THE GUIDE
Nagano's rated stays sit in four districts, far apart from each other. Most are in Karuizawa and neighbouring Miyota: Karuizawa Station is 65 to 70 minutes from Tokyo by Hokuriku Shinkansen, according to the stays' own access pages. The others are deeper in the prefecture — a hot-spring inn in the mountains east of Matsumoto, an inn inside the Nakasendo post town of Narai, and a five-room inn in Yudanaka Onsen.
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Karuizawa and Miyota
Shishi-Iwa House is three buildings by the Pritzker laureates Shigeru Ban and Ryue Nishizawa, about 10 minutes by taxi from Karuizawa Station. The FUFU stays are in Nagakura and Kyu-Karuizawa, also about 10 minutes from the station; every room bath uses natural hot-spring water, and FUFU Kyu-Karuizawa stands on the edge of Kumoba Pond, with a fireplace in every room. THE HIRAMATSU is in neighbouring Miyota, about 10 minutes by car from Miyota Station or 30 minutes from Karuizawa Station, with a French and an Italian restaurant.
| Stay | Area | Station and transfer | Rooms | MICHELIN Keys |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shishi-Iwa House Karuizawa | Karuizawa | Karuizawa Station, about 10 min by taxi | 33 | One Key |
| FUFU Karuizawa, Wind in the Sunshine | Nagakura | Karuizawa Station, about 10 min by taxi | 24 | One Key |
| FUFU Kyu-Karuizawa, Restful Forest | Kyu-Karuizawa, by Kumoba Pond | Karuizawa Station, about 10 min by taxi | 20 | One Key |
| THE HIRAMATSU Karuizawa Miyota | Miyota | Miyota Station, about 10 min by car (free pick-up, reserve in advance); Karuizawa Station, about 30 min by taxi | 37 | Two Keys |
Matsumoto, Narai and Yamanouchi
Each of these is its own district and its own trip. Tobira Onsen Myojinkan, a Relais & Châteaux member opened in 1931, is in the mountains east of Matsumoto, about 30 minutes from Matsumoto Station by taxi; its three shared baths are kept at 38–40°C. BYAKU Narai is made up of four historic buildings in Narai-juku, a post town on the Nakasendo, and one of its buildings is a sake brewery; Narai Station is 5 minutes away on foot. Shoraiso, in Yudanaka Onsen, has five rooms, each with a private open-air bath of free-flowing hot-spring water, about 7 minutes on foot from Yudanaka Station.
Karuizawa & Nagano rated stays
Prices are in US dollars, converted from the yen the properties quote at the Oct 7, 2026 reference rate, and are indicative.
A price marked ≈ is itself an estimate: halved from a published two-person total, or rounded from an earlier figure. Totals for 2 assume two guests sharing one room.
One stay from this guide: THE HIRAMATSU KARUIZAWA MIYOTA
Check rates at THE HIRAMATSU Karuizawa
Listed alphabetically. Prices and cancellation terms differ between them, and this page does not see either — it is worth opening more than one.
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When is Karuizawa busiest?
Go! NAGANO gives Golden Week, July and August, and the autumn-leaf season from early October to early November as the busiest times, and winter as one of the least busy. In winter, Shiraito Falls is lit up at night.