The hot spring village of Asama sits quietly in northern Matsumoto. It’s an easy twenty-minute bus ride from the station, or just a bit longer by bike. Once you’re there you’ll find a compact pocket of regional history hemmed in by modest mountains and packed with handmade soba, simple hiking and storybook hot springs. From a distance it’s easy to miss. Up close you’ll discover a lot. Hot Springs The onsen village of Asama is said to have been established in the earliest stages of Japan’s history as a nation. Known originally as Tsukama-no-Yu, the hot springs here attracted nobility and samurai from the Kamakura Era right down through the […]