Japan’s must-visit hot spring destination: GUNMA (Ep 1)

Japan’s must-visit hot spring destination: GUNMA (Ep 1)

Is the volcano dormant or still active? – No, it’s still active – Still active. – Still active! Oh! – Because of the volcanic mountains, there are a lot of great onsens around here. – Oh, so thank you so much, mountain! [Laughing] Hello [in Japanese]! We’re in Japan. [music]

And we’re discovering some of the best hidden secrets few foreigners know about. [music] We’re back in Japan to visit a region about an hour away from Tokyo, but that’s a world of difference from the craziness of the big city. This is Gunma! If you’ve never been to Japan,

Maybe you haven’t heard of Gunma yet. But let me tell you, this is where the Japanese come for holidays and getaways. – This is the retreat destination of Japan. – And what do you do in a retreat destination? You relax, enjoy nature, but most importantly, you get to experience the real Japanese culture,

Staying at a traditional Japanese inn, the ryokan and enjoying the public baths, the onsens. This is a three-part series visiting five different areas in Gunma. Join us to discover a totally different way to experience Japan. You can get to Gunma by train and by bus. What is our choice, Gordon? – Feet.

– No, come on! What is Japan famous for? – Oh, Shinkansen. – Yes! I know you might be a little confused right now as we’re showing Australia and New Zealand on the channel, but an amazing opportunity to show you a little bit more of Japan,

A different Japan, just knocked on the door, and as we love this country so much, we figured, why not? We partnered with Visit Gunma to show you this paradise, and we’re loving the opportunity to be back in Japan. – Yeah, especially since I didn’t make it for the Olympics. And you did.

What’s Gunma famous for? – Oh, baby! It’s like the paradise place of Japan. People go there for nature, to hike, to exercise, and then at the end of the day, relax at an onsen, I can barely wait. – What’s an onsen? – You gonna see, keep watching. Keep watching.

We’re at Tokyo Station, and this line that we’re getting, Jōetsu, it brings you to some of the top hot springs and ski resorts in Japan. And it’s operated by JR East, which means if you have the JR pass, you can use it. Bento Box for today? – Today? Oh, no.

No, we got a special one coming up. – The only two things I can read here are green tea or honey and lemon. – I favor that, that you can’t read. Surprise yourself. – For the train. This is a really short trip. It’s just about an hour.

– Welcome aboard the Joetsu Shinkansen. This is a Toki Super Express bound for Niigata. – After getting trains all over the world, we get back here and realize how quiet and smooth this is, right? It is unbelievable. You cannot even talk loud. So quiet.

Look at how fast the train is compared to cars. [music] What is it? – Sweet tea. [music] Mint… I’d say here? Maybe… honey, lemon? Wow, very good. Wow, look at how the landscape changes here. In about one hour, you arrive at Jomokogen Station. That was so fast.

And then you can catch a bus or rent a car. The first area we’re visiting is Minakami. [music] Thank you. Gotta be ready for the adventure. So, this is what we’re doing! Wow! Okay. – Lift up and boom. – They provide all the equipment. – Yeah, you don’t need to bring anything.

– Swimsuit? – No, you need to bring the swimsuit. – Bring swimsuits… – …and socks. – [laugh] Yeah! – Do you know how long it took me to put this wet suit on? – And how many times did you say it doesn’t fit? – Probably like 10 times. Very tight.

– You getting worried? No. – Me or him? – No, him! – Okay, laugh at me. Laugh at me, huh? – Always safety first. – I’m so sweaty already. I’m looking forward to the water. [laughs] Sweaty! [laughs] Look at you. And it’s fall. It’s not summer. Am I walking funny? – Yeah.

– I’m so looking forward to this water. It’s so hot. – Okay, follow me Wooo… – Okay, come this way. [music] – Renata! Are you sure? – Yes, I’m sure. [music] – Are you sure? – No problem. He’s got you. He’s got you. [laughing and screaming] Yeah! [screaming] Yeah! [music]

I still can’t believe we came down that waterfall. – Oh, I love it! Water is fantastic. – This is a sport called canyoning. You travel down a river located in a canyon… Yeah. …combining several outdoor sports like rock climbing, hiking, swimming, and rappeling. And you can also jump just for fun.

– Jump! [music] – Are you ready? – Yes. – Three, two, one, jump. Yeah! Nice! Okay, next is the slider, three steps Yeah. [music] – Woohoo! Here in Gunma, there are different courses you can choose and different levels. Our level was three out of six. Okay, bye-bye. Wow. Bye-bye. [music]

– Thank you! Thank you! Nice! I love it! This was our guide. Thanks to him, we did everything that we did. And it is proof that someone who’s never done this before also can handle, right? – Yeah. – We were not so bad, were we? – Yeah, yeah, yeah.

– We’re so bad, you know what you’re saying? [laughing] Also, if you have a good guide… that helps. This is one of those things I never thought I’d have the courage to do. Now that I did, it feels so good, it feels so relaxing. Thank you very much! [in Japanese] Yeah!

Minakami is one of the best-known hot spring towns of Gunma. The drive to the hotel was so beautiful. We arrived in 15 to 20 minutes. Thank you very much [in Japanese] Hello! Takaragawa Onsen Thank you very much Right at the hotel entrance. Our new shoes from now on.

You can select the yukata based on your height. – Okay. Yeah, yukata and the belt. – I think I’ll go with this one here. It’s beautiful. Oh, the dark will be better. Yeah, beautiful, beautiful. Look at that! Oh, look at this! That is so comfortable! I love it!

Wow, that is so interesting, right? Because normally in the rooms, you have the bed as the focal point. This is different from anything I’ve ever seen. – Yes, it’s good to relax. Talking about relax, we’re going to see what real relaxation is now. Japanese style.

One of the main reasons why people come to Minakami is to experience this place right here. It’s their most famous onsen resort. It’s called Takaragawa Onsen Osenkaku, well-known for the outdoor hot spring baths. This is a very beautiful place with naturally heated waters. We’ll be back, because first…

This is also how we go for dinner. Ready? – Sure. Good evening! [in Japanese] Thank you so much [in Japanese] This is the appetizer Sweet potato tofu wasabi is this – This… – Pumpkin cream cheese, this Chrysanthemum jelly, this Great! Thank you so much! [in Japanese] – Did you memorize the whole explanation?

– No need. – This here is not the menu for you to choose what do you want. You get everything here. I don’t even know how many courses there are here. Wow! Here we’re at the restaurant, and everything is very private. You know, guests here have their own booths. Look at this! Cheers!

Cheers! [in Japanese] This is one of my favorite things in the world. I started with sashimi, baby. This is like… not just mashed potatoes, like smoked mashed potato. Good. Wow. It’s like a jelly, even a little bit sweet. This thing here has such a different texture.

A little chewy, not like an octopus, for example. And the taste is obviously totally different. It is very good, too, especially with this sauce here. Grilled konjac, I guess, with miso sauce. Wow! Wow! Its so much food. And there’s more actually coming later. Wow! It’s a lot of food, huh? It’s good!

Thank you very much [in Japanese] Mmm, oh my goodness. It’s a feast, you know, if you love Japanese food, mmmm! Don’t be a tourist. Oh, my goodness! Okay! Thank you very much [in Japanese] This is delicious. Verdict? Which one was your favorite? – All of them [in Portuguese] I don’t have a favorite.

I like the pork. I like the wagyu beef. Too many flavors… – Yeah. – … to really pick. The mix is good, right? – Hot and cold. – Yeah. – Sweet and sour. – Yeah, I think this is exactly the… – Variety. – …the takeaway. This is a once in a lifetime experience.

If it was up to me, I don’t know how to order all this. And here’s a set menu. They bring everything. Everything goes along really, really well. Wow. Do you know for how long we’ve been here, Gordon? – An hour and a half? – Exactly. An hour and a half eating. I’m exploding.

Thank you very much! [in Japanese] Bye! [in Japanese] Ready to see the transformation? Oh, look at this! And here are the beds! They prepare everything when you go out for dinner. Ooh! This is so different from anything I’ve ever done. But the night is not over yet. Guess where we’re going right now?

Normally, onsens separate men and women. Not here. Here, three of the baths are mixed gender. Meaning both men and women together. And in this case, you don’t go completely naked. This is what you wear. And then you just go. One more thing. It’s very important that you shower before getting in.

Wash everything, including your hair. The left side goes on top. Oh, yeah, you’re ready! Look at you! You’re so ready! Filming at onsens is not allowed for privacy reasons. But we got special permission when no one was around. They have four outdoor baths here. Three of them are for men and women together.

And you wear, you know, that little dress. And there is a fourth one for women only. And in this one for women only, you can be naked the traditional way if you want it. And what is really cool is that all these baths are totally different. Some are extremely hot.

Others are more lukewarm. So it’s very cool, you know, to go from one to the next and see what you prefer. Can you see how relaxed I feel now? These baths are totally free for hotel guests. And you can go as many times as you want. This is so relaxing.

Especially at the end of the day. In a day like today, you know. That was a lot of fun at the canyon, but it’s also an exercise, you know. And this here, wow, my body just says “thanks.” Now, it’s very interesting that here everybody covers, you know, their parts.

And for us, Westerners, who are not very used to this millennial tradition here in Japan, I think it’s a good initiation into the onsen culture. Ready for the full Japanese experience next time without a cover up? – I am. – Excited? – You bet. The next day Good morning! [in Japanese]

We start today with another beautiful meal. Oh, my goodness. There is coffee. [in Japanese] Coffee. [in Japanese] This is hot. [in Japanese] Thank you very much [in Japanese] Where do you start, Gordon? – I don’t know. – [laughing] – Well, let’s start by preparing something here. So many different tastes here, you know.

The eggplant, for example, tastes totally different than what you’d expect. And it’s delicious. Thank you very much [in Japanese] Staying at a ryokan was different from anything I’ve ever experienced before. It is so interesting. But they’re also open here for day use if you just want to enjoy the onsens.

We’re traveling from city to city to discover as much as we can about Gunma. But if you’d rather stay in one city and do day trips, you know, to the other places, that’s also an option. We just don’t recommend a day trip from Tokyo because you’ll probably spend

More time on the road than enjoying this area. And there’s so much to do here. We’re now driving to Katashina to discover a very popular hiking destination in Japan. We’re now at Oze National Park, and the drive from Minakami to the park is so beautiful, one of the most beautiful

I’ve ever seen in my life, especially during fall. It takes about an hour because the road is like this, but so worth it. – This is a mat for… …to prevent other species coming to this soil – Oh, okay. We’re going on a five-hour hike today, and we have a guide here,

Who knows everything about this area. We start at a place called Hatomachitoge. But it took me some time to learn how to pronounce it. How do I pronounce it? – Hatomachitoge – Hatomachitoge – Yeah. – Hatomachitoge Hatomachitoge Gordon, your turn. Hatomachitoge – Hatomachitoge – Very good. – Yeah.

I think we’re doing good here. – That ridge is the dividing point of the Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Japan. – Wow! – Hatomachitoge – Hatomachitoge, aaahhhh. Eva, I see that you have a bell here, huh? Yeah? And why is that? – I’m always worried about not carrying it.

Not scaring bears I’ll stay close to you. Whoa. – Bear. Yeah. Look at the path here now. How interesting. How convenient, huh? – It’s a moustain that rose from the bottom of the ocean 230 million years ago. It is the oldest mountain in this area. Shibutsu-san. – Shibutsu-san.

And you said it’s 2,200 meters high? – Yeah. – And here we are already very high up, right? In the mountain? – 1,500 m high, right? – 600. – 600. 1,600 m. Wow, we’re really high. And the mountain. How beautiful is this too! Japan is actually the world’s snowiest country.

The heavy weight of the snow even impacts the growth of the trees. – Mmm-hmm. – Now, there’s an important code here. You’re supposed to walk on the right. Gordon! [laughs] We save the left path for people who are going the opposite way. – 400 years ago when the rock fell. – Oh, wow!

The only pine trees that change colors to yellow. Beautiful, huh? These are lodges here. You could actually overnight here in the middle of the forest and make your hike last for multiple days. Wow, look at this view, how amazing. Hiuchigatake – The highest mountain in Hokkaido and Tohoku

– The eruption of the volcanic mountain made this place – Wow, okay. Oze is the largest highland marshland on Japan’s main island, Honshu. Is the volcano dormant or still active? – Still active. – Still active! Whoa! – Because of the volcanic mountains, there are a lot of great oncents around here.

– Oh, so thank you so much, mountain! [music] We walked until the border between three different Prefectures here in Japan. We’re in Gunma. Over there is Niigata, and over here, Fukushima. [music] And the hike that started with a beautiful sunny day ended up with hale. Now, there’s only one thing in my mind,

And Gordon, you know what it is. – Onsen. – Of course! We’re in Gunma, right? But I’ll save that for the next video.

Gunma is famous in Japan for the hot springs and the natural beauty. It’s a place to escape the 9 to 5 and the chaos of the big cities, and enjoy scenic views and relaxing onsens. All that while discovering the true Japanese culture.

Gunma is located just about one hour by train from Tokyo via the Joetsu Shinkansen. We started the trip in Minakami, where we practiced a sport unknown to us until now: canyoning. We then relaxed at a ryokan (traditional Japanese inn) called Takaragawa Onsen Osenkaku, renowned for its outdoor hot spring baths. We didn’t expect that dinner and breakfast would be equally fantastic experiences. The following day, we drove to the town of Katashina for a 5-hour hike at the Oze National Park, where we saw some of the most beautiful scenery on the trip.

This video not only showcases the natural beauty of Gunma but also provides a firsthand look at Japanese customs and traditions, making it a must-watch if you’re interested in off-the-beaten-path travel experiences in Japan. This is a three-part series covering five different areas in Gunma.
Join us to discover that Japan offers way more than just highrises and tech.

Thanks to Visit Gunma for sponsoring this series.
Learn more about Gunma: https://www.visit-gunma.jp/en/?utm_medium=paid&utm_source=youtube&utm_campaign=r5_yt_campaign&utm_content=sns_colunm_minakami
@visitgunma321

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Gunma, Japan: Vlog 01 (Minakami and Katashina)
00:00 Have you ever heard of Gunma, Japan?
02:00 How do you get to Gunma?
03:45 Would you dare go canyoning?
07:56 How is it to stay at a traditional Ryokan?
09:08 Do the Japanese only eat raw fish? Here’s the answer
12:22 Our first time at an onsen
14:25 The next day: breakfast and departure
15:59 One of the most famous hikes in Japan

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► WHO AM I?

I am a Brazilian-American journalist living in Florida. After traveling the world working with sports, news, and events for over 15 years, I realized that what I really love is the travel part of it all. So I exchanged life in the newsrooms and stadiums for the daily challenge of being an independent content producer. I created this channel to share the beauties of the world… stuff that, for so long, I only kept to myself. Also to help people planning similar trips and to inspire more people to venture out and enjoy life!

P.S.: The funny guy who appears in the vlogs is my husband, Gordon. He is Canadian-American, and he’s actually camera-shy. That’s why he’s behind the camera most of the time 😉

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