Yuzawa Kogen Alpine Botanical Garden — Attraction in Yuzawa

After 3 weeks in a very hot Tokyo with a few days spent in Osaka and Hiroshima in August 23 I just wanted to get out of cities! Last day of my JR Pass I boarded the Shinkansen in Tokyo and 2 hours later was 200km away in Yuzawa and into the stunning mountain scenery! I visited on a Sunday and arrived before the ropeway opened. Great to be out in the open, fresh air, first lift up too so was lovely and quiet. The botanical gardens are nice but the views are better - spectacular. Nice cafe - a bit confusing as it's the choose what you want on the machine and take order to counter type. Great for kids too as there's a metal bobsleigh, playwark and chairlifts. Spent about 3/4 hours there then went to see the nearby waterfall...

The ride up the rope lift comes every 20mins starting at 00. So every hour, 20th and 40th minute. And the ride takes about 12 mins from boarding and alighting. On the top the view is spectacular and there are some activities you can do like a luge ride and a short...

越後湯沢駅からちょっと歩いて湯沢高原パノラマパーク...