You'll find a night at the isolated Ougatou Hotel atop the beautiful Utsukushi-ga-hara-kōgen plateau something to remember. Rooms are plush, comfy and reasonably priced. Oversized suites have decadent baths overlooking the plateau and the cloud line: you'll think you're on cloud nine as you wake.
Ougatou Hotel
Matsumoto
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
7.62 MILES
Must-see Matsumoto-jō is Japan's oldest wooden castle and one of four castles designated National Treasures – the others are Hikone, Himeji and Inuyama…
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19.52 MILES
This popular art museum showcases the work of Chihiro Iwasaki (1918–74), who became world-renowned while specialising in children's-book illustrations…
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28.4 MILES
Here's your chance to get up close and personal with Asama-yama – so close, you could almost touch it. Formed in 1783 by Asama's last violent eruption,…
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13.41 MILES
Fancy some wasabi wine or ice cream? This farm, a 15-minute bike ride from JR Hotaka Station, is a must for wasabi-lovers. An English map guides you among…
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9.51 MILES
Housing more than 100,000 woodblock prints, paintings, screens and old books, this renowned museum exhibits but a fraction of its collection. The museum…
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7.57 MILES
Nawate-dōri, a few blocks south from the castle, is a popular street for a stroll. Vendors along this riverside walk sell antiques, souvenirs, and…
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7.2 MILES
This sleek museum has a good collection of the work of Japanese artists, many of whom hail from Matsumoto or whose art depicts scenes of the surrounding…
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'Umi' Museum of Contemporary Art
29.28 MILES
This light-filled gallery showcases an impressive collection of contemporary work by Japanese artists who have found fame abroad in genres such as oil…
Nearby Matsumoto attractions
1. Utsukushi-ga-hara Open Air Museum
2.01 MILES
Atop Utsukushi-ga-hara-kōgen plateau you'll find this seemingly random sculpture garden with some 350 pieces, mostly by Japanese sculptors. The…
2. Matsumoto City Museum of Art
7.2 MILES
This sleek museum has a good collection of the work of Japanese artists, many of whom hail from Matsumoto or whose art depicts scenes of the surrounding…
7.57 MILES
Nawate-dōri, a few blocks south from the castle, is a popular street for a stroll. Vendors along this riverside walk sell antiques, souvenirs, and…
7.62 MILES
Must-see Matsumoto-jō is Japan's oldest wooden castle and one of four castles designated National Treasures – the others are Hikone, Himeji and Inuyama…
7.64 MILES
Home to Japan's largest pendulum clock (on the building's exterior) and over 300 other timepieces, including fascinating medieval Japanese creations, this…
7.73 MILES
A few blocks north of the castle, the former Kaichi School is both an Important Cultural Property and the oldest elementary school in Japan, founded in…
9 MILES
The grounds of this Tendai temple have some impressive ancient trees and sweeping valley views. The temple's name comes from the fact that this Kannon…
9.08 MILES
Of the Sōtō Zen sect, Anraku-ji is the oldest Zen temple in Nagano. Dating from AD 824–34, it's a National Treasure, renowned for its octagonal pagoda…