Nozawa Onsen is one of those special places on the planet that will keep drawing you back. We travel a lot for work and adventures and usually make a habit of not going back to the same place twice. But Nozawa is the exception and we go there almost every year and have been doing so for a few years now.

The snow is amazing and that in itself is a big draw card but there is so much more with the food, culture and authentic traditional feel. We always stay with the good folk at Lodge Nagano. They have been there a long time and know the village and mountain very well; great friendly vibe and everything is easy. We had some friends with kids last season so stayed at their Nozawa Central Apartments just down the road. Also an awesome set up with the rental shop down stairs and great staff.

It is also very easy to get there now with either the snow shuttle of the plane or the new Bullet train that stops in Iiyama just down the road. We always try and go later in the season; in early March when the snow is still good but no crowds at all.