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Niigata Prefecture 

Niigata Prefecture is located in northwest Honshu, along the Sea of Japan. This diverse region is Japan’s number one producer of rice. It is an area rich in natural resources and its natural park area ranks second in the nation. It also has the second most bathing beaches, the third most ski resorts and the fourth most hot springs in the country.  

Getting to Niigata City

  By Air

  By Train

  By Car

  By Ferry

Niigata Port, which opened in 1868, is one of the five most important ports in Japan. Presently there are regularly scheduled lines to Russia, South Korea, North Korea, Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Getting To Yuzawa

Yuzawa town, the famous skiing and onsen town, was the location of the famous Nobel prize winning novel by Yasunori Kawabata, "Snow Country". Yuzawa Town is especially convenient to reach from central Tokyo - you can be in the town and on the slopes in less than 90 minutes from leaving Tokyo. The three main winter resort towns in the area are Yuzawa, Shiozawa and Muikamachi.

  By Train

The Joetsu Shinkansen from Tokyo or Ueno station takes you directly to Echigo Yuzawa station - the main station of Yuzawa town in the heart of "Snow Country". The train takes from 66 to 85 minutes depending on which one you get, and is a distance of 190 kilometers. The journey from Tokyo to Yuzawa costs 5980 yen per adult one way ( non-reserved ). Expect to pay 500 yen extra for a reserved seat. Non-smoking cars are available on all trains. The Max train is a double-decker train and the newest model.

Note:  All trains do not stop at each station. The main station in Yuzawa is called Echigo Yuzawa. The next stop (on certain trains in winter is called GALA Yuzawa and doubles as the GALA Yuzawa Ski Resort Gondola station).

The Takasaki train ( from Tokyo ) and then the Joetsu line ( from Takasaki ) take you from the Tokyo area, through Gunma and into Niigata Prefecture and beyond.

The fastest way to get to the Niigata regions by train is by Shinkansen to Tokyo and then from Tokyo to Yuzawa. This can, however, become rather expensive, and so a local train may be preferred. There is an overnight train service that comes from Nagoya into Niigata (using the Hokuriku Line and then the Hokuhoku-sen that goes to Yuzawa).

  By Car

Take the Kanetsu Expressway from the Nerima I.C. in north-west Tokyo. From there, it is a straight drive into the mountains and Yuzawa Town. The journey can be made in less than 2 hours in perfect conditions (more time should be allowed due to possible bad weather conditions and the possibility of congestion on weekends and national holidays). From the Yuzawa, Shiozawa Ishiuchi or Muikamachi Interchanges, take Route 17 to your destination.

The most direct way to get to the Yuzawa region from western Japan is by first getting to Nagano City and then making your way past Nozawa Onsen and then using Route 353 from Tsunan over the mountain into Niigata Prefecture.  The journey from Nozawa Onsen to Yuzawa takes about 70 minutes.

The other alternative is to take the Chuo Expressway to Tokyo and then the Kanetsu Expressway to Yuzawa.

  By Bus

An expressway bus can be taken from Ikebukuro in Tokyo to Yuzawa. The journey takes twice as long as the Shinkansen - about 3 hours (which includes a 15 minute stop at a service area) - but is considerably cheaper than the Shinkansen.  Reservations are necessary to use this bus service.

The bus is taken from near Sunshine City (near Ikebukuro Station in Tokyo), uses the Kanetsu Expressway and has a stop at Yuzawa Interchange.

Getting to Myoko Kogen

Myoko Kogen is perhaps the less well-known Niigata skiing region (losing out to the famous Yuzawa region).  But Myoko has some superb resorts and fantastic scenery, and often ranks near the top of many people's "best of Japan" lists.  It's also a fairly easy region to get to - being just north of Nagano City and south of Joetsu City (but still in Niigata Prefecture).

  By Train

There are two ways of getting to the Myoko Kogen region from the Tokyo region.  The first is to go via Echigo Yuzawa and from there take the Hokuhoku line to Naoetsu, the second is to get to Nagano City and then take the Shinetsu line north to Myoko (which is in fact quite near Nagano City).

or

  By Car

Again, there are two main ways to get to Myoko Kogen from the Tokyo region.

From Tokyo, continue on the Kanetsu Expressway through Yuzawa until you reach the turn off for the Hokuriku Expressway (just after Nagaoka City). Take the Hokuriku Expressway to Joetsu City and then take Route 18 south to the Myoko region.

Alternatively, make your way to Nagano City using the Kanetsu Expressway and then the Joshinetsu Expressway.  Either continue on the Joshinetsu Expressway all the way to Myoko Kogen or take Route 18 north to Myoko.

From the Kansai region, make your way to Nagano City and then take the Joshinetsu or Route 18 north into Myoko Kogen and follow directions from Myoko Kogen.