you can access if you are a guest of one of ryokans such as Kokuya. Each of these parts, it is said, has some healing properties that help parts of your body. It is a popular activity for tourists to walk around town dressed in traditional Japanese clothing and try to experience each of the baths in a day. You can even collect stamps from each of the public baths. I suggest that if you visit this place, definitely take a nice stroll across town during the night. The atmosphere is incredibly peaceful and serene, with all the lanterns lit up around you and the sound of rumbling water beneath you. I believe that such an experience cannot be found easily so you should definitely do it. In the town itself, there is a brewery that you can visit to see how sake is produced and even taste some.

Jigokudani monkey park is located only a short drive away from the center of the town. There you can witness hundreds of snow monkeys walking around, playing end bathing in the hot spring water. It's quite fun to see them interact with each other, but be careful, don't approach them too close since sometimes they can react violently. You can even encounter them in the town itself sometimes. They descend from the hills to try to find some food in the town. One time as I was walking through the town I witnessed a group of monkeys trying to enter a store and the workers there had to chase them away. I also heard that they like to climb across the rooftops and sometimes even enter people's houses.

After I have visited the monkey park, the guide took me on a drive on the Olympic Road up to the top of 2,306m high Mount Yokoteyama. From there I had witnessed a spectacular view of the entire area around me which included many mountains, forests, and lakes. I also had the chance to eat lunch highest bakery in Japan. Also, a quick tip, if you're climbing on high mountains make sure to wear sunscreen because the sun there is much stronger and you can get sunburnt pretty easily.

After my lunch, I visited the border between the Nagano and Gunma prefectures which runs through a building and the highest point on Japanese roads. Drive across the Olympic Road, in general, was an amazing experience because you can witnessed views of the mountains, waterfalls, rivers, and Lakes. You can even spot a volcano called Mount Kusatsu-Shirane. However, you cannot approach it too closely because the volcano erupted in 2018 and since then the area around it is restricted.

These are just some of the things you can experience around Shibu Onsen. This is truly a hidden gem that not many people know about and I'm happy show it to you. I hope more people visit this great place, and if you are perhaps planning to go there sure to check out Kokuya. I absolutely loved every minute of my stay there I fully recommend you to book it if you plan on going here.