Hi, I am travelling alone to Japan in the last 10 days of March. I have a free week (from 24th to 30th March) which I would like to spend exploring the Nakasendo trail, Takayama and possibly the alps/onsen region east of Nagano (e.g. Kusatsu onsen). I am departing from and need to go back to Tokyo.
I have a couple of questions for locals:
\- is it usually possible to walk the Nakasendo trail between Magome and Tsumago at the end of March without too much discomfort (e.g. extreme cold or snow)?
\- I am having troubles planning a straightforward route from Tsumago to Matsumoto/Nagano/Kumatsu onsen and then to Takayama, because it requires many changes and a lot of time by public transport. Is driving from Mastumoto and back to visit Kumatsu onsen and the monkey snow park a good option at the end of March? I am a decent driver and can drive in the mountains, but I have never tried to drive on the left yet, so would like to avoid extremely difficult conditions. Or would it be better to skip this part and just go from Matsumoto to Takayama by bus, maybe adding a stop in Gero on my way back to Nagoya for the onsen?
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Thanks for your tips!
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