chubunagano
Kiso Valley
The Kiso Valley is the deep wooded valley of the Kiso River in southwestern Nagano, in the Chubu region, through which the old Nakasendo road ran between Edo and Kyoto past a chain of preserved post towns.
A post town on the Nakasendo, Kiso Valley
- Prefecture
- Nagano
- Region
- Chubu
- Journeys
- The Custom Tour of Japan
overview
An old road through the cypress forests, and the wooden inns that waited for its travellers.
In the Edo period the Nakasendo was one of the five great roads of Japan, the inland route of some five hundred kilometres between Edo and Kyoto, with sixty-nine post towns where travellers ate, slept and changed their horses. Eleven of them lay in the Kiso Valley, strung out along the river for nearly ninety kilometres between steep forested mountains. Lords on their way to the shogun's court, merchants, pilgrims and messengers all passed through, and the towns lived on them.
When the railway came, the road and its towns were left behind, and that is why they survive. In the 1960s the people of Tsumago chose to restore their town rather than let it go, and pledged not to sell, rent or pull down its wooden houses. Tsumago became one of the first places in Japan protected as a preserved historic district, and today it, Magome and Narai keep their streets of dark wooden inns and shops, latticed and low-eaved, with no wires and no traffic.
The valley is also famous for its forests. The hinoki cypress of Kiso, straight-grained and fragrant, was so valued that the Owari domain forbade the felling of five kinds of tree here under the severest penalties, and the timber for the rebuilding of the Grand Shrine of Ise every twenty years still comes from these hills. Lacquerware, combs and bentwood boxes are still made in the valley's workshops.
Our tours stay overnightOur tours visit for the dayOn a Custom Tour of Japan
see and do
What to see in the Kiso Valley
Tsumago-juku
The best preserved of the Nakasendo post towns, a single street of wooden inns and shops beneath the mountains, lit by lanterns in the evening, where the honjin, the inn of the travelling lords, can be visited.
Waki-honjin Okuya
The secondary inn of Tsumago, rebuilt in 1877 of hinoki cypress once forbidden to commoners, its rooms set around a hearth and an inner garden, now a museum of the town.
Magome-juku
A post town laid along a steep stone-paved slope just over the border in Gifu, with water wheels, inns and views across the valley, and the birthplace of the novelist Shimazaki Toson, whose house is now a museum.
The old road between Magome and Tsumago
About eight kilometres of the Nakasendo through cedar forest, past the Odaki and Medaki waterfalls and a teahouse where travellers have stopped for centuries; it can be walked in part, with a car waiting at the far end.
Narai-juku
The longest of the post towns, its street running for about a kilometre at the foot of the Torii Pass, with lacquer shops, sake breweries and inns behind deep eaves.
Kiso-Hirasawa
A lacquer-making village next to Narai, where workshops have made Kiso lacquerware since the Edo period and still sell from their front rooms.
Kiso-Fukushima checkpoint
The site of one of the four great barriers of the Edo road system, where officials checked every traveller's papers on the Nakasendo; a museum stands on the original site.
Nezame no Toko
A stretch of the Kiso River where the water has carved the white granite into smooth blocks and pools, tied by legend to the fisherman Urashima Taro.
Akasawa Forest
A protected forest of hinoki cypress, some trees more than three hundred years old, with level paths and a small forest railway.
experiences
The best of the Kiso Valley
A stretch of the Nakasendo
An easy section of the old road near Tsumago, through cedar forest and past waterfalls, at your own pace and with a car to meet you, so you walk only as far as you wish.
Tsumago in the evening
The street of Tsumago after the day visitors have gone, when the inns light their lanterns and the town looks as it did when the lords' processions stopped for the night.
Hinoki and lacquer
An hour in a Kiso workshop with a lacquer artisan or a maker of bentwood boxes in fragrant hinoki, watching a craft passed down the valley for centuries.
An onsen at Hirugami
A night at an onsen ryokan in Hirugami, a short drive from Magome, its alkaline springs smooth on the skin and its night skies famous for their stars.
plan your visit
The Kiso Valley on a journey through Japan
- How long to stay
- One night lets you see Tsumago and Magome at an easy pace and the post town by evening; a second night allows Narai and the northern valley.
- Getting there
- From Nagoya by the Shinano limited express to Nakatsugawa in about fifty minutes, then about thirty minutes by car to Magome. From Matsumoto, Narai is about an hour by car, and Tsumago an hour and a half. From Tokyo the journey takes about three and a half hours by way of Nagoya.
journeys
The Kiso Valley on a private journey
We bring guests to the Kiso Valley on the Custom Tour of Japan, created around your party alone, on your dates, with your own Tour Director.
questions
The Kiso Valley: questions answered
What is the Kiso Valley known for?
For its preserved post towns on the old Nakasendo road, chiefly Tsumago, Magome and Narai, for its hinoki cypress forests, and for its lacquerware.
How do you get to the Kiso Valley?
By the Shinano limited express from Nagoya to Nakatsugawa, about fifty minutes, and then by car to Magome in about thirty. From Matsumoto it is about an hour by car to Narai.
How long is the walk from Magome to Tsumago?
About eight kilometres, or three hours at a gentle pace, on the old road through the forest. Many travellers walk a shorter stretch near Tsumago, with a car to meet them.
Which is better, Tsumago or Magome?
Tsumago is the better preserved and quieter in the evening; Magome is smaller, set on a steep slope, with fine views. They are eight kilometres apart and easily seen together.
Can you stay overnight in Tsumago?
Yes, in the small traditional inns along its street. For more comfort, an onsen ryokan in Hirugami, half an hour away, is the usual choice.
What is the Nakasendo?
One of the five great roads of Edo-period Japan, the inland route of about five hundred kilometres between Edo and Kyoto, with sixty-nine post towns.
Can the Kiso Valley be part of a private tour of Japan?
Yes. The Custom Tour of Japan is created around your party alone, on your dates, with your own Tour Director, and it can go anywhere in the country, the Kiso Valley included. If you would rather travel independently, the Expert Japan Itinerary plans every day for you.
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Every place in Chubu
The Kiso Valley, planned for you.
Tell us when you would like to travel and what draws you to the Kiso Valley, and we will answer with a Custom Tour of Japan created around your party alone, or, if you would rather travel independently, an Expert Japan Itinerary that plans every day for you.