Snow monkey day trips from Tokyo and Nagano, compared

For most visitors, the Shinkansen from Tokyo to Nagano and the group tour by Machinovate Japan from Nagano Station. It adds Zenko-ji temple, a sake tasting and lunch to the monkey park and is the most-reviewed snow monkey tour on this site. The train ticket is not included. If you would rather not organise the train, the H.I.S. coach from Shinjuku takes you there and back, at the cost of a long day on the road. With four or five people, a private van from Tokyo is the most flexible choice.

Yes. A coach tour from Shinjuku needs up to three and a half hours each way and is back in Tokyo in the evening. The Shinkansen to Nagano takes about 80 minutes, and group tours start at Nagano Station. A private car or van picks you up at your hotel in Tokyo, and there is also a private tour that travels by Shinkansen with a guide.

From about mid-December to March. Snow lies at the park from roughly the middle of December, January and February have the most, and the monkeys bathe most often in this period. The first snow in November usually melts again quickly, and the snow is gone by April.

No. The Japanese macaques at Jigokudani are wild, even though they come down for food every day. In winter they bathe most often, frequently many at once, but no tour can promise how many will be in the pool on your day. In October and November, the mating season, they may arrive later or stay in the forest. The H.I.S. coach tour, for example, does not refund if no monkeys appear.

About 1.6 kilometres on a forest path from Kanbayashi Onsen, mostly flat, with a short climb at the start and steep steps at the park entrance. In winter allow 30 to 40 minutes each way. The path is packed snow and ice from December to March, so wear snow boots or ice spikes. Prams and wheelchairs cannot use it, and no vehicle drives up to the park.

No. Tours that start at Nagano Station or in the ski resorts do not include the train from Tokyo. Book the Shinkansen to Nagano separately and plan your return for after the tour has ended in the late afternoon.

It depends on the tour. The listings of the H.I.S. coach from Shinjuku and the Machinovate tour from Nagano include it. On the private car tour by Luxurious Travel Master entrance fees are extra, and for most other tours the listing does not say, so check the inclusions before you book. In winter, tickets may need to be reserved for a time slot; check before you go.

Warm layers, gloves, a hat and shoes with grip. Temperatures in winter can drop to around minus ten degrees, and the forest path is icy. The H.I.S. coach sells ice spikes on board. Large suitcases are not allowed on the path.

The current prices are in the comparison table on this page. Coach tours from Tokyo and the group tours from Nagano are priced per person, private cars per vehicle. The private tour by Shinkansen is the most expensive way to go.