1-Day Tour from Nagano and Matsumoto: Kamikochi & Matsumoto Castle Exploration

Embark on a captivating one-day tour from Nagano and Matsumoto to explore the stunning landscapes of Central Japan. Visit the historic Matsumoto Castle and venture into the breathtaking beauty of Kamikochi.

Duration: 9 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Matsumoto Castle - Your guide will lead you around the historic grounds of the castle while introducing you to its history, legends and secrets. Should you wish to, you can enter the castle itself and climb all the way to the top-floor of its six storeys or simply take the time to relax outside.
  • Nawate Shopping District - Stroll through the…
What's Included
  • Transportation to all listed destinations inc. direct access to/from Kamikochi
  • English-speaking guide
  • Entry to Matsumoto Castle & guided tour
  • Guided walk followed by free-time at Kamikochi
What's Not Included
  • Lunch
  • Shinkansen or other onward travel tickets
  • Accommodation
Additional Information

Central Japan, characterized by its impressive mountains and picturesque nature, serves as the geographical heart of this splendid nation, often overlooked by many foreign travellers. This captivating day-long excursion transports you to Matsumoto Castle, one of the handful of preserved original castles in Japan and a designated National Treasure. The…

Location
Matsumoto Castle
4-1 Marunouchi,
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
5.0
(61 Ratings)
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Guoyange
Jun 6, 2025
Blend of historic and natural beauty with guide Kevin - I was on the Snow Monkey tour with Kevin as my guide on the 1st of June. Kevin was super hospitable and overall the tour was fantastic. I really appreciated that Kevin spent time memorising the names of every member in the tour group and made it feel like a private tour. Additionally, he was very knowledgeable about the region and was happy to share recommendations on where to eat and local specialties. Finally, he was really organised and ensured we really spent our time wisely and absorbed the full beauty of Kamikochi. For people who wish to explore the beauty of the Nagano region - I would strongly recommend this tour as it covers a good breadth of the region (historical, shopping, and nature) while allowing you enough time in Kamikochi to experience the wilderness.
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Georgie
May 30, 2025
Best day ever - Endo and Nishi were the best guide and driver, we had a lot of fun! It’s definitely worth it and we would recommend highly ☺️
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36brendank
May 16, 2025
Fantastic Tour of Matsumoto/Kamikochi - Matsumoto castle is worth the trip to it, super cool to see an original castle from before the Edo period. Kamikochi was a beautiful hike, really nice break from the big cities. Shin as a guide was super helpful guide and was extremely well prepared with the history and facts of the area. He very clearly cares deeply about his hometown area and enjoys sharing it with visitors. Highly recommend going on a tour with Shin!
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Christopher
May 15, 2025
Matsumoto castle and Kamikochi 14 May 2025. - Excellent small tour group of seven global travellers. Jens, our tour guide was fantastic. He is very knowledgeable and kept us on time, but with a relaxed pace. Our driver (unfortunately I didn't get his name) navigated the narrow winding roads like an expert. Highlights were Matsumoto castle, Friday street & of course Kamikochi. Highly recommended over the large bus group tours.
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596catarinai
May 10, 2025
Amazing 11/10 - Our tour guide Joyce and our driver Higushi were amazing. We were the only (lucky) ones in the tour that date which made it a lot more personalized. The tour is super worth it, the castle is amazing and the Kamikochi views are breathtaking. If you are lucky you might even get to see a bear on the way there :) Joyce is an outstanding tour guide, we just shot her with questions the entire tour and she gladly answered them all with a lot of knowledge and experience. She also kept us busy during the ride, teaching us some origami which was a great experience. Overall I recommend this experience and if Joyce is your tour guide be sure that you are in good hands because she has the greatest recommendations on what to do around Nagano (and even outside Nagano) and you will have a lot of fun.
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Joy2125
May 7, 2025
Well curated 1-Day tour - This trip was so worth it! A great way to visit so many places with amazing views . So well curated! Our tour guide Shin was super knowledgeable and friendly! Also very patience allowing us to taking so many pictures. Hehe.
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795zoes
May 3, 2025
A wonderful day in the mountains - Amazing doesn't starts to describe this particular daytrip to the mountains. To begin with, Devin was the best guide we had so far in Japan - so knowledgeable and so ready to share and explain, to answer any question at length; so attentive to our needs. I learned so much history from him, so much medieval and earlier times geopolitics of the entire region - and everything in a light way, not heavy, easy to understand. As for the intinerary, it was well organized, the Matsumoto Castle fascinating (again with Devin's wonderful storytelling), the trail of Kamikochi breathtaking in its beauty and not difficult as a hike at all, even with the rain that kept persisting (again Devin kept telling us fascinating tales of the region or fun facts about the wildlife of those forests all the way) All in all, I wish we had another day in Nagano to pick another daytrip with Snow Monkeys company 😊
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Steve
Apr 26, 2025
One of the best days ever! - The whole day was great. Devon the guide did a top job. Well organised and met some nice people as well. Your shoes might get wet
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Baxter451
Nov 15, 2024
Great day trip from Nagano - Endo-San was a warm and engaging tour guide. In addition to sharing a lot of history, he carefully explained our itinerary so we would know what to expect. Pickup and drop off went without a hitch. Seeing a group of snow monkeys on our hike was an unexpected treat.
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V7094dnjustinb
Nov 15, 2024
Castle, monkeys, frogs and landscapes - First the Castle in Matsumoto was incredibly impressive landmark, it was interesting hearing some trivia about these Japanese Castles and what they were used for. The valley we walked through heading up to Kamikochi had some breathtaking views, and a small group of snow monkeys to boot. I appreciated how easy it was, jumping in the van from Nagano station, and being taken on a guided tour of these great places. Shout out to Dai for walking us through the different sites. JB
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From $212
up to 14 guests
1 - Adult
Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).