On a free and easy holiday in Tokyo, where my activities consisted mainly of feasting, shopping and simply relaxing the day away, a tour brochure at the front desk of my hotel caught my eye as there was a photo of monkeys in an onsen. So of course, I had to book the day tour to Jigokudani Monkey Park!

Jigokudani Yaen Kōen & Japanese Macaques

Jigokudani Monkey Park or Jigokudani Yaen Kōen, as it is known in Japanese, is inhabited by Japanese Macaques, which are also known as Snow Monkeys. Native only to Japan, Japanese macaques are found nowhere else in the wild. Japanese macaques’ habitat is throughout Japan, mainly broad-leaved forest areas, except Hokkaido and the archipelago of Ryukyu (Okinawa).

Jigokudani means “hell valley” and is a common name for valleys with volcanic activity. The park has one pool, located a few minutes walk from the carpark, where the monkeys often gather round and soak within. The park is located at an altitude of 850 m, and is covered in snow about 1/3 of the year. It was established in 1964 and the Japanese have done an amazing job in maintaining the natural environment without over-commercialisation of the site.

We were told that being wild monkeys, they would be free to leave the park, so we may not always see monkeys. The official website of Jigokudani Yaen Kōen provides weekly monkeys appearance forecasts, as well as, current situation via Facebook and X. There is also a Live Camera on the website which allows visitors to view the monkeys.

Safety Precautions at Jigokudani Monkey Park

Behaviour Around Monkeys:

There are signs advising that it is prohibited to touch or feed the monkeys. We were also advised not to stare at the monkeys’ eyes closely as this is interpreted as a hostile act by them.

Appropriate Footwear:

As it was in the middle of winter, the path to the pool was covered with snow. So our guide made sure that we had appropriate footwear by taking us to a shop at the park entrance, where we could either hire boots or purchase snow cleats for our shoes for a reasonable price. We opted for the snow cleats option, since we can keep them for future trips. Thereafter, we all followed our guide up the sloping path that led to the pool, where the monkeys were gathered. It must be noted that care had to be taken not to slip and fall on the uneven ground and slippery slopes. Thankfully, everyone managed to walk up and down the slope without incident.

Monkeys everywhere!

As it turned out, it was a good day for us. There were numerous monkeys sitting around the pool. Some of them were roaming around, freely walking past human visitors, seemingly accustomed to humans in their habitat. We were rather wary of them, being wild monkeys, so we kept a safe distance from them.

It was a cold winter’s day (at least to us!). But according to the guide, it wasn’t cold enough for the monkeys for them to want to soak in the pool. So none of the monkeys were soaking in the onsen at the time, much to our disappointment.

The park has a small information centre, where information about the monkeys was available including their alpha male social hierarchy.

Food, Glorious Food!

It was quite a long drive from Tokyo to Nagano and back, so all in all, it was a long day tour. There was a lovely shabu shabu lunch included, which broke up the long drive.

Shabu Shabu Lunch:

We also stopped by at rest stops on the way, where a variety of Japanese snacks and cute buns were available.

We enjoyed the shabu shabu meal tremendously, as well as the random snacks we came across during the journey that day.

Going to Jigokudani Monkey Park certainly was one of the highlights of my holiday in Japan. I would wholeheartedly recommend this as a must do when in the Land of the Rising Sun.