Very much the destination of the moment, Japan is surging with arrivals since re-opening its doors to international tourism in October 2022, with many new visitors keen to experience the wonderful food, famously quirky culture, polite locals and of course beautiful scenery for themselves.

While spring and autumn are great times to visit Japan, these two peak seasons invariably mean more crowded towns and cities, higher hotel rates and availability issues for some trains and accommodation. I recently visited in the far quieter month of February and found a still strikingly beautiful country, in places covered by snow that was less touristy and much more peaceful for it.

Winter in Japan is simply less busy than any other time of year with fewer tourists and therefore better value hotel rates throughout the country. In many off the beaten path locations like Nagano and Fuji-Kawaguchiko I was the only westerner around. These two towns are both close to the Japanese Alps and benefitted from a fresh blanket of snow while I was there, making for fun outdoor activities like skiing possible, as well as providing epic backdrops for photos.

Some certain places I visited I would actually now only recommend visiting in winter. The famous Snow Monkeys of Jigokudani monkey park can be seen almost year round, but it’s highly unlikely they’ll be spending much time in the hot spring baths in the middle of a summer heatwave! Only in winter will you be able to replicate the images you’ve likely seen of their little red faces huddling together for warmth.

Likewise the traditional village of Shirakawa-go, nestled up in the Alps between Takayama and Kanazawa, can be visited at any time of year, but I would argue the village never looks prettier than when those high-sloped, thatched roofs are covered by an evening’s snowfall and you can hear the drips of the enormous icicles as you explore the serene village by foot.

Embrace the cold and wrap up warm! Japan has similar seasons and temperatures to the UK & Ireland but handily with more reliable and predictable snowfall.  Special mention to Matsumoto’s winter light festival where the traditional Japanese castle is bathed in lasers and projection mapping to make the winter night sky explode in colour!

For more inspiration take a look at our Japan Holidays pages.