Where to go in the Japan Alps
Map
List of regions
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Slightly off the beaten track, Kanazawa is a small city close to the coast. It was for a time Japan's fourth largest city, known for rice production, weaving and gold leaf, but was somewhat left behind when industrialisation took over.
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In the heart of the Hida Mountains lies the beautifully preserved market town of Takayama, a place of narrow streets and shops and teahouses with overhanging roofs and latticed windows.
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Winter sports are a popular activity in the area around Nagano, a compact provincial city that hosted the Winter Olympics in 1998; an excellent public transport system and assorted Olympic buildings are the legacy of the Games.
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As many as 200 snow monkeys live in the proximity of Yudanaka Onsen, one of a string of onsen villages in the mountainous north of Nagano Prefecture.