Karasawa Cirque 涸沢カール
HIKE DATE: October 11-13, 2025 (Saturday-Monday)
PUBLIC TRANSPORT SUMMARY:
THE ROUTE
Total time on the trail with breaks:
1st day: 7 hours and 40 minutes
2nd day: 5 hours and 35 minutes
(Please note that these stats were from when I hiked it. Your conditions could be a bit different.)
HIKE LOG SUMMARY:
FRIDAY NIGHT (DAY 0)
10:00 PM - Took the night bus from Shibuya Mark City to Kamikochi. There are also some departing from Shinjuku Station.
SATURDAY (DAY 1)
5:30 AM - Arrived at Kamikochi, acclimatized, had breakfast, and put on our rain gear because it was raining.
7:20 AM - Started hiking.
8:35 AM - Reached Myojinkan.
10:07 AM - Arrived at Tokusawa.
11:00 AM - Yokoo Campsite/Mountain Hut.
3:00 PM - Arrived at Karasawa Cirque, camped, had dinner, and called it a day.
SUNDAY (DAY 2)
We were supposed to hike up Oku-Hotaka on this day, but I thought I wasn’t in the right mental space for it since we were so tired and drenched from yesterday’s very rainy hike, so we decided to take it slow and just enjoyed the autumn scenery in all its glory. (yes, it was sunny haha)
MONDAY (DAY 3)
5:30 AM - Broke camp, had breakfast, and prepared to hike down.
6:30 AM - Started descent.
9:18 AM - Arrived at Yokoo.
10:17 AM - Reached Tokusawa and had lunch.
12:07 PM - Arrived at Kamikochi, had a second lunch, and bought souvenirs while waiting for our bus.
3:50 PM - Bus to Shinjuku.
HIKING FROM KAMIKOCHI TO KARASAWA CIRQUE IN JAPAN’S MOST FAMOUS AUTUMN SPOT
FRIDAY NIGHT (DAY 0)
During the season, there is no other way to get to Kamikochi but by bus (I think even off-season is not allowed, but please check on this). If you really want to drive, you can park somewhere nearby, like Hirayu Onsen, but you still need to board the bus from Hirayu Onsen to get to Kamikochi. What we did was book a night bus (from either Alpico or Willer) as it was the most convenient for us. Note that you can book the bus one month before your trip. The peak season is in autumn, and you'll want to book as soon as it becomes available, as it sells out very quickly, especially on weekends. (Tip: if you’re travelling, let’s say, on October 10, be on the booking site on September 10 at 8 AM. This is when they open slots.) We departed at 10 PM and just slept the whole way through.
SATURDAY (DAY 1)
5:30 AM - We arrived at Kamikochi while it was still dark, and it was very rainy. We did not hike right away, though. We acclimatized a bit and had breakfast at a nearby restaurant. Then, as the rain really had no plans of stopping, we put on our rain gear and waterproofed other things that we needed to be dry.
7:30 AM - We started hiking, and as you can see, it was very rainy. And since we were at a higher elevation, it was also cold, and the rain just made it colder.
8:35 AM - We arrived at Myojinkan, which is another accommodation you can stay at. We decided to stop by here and have some warm drinks.
It was nice to have a sip of something warm in this cold, gloomy weather.
10:07 AM - about an hour and a half later, we reached Tokusawa Campsite and Mountain Lodge. This will be the last stop you’ll have with a restaurant, so if you want to have an early lunch here, you certainly can, and you probably should.
The campsite at Tokusawa.
11:00 AM - We arrived at Yokoo Campsite and Mountain Hut. This is the part where they would require you to submit a hiking itinerary, as this is the start of the harder route. They also would not let you pass if you arrived past 2 PM, so make sure you get here before that. Even though Yokoo is a mountain hut, it does not serve food to those who are not staying the night (I am not sure if they changed this already, but when we went there, they didn’t have food even for those staying in the tents. We brought our own food, so we’re good, but if you are planning on not bringing any, plan your stops accordingly.) The next stop you will have with food is Karasawa Cirque.
Did I mention it was STILL RAINING?! But also, look at that ginkgo tree. Such a nice contrast to the atmospheric vibe of the place. And that bridge to the left will be closed at 2 PM, so come early.
3:00 PM - We arrived at Karasawa Cirque at 3 PM and immediately looked for a spot to pitch our tent. The rain stopped a bit, but when it was time to assemble our tent, it poured, and we were drenched. I actually broke down and cried because I was cold and miserable, and our stuff got wet because the rain poured hard before we finished setting up our tent. Thankfully, it all went well in the end. After eating dinner and changing our clothes, we went to sleep.
SUNDAY (DAY 2)
We decided to skip hiking Oku-Hotaka and just explored Karasawa Cirque and relaxed the whole day. The first thing we did, though, was dry our clothes since it was such nice weather.
Do yourselves a favor and not use the rocks to pin your thin clothes because my sun hoodie had holes after this. My rain jacket and pants were fine, but my Patagonia sun hoodie was not. I learned the hard way.
Enjoy this gallery of Karasawa Cirque’s in its full autumn glory.
We also had ice cream at Karasawa Goya, and yes it was cold, but it is never too cold for ice cream.
And of course, how could we ever miss the opportunity of photographing the famous tent city???
Both Karasawa Hutte and Karasawa Goya serve food to everyone. If you do not want to camp, you can also stay at either one of these mountain huts, but just like the transportation to get to Kamikochi, the rooms here get booked out pretty fast, so make sure you reserve way in advance. They also rent out tents, but the availability is very limited. This is why most people just bring their tents and camp.
The weather on our 2nd day was really nice, and it would have been possible to hike to Oku-Hotaka, but I wasn’t in the right headspace. We were tired from yesterday, and I was too stressed out from our stuff getting wet. I learned a lot from this hike, and it prepared me better for hiking in bad weather conditions. So, as much as I would have liked to hike Japan’s 3rd-highest mountain, I have decided to hold it off for next time.
MONDAY (3RD DAY)
6:30 AM - After packing up and having breakfast, we started hiking down, and I am happy to report that we got a very gorgeous sunny day and got to see the autumn scenery along the trail.
12:00 PM - We reached the Visitor Center, where we got our stamp for the National Park Stamp Rally since Kamikochi is part of the Chubu-Sangaku National Park.
12:30 - 3:30 - During these 3 hours, we have managed to get our 2nd lunch and shop for souvenirs around the Kamikochi area. We also got to finally get a picture of the Alps around the Azusa River.
3:50 PM - We boarded the bus to Shinjuku and arrived at almost 9 PM. From there, we took the train home <3
