Nozawa Onsen is a quaint and traditional 'onsen' spa town: a real piece of Japanese history. But this town is not just an area of cultural and historical interest.

Nozawa Onsen ski resort is huge, with heaps of terrain to explore. There really is something for everybody: family friendly wide open pistes, basket-of-eggs mogul runs, and great powder runs. The village is located at the foot of the ski resort, which spans across three main areas.

Click here for information from the Nozawa Onsen Tourist Office, who also provided this Nozawa Onsen town map

Whilst many of our hotels will have their own onsen spa facilities, the town also offers 13 public onsen bath-houses, which are open everyday from 5 a.m. (in winter from 6 a.m.) to 11 p.m. and can be used free of charge.

These onsen are managed by organizations called “yunakama”, whose members are all local villagers living near the bath.

Even in winter, you can see visitors to Nozawa Onsen wearing cotton 'yukata' kimono, wandering to and from such bath houses.

Whilst free of charge, you will need to take your own towel and soap. See our cultural tips page for advice on the Japanese style of bathing

The baths are also often very hot: the water is not cooled down after being pumped from the water source. For the cooler baths, try “Kuma no te-arai no yu”, or “Yokochi” bath houses.

Apart from bathing, the volcanic mineral water of Nozawa onsen is also used for cooking.

'Ogama Onsen' is a must-see spot when visiting this town. Water naturally bubbles up to the surface at a temperature of 90 degrees celcius. Local restaurateurs and hoteliers use this water for boiling vegetables and 'onsen eggs', in order to bring out the distinctive taste of the water.

The high temperatures involved mean that tourists are asked to observe rather than try cooking themselves. It is easy to imagine food being cooked here for the past hundreds of years.

As you would expect of a traditional onsen village, hotel accommodation tends to be Japanese-style. Check our Nozawa Onsen hotels page for accommodation options.

Nozawa Onsen is a little further out of the way than other ski areas. However, the travel time is perfectly acceptable for ski trips of perhaps three days or more. You will find that Nozawa Onsen has the feeling of an 'undiscovered gem' of a ski resort location.

One event not to be missed is the Dosoujin Fire Festival. This festival started in 1863, and is held on January 15th every year. Dousoujin is considered one three most famous fire festivals in Japan.

25 and 42 are considered unlucky ages in Japan: villlagers of ages 25 and 42 make an 18m beechwood shrine. Simply put, main focus of the festival is a lively battle, whereby the 25 year-olds attempt to burn the shrine, while the 42 year-olds protect it. As with most festivals in Japan, a fair amount of sake is drunk during these proceedings.

View from Nozawa Onsen ski resort