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The famous snow monkeys in the hot springs are located about 40km away from the city of Nagano, but how do you get there? Our guide explains the best routes and gives some tips for when you arrive.
Where Are the Snow Monkeys?
You can find them in the Jigokudani Monkey Park located in the hills near Yudanaka Station and the pretty onsen town of Shibu Onsen.
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This is not a zoo. Instead, the monkeys live wild in the hills and come down to the hot springs to bathe when it’s cold. The park does feed them to encourage their presence, but there are days when they choose to head off and do monkey things instead. This means there’s never any guarantee you’ll see them – especially outside of bathing season, which is December to March.
As I mentioned, Jigokudani Monkey Park is approximately 40 kilometres away from Nagano. You can reach it by taking a combination of train and bus, or by taking a direct bus from Nagano Station. And I’ll explain both routes below.
If you’re coming from Tokyo, you’d also take the shinkansen to Nagano Station and follow this route from there.
Taking the Train to the Snow Monkeys
At Nagano Station, you’re going to want to get on the Nagano Dentetsu Line and catch a train going to Yudanaka Station. This is the last stop on the line and also the stop where you’ll be getting off, which means you’re unlikely to get lost.
Two services will take you to Yudanaka – the Limited Express, which takes 45 minutes and only stops at a few stops, but costs a little more (1290 for a non-reserved seat, or 1590 for a reserved one – half price for children, those under six go free), or the stopping service that takes just over an hour (1190 yen for adults). This one may require a change of train en route, but it runs more frequently.
The local trains also depart from Nagano earlier in the day than the Limited Express, so you may want to use these to avoid the crowds – but don’t get too carried away. See our note about when to arrive at the park later in the post.
You can find the train timetable here and filter it by Limited Express or Local trains to choose your preferred option. When planning this route, I find the Navitime app a bit better than Google Maps, which tends to suggest the bus option more often than the train.
Once in Yudanaka
You can either walk to the entrance of the Snow Monkey Park from the station, which takes about 40 minutes, or take the local buses, which take about ten minutes.
Two bus routes go to the Snow Monkeys. You’ll find timetables for them here – the one you get will likely be dictated by what time you arrive at the station. The Snow Monkey Resort page is the best resource for the timetables on this route, as it’s in English and updated for the season. The fare is 390 yen for adults, half that for children.
Catching the Bus to The Snow Monkeys
There is a direct bus to the Snow Monkey Park from Nagano Station, departing up to 10 times a day during peak season. It takes 40 minutes to get to the park, and unlike the train, it stops right by the park entrance.
It costs 2000 yen one way. You can buy tickets on the bus, but arrive early during peak season to ensure the service you want to use isn’t full.
Again, the Snow Monkey Resort page is a great resource for finding an easy-to-understand timetable.
Take careful note of where the bus departs from – it’s not the same side as the local buses you might get used to riding in Nagano. It’s on the East Side of the station.
The stop is marked on Google Maps, but if you are directionally challenged, it is located on the same side of the station as the Hotel Sunroute Nagano Higashiguchi. There’s also a soba restaurant close to the stop. It’s called 駅そば 榑木川 (くれきがわ) 長野駅東口店.
This opens at 8 am – and it’s not bad if you need a warm breakfast or quick lunch before getting on the bus!
Save Money with the Snow Monkey Pass
The Snow Monkey Pass costs 4,000 yen for adults and children over 13 (half price for children aged 6-12) and includes either bus or train transport to the park, as well as one entry ticket to the park. If you’re taking the Express Bus to the park, it will save you money. You also get a second day of transport included, which you can use to visit, for example, Obuse from Nagano, or to explore Nagano if you’re staying in Yudanaka.
You can buy the pass at Nagano Station or in advance via Snow Monkey Resorts.
If you’re taking the train, you’ll break even using the pass. However, you can only use unreserved seats on the train, and you are limited to one of the bus services to the Monkey Park (specifically, the Kanbayashi Onsen route), which may restrict your transport options slightly. Unless you plan to use the extra days’ transport, I wouldn’t personally use the pass on the train.
Once You Arrive at the Snow Monkey Park
Sadly, the monkeys are not lounging right by the door. Whatever way you arrive at the park, it’s still about a 45-minute (1.6km) walk up to the area of the hot springs.
Now, at this point, I have to confess – I haven’t been to the Snow Monkey Park. There are two things I dislike intensely in life – monkeys and snow – so, this is not my happy place. Plus, I was in Nagano in May, so, not during soaking season, therefore, to write the rest of this post, I asked for advice from those within the 30,000+ members of my Japan Planning Facebook group who had been to the park for their tips about what to expect once you arrive.
And they all said to be a bit careful on this walk if the weather is very cold.
‘In December, the trek up is long and a few places are steep,’ says one member. ‘Snow had melted in some places, making slush in sunnier areas, but refreezing as ice in others. Sneakers at a minimum. Many people had shoes with spikes.’
If you don’t have these, you can buy shoe spikes for 1350 yen (at the time of writing), or, hire snow boots (800 yen) and thick jackets (500 yen) at the Snow Monkey Resort’s shop just outside the park. They also sell other items, such as hats and ear muffs, in case you’ve underestimated how cold it might get up there – look, even the monkey above looks freezing!
The shop is open from 9 am to 5 pm from October to May. They also offer luggage storage.
Sadly, the steepness, slippiness, steps and other obstacles on the walk mean that the park is not wheelchair accessible. Nor can you take a stroller. Service dogs are also not allowed in, as they scare the monkeys.
Oh, and while this post is mostly about public transport. ‘If you drive, make sure you have snow tires. We saw a few cars that didn’t, and they were sliding all over the place,’ said another member on Facebook.
Other Helpful Tips
A few other things to know if you’re visiting the Snow Monkeys.
Know the Bathing Months
The monkeys don’t spa all year round – they do it to keep warm, so only soak during the coldest months of December and March – outside of this season, you might still see monkeys as they come down to get food if their natural diet in the mountain becomes scarce, but they won’t be in the water. April and May are baby monkey season if that floats your boat.
Don’t Get There Too Early
It might be tempting to try to beat the crowds by arriving at the park at the crack of dawn, but the park doesn’t open its doors until 9 am in winter.
Plus, the monkeys don’t live in the hot springs; they live in the hills, and they come down during the day, so if you arrive too early, they might not be there. ‘If you stay in one of the hotels in town, they will actually check the monkey cam for you,’ says one group member.
The park’s Facebook page also gives you an idea of whether the monkeys are in the park or hiding back at home with updates throughout the day – the information is also conveyed in the most adorable ‘only in Japan’ kind of way.
But Still Try to Beat the Buses
The first bus from Nagano City will arrive at the Snow Monkey Park entrance at 9:00 a.m., with two additional buses arriving before 10:00 a.m. Tours from Tokyo also typically start arriving from about 10 am. The crowds will increase at this point. If you are staying in Nagano for a few days, it might be a good idea to try to arrive between 9 and 10, monkeys willing.
If you arrive and the monkeys still aren’t there, you can explore Shibu Onsen or head to the cafe mentioned below for some local snacks and monkey-themed treats.
You Don’t Buy Your Ticket at the Gift Shop
A different company runs that; head to the ticket booths further up the trail. At the time of writing, visiting the Jigokudani Monkey Park costs 800 yen for adults, 400 yen for children aged six and above, and entry is free for those under six. They do take credit cards, and you can also pay with IC cards like Suica or cash.
Wave at Your Friends on the Monkey Cam
Officially, it’s there so people can watch the monkeys from afar (and so the hotels know when to send out their guests), but it’s also beaming to friends and family at home. ‘We had half of Sydney and Melbourne live streaming with us,’ says one of my group members.
As someone who regularly waves to her friend via the Kabukicho camera, I am fully behind this message, just don’t be too loud or annoy the other tourists! Find the livestream here.
Don’t Take Food With You
My dislike of monkeys originated after I witnessed someone being bitten by monkeys in Thailand. Shudder! But the monkeys here aren’t yet too aggressive and one reason for this is that people don’t feed them.
To maintain this, staff kindly request that you don’t even bring food into the park with you.
Also, don’t touch the monkeys – or look them directly in the eye. This is the monkey equivalent of shouting ‘come on then, let’s have it.’
Try the Apples
Once you’ve finished having monkey time, and head back to town, grab some apple pie from Enza Cafe. Nagano is famous for its apples, and members who tried them said the pie was fabulous.
Should the cold not bother you anyway, they also sell apple ice cream. And they have apple sake!
The coffee also comes with a tiny soaking monkey marshmallow. I want to go just to try all of those!
If you’re looking for something more savoury, their ramen also got a thumbs up from the FB group members.
Explore Shibu Onsen
This onsen town, located at the base of the entrance to the Monkey Park, is one of many places said to have inspired the town in Spirited Away. It is very picturesque, especially at the end of the day when the lights are lit.
Kanaguya is the most famous resort in Shibu Onsen, and it definitely has Ghibli vibes. It’s not the cheapest place in town, though, so you can check rates and room availability for other hotels for your dates via the map below if you do decide to stay overnight.
And that’s it, my guide to visiting the Snow Monkeys from Nagano. If you want to see how this might fit into your plans, check out our five-day Nagano, Takayama, Shirakawago and Kanazawa itinerary.