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Matsumoto

The Black Crow Castle Beneath the Japan Alps

Plan this trip
2 daysIdeal stay₹5,450From / night₹2,120Food / day₹420Entry

Home to Matsumoto Castle, a black-and-white keep from the 1590s and one of only five castles that are national treasures, with the Northern Alps behind it. The old Nakamachi storehouse street, Yayoi Kusama's home-town art museum and the wasabi fields of Azumino are close by. It is the gateway to Kamikochi, an alpine valley open only from mid-April to mid-November, and a bus ride from Takayama over the mountains.

Highlights

  • Matsumoto Castle's black keep and moat
  • Nakamachi's white storehouses
  • Frog-themed Nawate-dori
  • Yayoi Kusama works at the City Museum of Art
  • Daio Wasabi Farm
  • Kamikochi's Kappa Bridge and Hotaka peaks (mid-April to mid-November)
  • Shinshu soba

Things to do

  • Matsumoto Castle & groundsMorning · 2h
  • Nakamachi & Nawate-dori walkAfternoon · 1h 30m
  • Matsumoto City Museum of Art (Yayoi Kusama)Afternoon · 1h 30m
  • Kamikochi valley hikeMay–OctMorning · 6h
  • Daio Wasabi Farm, AzuminoAfternoon · 2h

Tours & tickets

Tours & tickets in Matsumotovia GetYourGuideTours & tickets in Matsumotovia Klook

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When to go

Best time: April – November

Heads up

Rainy Season (Tsuyu)

From early June to mid or late July it rains most days, often all day, on Honshu and Kyushu: carry an umbrella, keep outdoor plans flexible, and expect landslide warnings to close mountain roads and some railways after heavy downpours. Hydrangeas are in flower and the crowds are thinner.

Heads up

Kamikochi Closed for Winter

The Kamikochi alpine valley is closed from mid-November to mid-April, when its road shuts for snow. Matsumoto and its castle are open all year.

  • Cherry blossom (hanami) — Cherry trees flower for about a week, from late March in Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka to mid-April in the Alps towns and late April in Sendai; Okinawa's come in January and Hokkaido's in early May. Parks fill with picnics under the trees. It is the dearest and most crowded time of year: book hotels four to six months ahead, and expect Kyoto rooms at two or three times the usual price.
  • Autumn leaves (koyo) — The maples turn red from late September in Hokkaido, through October in Nikko and the Alps, to mid-November to early December in Kyoto, Nara and Tokyo. Kyoto's temples open at night with lit-up gardens; trains, buses and hotels are as full as in cherry-blossom season.