What's on in Karuizawa, Japan through the year

Busy — Winter break (fuyuyasumi) in Japan, school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it

• Season

  Deep winter quiet

  10 Jan – 28 FebOff-season shutdownClosures

  A good share of the summer-house restaurants and galleries shut after New Year and do not reopen until Golden Week. Cold, dry, clear, and largely closed.

Still on: First lifts in Japan (1 Nov – 31 Mar)

Quiet — school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it, one of its worst months for weather

Nothing new starts in February.

Still on: Deep winter quiet (10 Jan – 28 Feb), First lifts in Japan (1 Nov – 31 Mar)

Busy — Spring break (haruyasumi) in Japan

Nothing new starts in March.

Still on: First lifts in Japan (1 Nov – 31 Mar)

Busy — Spring break (haruyasumi) in Japan, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in April.

Busy — Golden Week in Japan

Nothing new starts in May.

Busy — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, one of its best months for weather

• Season

  Tsuyu and the fog

  10 Jun – 15 Jul · usuallyMonsoon

  At a thousand metres the rainy season is cloud sitting in the larches rather than downpours. The shops are quiet and the moss is why people who know come now.

Peak crowds — Summer season, Summer break (natsuyasumi) in Japan

• Season

  Summer season

  15 Jul – 31 AugCrowdedBook early

  Tokyo's hot-weather escape since the 1880s, and the population multiplies for six weeks. Restaurants need booking, the outlet mall is full, and the expressway backs up on Friday evenings.

Still on: Tsuyu and the fog (10 Jun – 15 Jul (usually))

Peak crowds — Summer season, Obon

• Holiday

  Obon

  13–16 AugNational holidayCrowded

  The peak of the peak. Second homes are all occupied, the bicycle lanes are busy, and a table anywhere decent needs to have been booked in spring. Source ↗

Still on: Summer season (15 Jul – 31 Aug)

Busy — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, one of its best months for weather

Nothing new starts in September.

Shoulder season — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

• Nature

  Autumn colour

  15 Oct – 10 Nov · usually

  The larch avenues and Kumoba pond turn from the end of October. The town is at its best and the day-trippers thin out after the first hard frost.

Shoulder season — an ordinary month

• Opening

  First lifts in Japan

  1 Nov – 31 MarSki season

  The Prince resort makes snow in cold, dry air and usually opens on 1 November, weeks before anywhere else in Nagano has any. Short, groomed runs and a Tokyo day-trip crowd. Source ↗

Still on: Autumn colour (15 Oct – 10 Nov (usually))

Busy — Winter break (fuyuyasumi) in Japan, school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in December.

Still on: First lifts in Japan (1 Nov – 31 Mar)