Nagano Without a Car: Zenkoji, Snow Monkeys and Day Trips

Nagano is a city on the Hokuriku Shinkansen, and it works well without a car. Zenkoji Temple is a short bus ride from the station, and the trains and buses for the snow monkeys, the onsen towns, Togakushi and Hakuba leave from the same station. This guide covers how to get there, how to see Zenkoji, the day trips and where to stay.

Times, fares and hours below come from the operators' and the temple's own pages (JR East, the Nagano Electric Railway, Nagaden Bus, Alpico, Zenkoji Temple and the Togakushi and Nozawa Onsen tourism associations), checked October 15–25, 2026.

Nagano is the northern gate of the car-free corridor in my Japanese Alps without a car guide.

Why go to Nagano

Zenkoji dates its founding to 642, when Yoshimitsu Honda enshrined a Buddhist image on the present site. The temple is named after him: Zenko is another reading of the characters for Yoshimitsu. It belongs to no single Buddhist sect. Its main image, an Amida triad, was hidden from view in 654, and the temple says no one has been allowed to see it since.

Inside the main hall, the Okaidan is a crypt passage that you walk through with a ticket. Every morning the temple holds a service, the O-asaji, in the main hall. The rosary blessing (O-juzu chodai) takes place 4 times a day, the first shortly before the morning service: anyone can wait for it on the pavement in front of the hall, with no booking and no charge.

The second reason is what is around the station. The snow monkeys at Jigokudani, the onsen towns of Yudanaka, Shibu and Nozawa, the shrines and forests of Togakushi and the ski village of Hakuba are all a train or bus ride from Nagano Station.

Getting to Nagano without a car

From Tokyo: the Hokuriku Shinkansen

JR East lists about 1 hour 20 minutes from Tokyo Station on the Kagayaki, about 1 hour 30 minutes on the Hakutaka and about 1 hour 45 minutes on the Asama. All Kagayaki seats are reserved. In the November 2026 weekday timetable, the Kagayaki 503 leaves Tokyo at 7:20 and reaches Nagano at 8:37.

Booked as a Shinkansen e-ticket, a reserved seat from Tokyo to Nagano costs ¥8,250 for adults in the regular season and a non-reserved seat ¥7,920 (prices for tickets bought from March 14, 2026).

From Kanazawa: the Shinkansen the other way

The Hokuriku Shinkansen also runs from Kanazawa to Nagano: about 1 hour, according to Zenkoji (1 hour 8 minutes, according to the Togakushi Tourism Association).

From Nagoya, Osaka and Matsumoto: the Shinano

The limited express Shinano runs from Nagoya through Matsumoto to Nagano: about 3 hours from Nagoya. In the November 2026 timetable, the Shinano 3 leaves Nagoya at 8:00, leaves Matsumoto at 10:06 and reaches Nagano at 11:02 (3 hours 2 minutes), and Matsumoto to Nagano takes 56 minutes. From Osaka, take the Tokaido Shinkansen to Nagoya and change there.

From Hakuba: the express bus

Alpico's express bus runs between Nagano Station's east exit and Hakuba. The fare to Hakuba Happo is ¥2,900 on the spring-to-autumn fare table, and Alpico lists 1 hour 10 minutes to 2 hours 5 minutes for the route. The spring-to-autumn timetable runs to November 30, 2026 (planned), and the winter times were not posted when I checked. More is in my Hakuba without a car guide.

Zenkoji Temple from the station

Take a local bus from stop 1 at the bus area outside the station's Zenkoji exit. Zenkoji's access page lists about 15 minutes to the Zenkoji Daimon stop and a fare of ¥190.

The temple grounds are open all day, and you can enter them and the outer part of the main hall (the Gejin) for free. The inner sanctuary (Naijin), the Okaidan passage and the Zenkoji History Museum need a Naijin ticket, sold at a machine to the right of the main hall entrance and at the temple goods counters.

The inner sanctuary and the Okaidan open 1 hour before the morning service, which starts around sunrise and moves by a minute a day. Closing time changes by month:

On December 28 they close at the end of the morning service. The History Museum is open 9:00–16:00 all year. The sutra hall (Kyozo) was closed for an inspection of the old building when I checked.

Day trips from Nagano Station

For Hakuba, see the express bus above.

Luggage in Nagano

• On the Togakushi express bus, bags go in the luggage hold.
• The snow monkey and Hakuba buses leave from the east exit and the Togakushi bus from the Zenkoji exit, so pick the locker on the side you will leave from.

Where to stay in Nagano without a car

Without a car, stay within walking distance of Nagano Station. The Shinkansen, the Nagano Electric Railway, the snow monkey bus, the Togakushi bus and the Hakuba bus all start there, and so does the bus to Zenkoji.

Zenkoji has 39 temple lodgings (shukubo) for visitors who come to worship. They take bookings for 2 people or more, and they guide guests to the morning service. The shukubo association takes calls on +81 26-237-7676, 9:00–16:30 every day (to 14:00 on December 31).

Seasons in Nagano

Frequently asked questions

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