Karuizawa, Japan
軽井沢町
Karuizawa is a town of 20,023 people in Nagano, Japan, founded in April 1, 1889.
Why visit Karuizawa
Townapedia lists 129 museums and landmarks, 32 parks and trails, 123 places to eat, 37 places to stay and 41 attractions in and around town.
Highlights include Karuizawa Snow Park, Prince Hotels and Resorts Karuizawa, Sezon Museum of Modern Art and Former Legation of Switzerland in Karuizawa (Miyama-so).
Weather in Karuizawa
Forecast from MET Norway (CC BY 4.0). Full forecast
About Karuizawa
Karuizawa (軽井沢町, Karuizawa-machi) is a resort town in Nagano Prefecture, Japan. As of 1 October 2025, it had an estimated population of 21,834 in 11,285 households, and a population density of 139 persons per km2. The total area of the town is 156.03 km2 (60.24 sq mi).
From the Wikipedia article Karuizawa, Nagano (this version), under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Travel tips from other travellers: Karuizawa on Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Things to do41
29 more on the map.
Museums and landmarks129
Sezon Museum of Modern Art
Museum · 5.2 km
Art museum in Karuizawa, Nagano, Japan
Former Legation of Switzerland in Karuizawa (Miyama-so)
Monument and historic site · 2.6 km
117 more on the map.
Parks, trails and playgrounds32
Usuitoge Railway Heritage Park
Sports field and stadium · 9.1 km
16, 安中市
Mar-Oct 09:00-17:00; Nov-Feb 09:00-16:30; Tu off; Aug 09:00-17:00;...
20 more on the map.
Restaurants and cafes123
おぎのや
Restaurant · Japanese · 9.4 km
Mo-Fr 10:00-16:00; Sa-Su 09:00-16:00
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111 more on the map.
History
The area of present-day Karuizawa was part of ancient Shinano Province, and developed as Karuisawa-shuku, a post station on the Nakasendō highway connecting Edo with Kyoto during the Edo period.
2 August 1876: The hamlets of Kutsukake, Shiozawanitta, Karijuku, Narusawanitta, and Yui merged to form the village of Nagakura. The village of Hatsuji in Saku District absorbed the hamlet of Matorikaya.
14 January 1879: Kitasaku District was created, and the town of Usuitoge, and the villages of Karuizawa, Nagakura, Oiwake were established with Kitasaku District.
1886: Canadian Anglican missionary Rev. Alexander Croft Shaw and Tokyo Imperial University English professor James Main Dixon introduced Karuizawa as a summer resort.
1 April 1889: With the establishment of the modern municipalities system, the town of Usuitoge, and the villages of Karuizawa, and the areas of the former villages of Kutsukake, Shiozawanitta, and Karijuku from the village of Nagakura merged to form the village of Higashinagakura in Kitasaku District, and the areas of the former villages of Narusawanitta and Yui in the village of Nagakura, and the villages of Hatsuji and Oiwake merged to form the village of Nishinagakura in Kitasaku District.
1910s: Begins to attract the attention of other expatriates and Japanese. Specially Germans congregate here, language professors and academics hold annual conferences.
From the History section of Karuizawa, Nagano on Wikipedia, under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Where to stay37
Churches and places of worship18
Shopping23
Gas and EV charging8
Schools, colleges and libraries8
Healthcare6
Map of Karuizawa
250 places. The map loads OpenStreetMap tiles when you open it.
Getting there and nearby towns
Shinshu-Matsumoto Airport (MMJ) is the nearest airport with scheduled flights listed in OpenStreetMap, 67 km away.
- Komoro 18 km west, about 18 min by car
- Saku 20 km southwest, about 20 min by car
- Annaka 24 km east, about 24 min by car
- Tomioka 26 km southeast, about 26 min by car
- Higashiagatsuma 30 km northeast, about 30 min by car
- Ueda 32 km west, about 32 min by car
- Nakanojō 32 km northeast, about 32 min by car
- Takasaki 34 km east, about 34 min by car
- Kanekomachi 33 km east, about 33 min by car
- Yoshii 33 km east, about 33 min by car
Drive times are estimates from straight-line distance, not routes.
Local news
Headlines from INDB.
Reviews, tips and questions
Loading what members have shared...
Sources and licences
- GeoNames (CC BY 4.0): population, coordinates, regions and time zone
- OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL 1.0): places, airports, map data
- Wikidata (CC0 1.0): elevation, founding date, time zone, website, landmarks and historic places
- Wikimedia Commons (see each image): photos
- Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0): overview and history text
Photo credits
- Shiraito Falls, Karuizawa 2014-08-04 (15250317335), Wei-Te Wong from Taipei City, Taiwan, Republic of China, CC BY-SA 2.0
- 240726 Wakita Museum of Art Karuizawa Japan01s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 240308 Karuizawa New Art Museum Karuizawa Japan05s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 240308 Karuizawa New Art Museum Karuizawa Japan06s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 240308 Karuizawa New Art Museum Karuizawa Japan02s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 240308 Karuizawa New Art Museum Karuizawa Japan04s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 240308 Karuizawa New Art Museum Karuizawa Japan01s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 240308 Karuizawa New Art Museum Karuizawa Japan07s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 240308 Karuizawa New Art Museum Karuizawa Japan03s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 160729 Tokyu Harvest Club Kyukaruizawa Karuizawa Japan03s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 260321 Tokyu Harvest Club Kyukaruizawa Karuizawa Japan01s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 260321 Tokyu Harvest Club Kyukaruizawa Annex Karuizawa Japan01s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 160730 Tokyu Harvest Club Kyukaruizawa Karuizawa Japan04s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 160729 Tokyu Harvest Club Kyukaruizawa Karuizawa Japan02s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 160730 Tokyu Harvest Club Kyukaruizawa Karuizawa Japan02s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 160730 Tokyu Harvest Club Kyukaruizawa Karuizawa Japan03s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 160729 Tokyu Harvest Club Kyukaruizawa Karuizawa Japan01s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 260321 Tokyu Harvest Club Kyukaruizawa Annex Karuizawa Japan02s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 160730 Tokyu Harvest Club Kyukaruizawa Karuizawa Japan01s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Hachijuni Bank Karuizawa Branch, Suikotei, CC BY 4.0
- 070922 Old Karuizawa rotary Karuizawa Nagano pref Japan06s3, 663highland, CC BY 2.5
- 070922 Old Karuizawa rotary Karuizawa Nagano pref Japan04bs, 663highland, CC BY 2.5
- 070922 Old Karuizawa rotary Karuizawa Nagano pref Japan07n, 663highland, CC BY 2.5
- 070922 Old Karuizawa rotary Karuizawa Nagano pref Japan03s3, 663highland, CC BY 2.5
- 070922 Old Karuizawa rotary Karuizawa Nagano pref Japan05s5, 663highland, CC BY 2.5
- 240308 Musée Ando à Karuizawa Karuizawa Japan01s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 240308 Musée Ando à Karuizawa Karuizawa Japan05s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 240308 Musée Ando à Karuizawa Karuizawa Japan04s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 240308 Musée Ando à Karuizawa Karuizawa Japan10s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 240308 Musée Ando à Karuizawa Karuizawa Japan11s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 240308 Musée Ando à Karuizawa Karuizawa Japan08s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 240308 Musée Ando à Karuizawa Karuizawa Japan02s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 240308 Musée Ando à Karuizawa Karuizawa Japan06s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 240308 Musée Ando à Karuizawa Karuizawa Japan07s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 240308 Musée Ando à Karuizawa Karuizawa Japan09s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 240308 Musée Ando à Karuizawa Karuizawa Japan03s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 240308 Musée Ando à Karuizawa Karuizawa Japan12s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- KARUIZAWA reiku, Mycalsinpson, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Usui Bridge Gunma prefecture2024, Charlie fong, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 220930 Sezon Museum of Modern Art Karuizawa Nagano pref Japan04s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Nagano Olympic Stadium in 2018, Christophe95, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 070922 Ryokan Tsuruya Karuizawa Nagano pref Japan01bs15, 663highland, CC BY 2.5
- 070922 Erzgebirge Toys Museum of Karuizawa Karuizawa Nagano pref Japan01bs20, 663highland, CC BY 2.5
- Shaw memorial chapel04s2040, 663highland, CC BY 2.5
- Peynet museum01s3872, 663highland, CC BY 2.5
- Manpei hotel01s1600, 663highland, CC BY 2.5
- 小さな美術館軽井沢草花館, 小さな美術館軽井沢草花館, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Old mikasa hotel02s3872, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Fknb02s3872, 663highland, CC BY 2.5
- Karuizawa shiraito-no-taki03s3200, 663highland, CC BY 2.5
- Ishinokyoukai01, 663highland at Japanese Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Jingū-ji (Karuizawa, Nagano), 妖精書士, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 220930 St. Paul's Catholic Church Karuizawa Nagano pref Japan01s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Karuizawa Taliesin02s3200, 663highland, CC BY 2.5
- Prince Snow Resort Karuizawa, Ski Mania, Public domain
- 160730 Karuizawa Ohga Hall Karuizawa Nagano pref Japan01s3, 663highland, CC BY 2.5
- 160730 Mt Hanare Karuizawa Nagano pref Japan01s3, 663highland, CC BY 2.5
- Mt.Hanamagari from Mt.Asamakakushi, Yama0904, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Wakita Museum of Art, Abasaa, Public domain
- 160730 Tatsuo Hori literature Memorial Karuizawa Nagano pref Japan01n, 663highland, CC BY 2.5
- 160729 Le Vent Museum of Contemporary Art Karuizawa Nagano pref Japan02s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 軽井沢町立軽井沢東部小学校, Syced, CC0
- Former Swiss Legation in Karuizawa 3, photo: Qurren ( talk ) Taken with Canon PowerShot G9 X, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 追分郷土館, Komoro no kaze, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 田崎美術館, Mirutake, CC0
- 160730 Happy Valley Karuizawa Nagano pref Japan01s3, 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Karuizawa Mikado Coffee, 妖精書士, CC BY-SA 3.0
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