Karuizawa

When Archdeacon A.C. Shaw, an English prelate, built his summer villa here in 1886 at the foot of Mt. Asama in southeastern Nagano, he sparked the interest of fashionable, affluent Tokyoites, who soon made it their preferred summer destination. Some became patrons of the arts, which led to the opening of galleries and art museums. Pamphlets on current exhibitions are at the tourist office.

Emperor Akihito met the Empress Michiko on a tennis court here in the 1950s. Two decades later John Lennon and Yoko Ono lolled at her family's besso (summer house) and the Monpei Hotel. In Kyu-Karuizawa, near the Karuizawa train station, more than 500 branches of trendy boutiques sell, well, the same goods as their flagship stores in Tokyo. Coming from Tokyo, Karuizawa is a nice stop en route to the hot-spring towns of Kusatsu and Yudanaka or Matsumoto and Kamikochi. It is very crowded from mid-July to the end of August. Naka-Karuizawa Station, one stop (five minutes) away on the Shinano Tetsudo line, is a gateway to Shiraito and Ryugaeshi waterfalls, the Yacho wild bird sanctuary, and hiking trails.