KT VillaHakuba · Kamishiro
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Directions

There's a few options for making your way to Hakuba Village, depending on the transportation you prefer:

  • Train
  • Mix of Train and Bus
  • Driving

Train

There's two routes to Hakuba purely by train, both take a while but have nice scenic options.

Through Matsumoto

From Shinjuku station there's an express train that goes straight to Matsumoto and then onwards to Hakuba. If you take the Azusa Express it'll go directly to Hakuba in about 4 hours with some nice views. Granted, this train leaves at 8am.

You can also take an express to Matsuomoto and take a small local detour before getting back on a train to Hakuba. This second option does take longer but gives you a chance to see Matsumoto Castle and maybe get a beer at Matsuomoto brewery. This route has more time options.

The route should look something like this on Google Maps.

Through Itoigawa

Another option is to take the Shinkansen to Itoigawa and transfer over to the line that goes through Otari and onwards to Hakuba. This also takes a while but the one-car train from Itoigawa to Otari is quite cute with nice mountain views. Itoigawa itself is pretty boring.

The route should look something like this on Google Maps.

Train and Bus

The most common route is to take a train directly to Nagano station and then a shuttle bus to Hakuba. Its cost effective and usually pretty fast. It's also what Google maps always recommends

By Car

I've found two good routes to Hakuba via car. Both are good and give you different views and unique service area stops. You can either go through Nagano city or Matsumoto city and then take local roads to Hakuba.

Via Nagano

This route usually avoids traffic as you cut up north and then head west. One part to prepare for is a 210円 toll road that doesn't take ETC, so have cash or coins handy. As for stops, Yokogawa is nice.

Via Matsumoto

This route gives a nice view of Fuji-san. You can also stop by Suwako which has a really nice luxurious service area. There's also a small service area with really nice bread, but I forget the name.

The route looks like this on Google Maps.