We took our first Shinkansen (bullet train) today from Tokyo to Nagano. It was pretty easy to navigate to the correct platform with good signage in both Kanji and English. There were a few tricks we learned along the way such as inserting just the basic fare ticket when entering main gates, but inserting both the basic fare and express tickets together (with one on top the other) when entering and exiting through Shinkansen station gates.
We purchased some food for lunch from a large selection of bento boxes and other food from a variety of small stands and stores located just outside the Shinkansen station gates at Ueno station and arrived at our platform with plenty of time to spare. Waiting was fun for me as I was able to watch other trains arrive and depart, exactly on time.
We had some time at Nagano before catching the train to Yudanaka to enable us to purchase tickets for the leg from Nagano to Yudanaka, which is operated by Nagano Dentetsu railway. Detailed current information on how to get to Jigokudani Monkey Park can be found at the snow monkey resorts website. One thing to note is that the two day snow monkey pass which allows unlimited train and local bus use as well as a single entry to the snow monkey park is only valid for two calendar days. I thought it would be valid for 48 hours, but it’s not, so we had to purchase additional tickets for the trip back to Nagano. As a result, it was not a wise purchase for us.
We were met at the small Yudanaka train station by kimono wearing staff from our Ryokan (traditional Japanese Inn) Wafu No Yado Masuya. The ryokan is just a 1 minute walk to the boundary of Shibu Onsen and has been operating for 140 years. The building itself is not that old, though some areas are a bit dated. We didn’t mind the somewhat dated furnishings and in fact found it to be endearing and authentic. The hotel gets its Onsen water from 4 different hot spring sources and those facilities are updated, well appointed, and very nice. We had a traditional room and were provided with yukatas, traditional wear that is worn at ryokans, and a pot of tea upon arrival. We relaxed until it was time for dinner, our first kaiseki meal. The food was amazing in both presentation and flavor. The courses just kept coming and coming. We finished the evening with a soak in a private Onsen; a perfect ending to a fun and busy day.
After a large traditional kaiseki breakfast we caught the ryokan’s shuttle up to the monkey park. It was about a mile walk into the hot spring where the macaques congregate. The walkway was almost entirely covered in hard packed snow that was a bit slippery. Angie was happy to have the set of yak tracks we brought, which were perfect for the conditions.
We started seeing monkeys as we got close to the onsen. The hot spring is natural, but the pool is man made and was made for the monkeys. We stayed for over an hour watching the monkeys find the food that is for them by the park employees, both to provide them food during the winter and keep them around the area so that people can see them. The area is popular with people probably out numbering monkeys. The monkeys were completely unbothered by people and people did a good job of being quiet and not encroaching on the monkeys’ space.
After lunch we took the subway back to Ueno station. We found the JR station and were able to pick up our Shinkansen tickets from ticket machines and our JR west ticket from Toyama to Takayama from the JR east travel center. The travel center was not busy and we were able to walk right up to an agent who was very helpful.
