Aoki Village, Nagano: A 2-Day Journey of Soba and Hot Springs

• Table of Contents
• Just 1.5 Hours from Tokyo by Shinkansen! Start Your Journey at Ueda Station
• Taste Nagano's Specialty "Shinshu Soba"
• Spend a Relaxing Time at Tazawa Onsen
• Heading Home: Don't Forget to Buy Some Souvenirs! 

Aoki Village in Nagano Prefecture is easily accessible from Tokyo and is a recommended area where you can enjoy typical Japanese culture such as Shinshu soba and hot springs. In this article, we will introduce a recommended way to get around Aoki Village in 2 days and 1 night, along with an experience report.

*Please note that the transportation times listed differ on weekdays, weekends, and holidays.

Just 1.5 Hours from Tokyo by Shinkansen! Start Your Journey at Ueda Station

Take JR Shinkansen Hakutaka No. 557 (bound for Kanazawa) from Tokyo Station at 9:32 a.m. and get off at Ueda Station at 10:51 a.m. 

Leave Ueda Station through the castle exit and take the route bus (Chikuma Bus Co., Ltd. Aoki Line) from bus stop number 1. Please note that the transfer time is short. The route bus departs from Ueda Station at 11:13 and arrives at Aoki Bus Terminal at 11:42.

(Ueda Station bus stop MAP) https://chikuma-bus.com/2022/09/30/%E4%B8%8A%E7%94%B0%E9%A7%85/

Taste Nagano's Specialty "Shinshu Soba"

It's about a 10-minute walk from Aoki Bus Terminal to Shinshu soba restaurant Kikori. This is a shop with a hearth in an old folk house. We had soba noodles made with " Tachiakane, " a variety that is a specialty of Aoki Village.

Kikori
63-9 Oaza Fugami, Aoki Village, Nagano Prefecture
TEL: 0268-49-0980 (reservation required)

Special 100 percent handmade soba noodles

We also recommend the freshly fried tempura.

Woodcutter
Nagano Prefecture Aoki Village Oaza Ogami 63-9
TEL: 0268-49-0980 (Reservation required)

5 shops where you can eat Aoki Village's specialty soba "Tachiakane soba"

Spend a Relaxing Time at Tazawa Onsen

After lunch, we finally headed to Tazawa Onsen. It takes about 10 minutes by taxi from Kikori to Tazawa Onsen, but it takes about 50 to 60 minutes on foot. I also recommend walking while looking at the scenery of the countryside that I visited for the first time. The highlight is the landscape of a rural mountain village surrounded by the Aoki Sanzan mountains: Komayumidake, Jukanzan, and Okamidake.

Tazawa Onsen is a hot spring located in Aoki Village, Ogata District, Nagano Prefecture. The spring quality is alkaline simple sulfur spring, and the water is clear and colorless, with a faint scent of sulfur. Aoki Village has Tazawa Onsen and Kutsukake Onsen, both of which are designated as `` national hot spring resorts .'' What is a national hot spring resort? Please see the explanation at the end of this article.

Straight up the hill is the inn town of Tazawa Onsen. Surrounded by mountains, I could hear the chirping of wild birds.

The inn town of Tazawa Onsen. There are 4 inns. The three-story wooden building on the right is the inn we stayed at this time, ``Masuya Ryokan.'' Although it is not shown in the photo, there are four 3-story wooden buildings standing side by side, competing with each other.

Tazawa Onsen is a hot spring located in Aoki Village, Ogata County, Nagano Prefecture. The spring quality is alkaline simple sulfur spring, and the water is clear and colorless with a faint smell of sulfur. Aoki Village is home to Tazawa Onsen and Kutsukake Onsen, both of which are designated as " national hot spring resorts ." What is a national hot spring resort? Please see the explanation at the end of this article for more information.

The entrance of Masuya Ryokan. We have finally arrived at the destination of this trip.

The building is designated as a national registered tangible cultural property. The glass in the windows was also made using old techniques, and the distorted view through the glass gave a sense of the passage of time.

Have you noticed the difference in angle between the upper and lower stairs? It seems that the construction dates are different.

A room at Tazawa Onsen Masuya Ryokan (example) The inside of the room is filled with Japanese culture, such as futons, tatami mats, shoji screens, sliding doors, and ranma.

Openwork decoration on the transom

This bath is the warmest hot spring in the inn, so that even babies can bathe in it. We use Tazawa Onsen No. 1 hot spring with a source temperature of 38℃. “Nuruyu fans” or like a water bath come in. “Nuruyu”=Low temperature hot spring.

Tazawa Onsen's Public Bath "Uchiyu"

Uchiyu (public bath) is available from 6:00 a.m. and costs 200 yen for adults.

The next morning, I woke up early, took a short walk around the hot spring town, and headed to the public bath called Uchiyu . The ``karahafu'' roofs and curved architectural beauty seen on traditional Japanese buildings such as shrines and temples are a part of Japanese culture.
I was aiming for the first bath, but many of the customers in front of me seemed to be thinking the same thing.

Breakfast at Masuya Ryokan (example) When we returned to the inn from our morning walk and hot spring bath, breakfast was prepared and delicious.

4 accommodations where you can stay at Tazawa Onsen

I stayed at Masuya Ryokan on this trip, but there are four other inns in Tazawa Onsen. You can choose according to your preference and budget.

Masuya Ryokan ( ENGLISH )
Fujiya
Izumiya Ryokan
Yamashiroya Resort

Heading Home: Don't Forget to Buy Some Souvenirs! 

After checking out of the inn, we walked 30-40 minutes to Aoki Bus Terminal. Departed from Aoki Bus Terminal at 10:00 and arrived in front of Ueda Station at 10:29. I bought some souvenirs at Ueda Station and then headed back to Tokyo.

If you don't have enough of walking, you can also take the Aoki Village Bus (Furusato) or call a taxi to get to Ueda Station. The village bus operates only on weekdays and is closed on Saturdays, Sundays, holidays, and the year-end and New Year holidays. There are scheduled routes in the morning and evening, but during the day there is a demand system and reservations must be made by 5:00 pm the day before.

The armor on display inside Ueda Station is a piece of armor worn by military commanders during the Sengoku period to protect themselves from swords, spears, and bows and arrows. Ueda is home to Ueda Castle, which was built in 1583, and you can see the family crest of the Sanada family, the lord of the castle, Rokumonsen.

What is a National Hot Spring Resort?

National Recreation Hot Spring Areas are designated by the Minister of the Environment as hot spring areas that are expected to have sufficient effects from hot spring use and are used as healthy health resort areas in order to promote the public use of hot springs, based on the Hot Spring Law. Thing. The selection of national hot spring resorts is generally based on the following criteria, and the designation began in 1952. As of October 2020, 79 locations have been designated nationwide.

Part 1 Conditions regarding hot spring quality and gushing amount
(1) The source of use is a therapeutic spring.
(2) The hot springs used have an abundant amount of gushing water. The estimated flow rate is 0.5 liters/minute or more per hot spring user.

Part 2 Conditions regarding the environment etc. of hot spring resorts
(1) Suitable as a resort in terms of the natural environment, townscape, history, climate, culture, etc.
(2) A plan for the placement of doctors who can provide guidance on proper hot spring use and health management from a medical standpoint, or a plan or training policy for personnel who can provide guidance on bathing methods, etc. in collaboration with the doctor has been established. That's what I'm doing.
(3) Appropriate efforts will be made to protect hot spring resources, maintain hot spring hygiene, promote public use of hot springs, and give consideration to the elderly and people with disabilities.
(4) Efforts regarding disaster prevention are substantial.