When summer hits, and the brutal August heat takes over, most overseas tourists stick to the Golden Route of Tokyo, Kyoto, and Osaka, relying on air conditioning to keep them cool. However, the same can’t be said of Japanese travelers, many of whom disappear somewhere else entirely.
Specifically, they head to hisho-chi (避暑地), or highland resorts, to escape the heat and enjoy a peaceful mountain getaway.
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What are hisho-chi? A little bit of history
The idea of summer resorts is hardly novel, and along those same lines, hisho-chi have been around for a while. It started in Karuizawa in 1886 after a Canadian missionary, Alexander Croft Shaw, marveled at its beautiful, clear nature and climate. He built a villa (called ペンション, or pension, in Japanese), and many Japanese natives followed suit. In just 50 years, this city in Nagano Prefecture went from zero villas to almost 1,200.
Something similar happened in the Kiyosato Plateau in the 80s and 90s. Famous as the home of American missionary Paul Rusch (a.k.a. the man who brought American football to Japan), the area was a bustling domestic tourist attraction until the bubble burst.
It’s easy to see why hisho-chi would attract so many people. Not only do the mountains offer unforgettable scenery, but the higher altitude makes it much cooler than cities closer to sea level. The Usui New Railway being built in 1893 also helped, as it created a relatively quick path to Karuizawa from Tokyo.
Karuizawa hasn’t been the only place to host hisho-chi. The Imperial family helped to cement their enduring popularity in the 1920s, when Crown Prince Hirohito fell in love with the highland scenery of Nasu in Tochigi Prefecture. He had the Nasu Imperial Villa built soon after, and many emperors since have spent summers there.
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Today, hisho-chi remain some of the most sought-after summer destinations in the country, despite barely registering on most foreign itineraries. Frankly, it’s not the first time something became wildly popular among the Japanese while being barely noticed by foreign crowds.
Evolution of hisho-chi into high-end summer homes
Karuizawa, where it all began, remains the top spot for hisho-chi in Japan according to separate surveys conducted by NEWT and Hankyu Travel. Respondents said they loved how cool and accessible it was, and the hype built through social media sure didn’t hurt. Second place for both surveys went to Furano, Hokkaido, which is famous for its lavender fields.
Karuizawa’s hills are lined with summer villas that can run anywhere from an average of ¥200 million (1.2 million USD) to ¥2 billion (12 million USD) for luxury mansions. Land values in this town have held the top spot in Nagano Prefecture for three years in a row, with benchmark prices rising 11.2% year-on-year.
In this way, Karuizawa has basically become the Hamptons of Japan. While not all hisho-chi are as high-end as Karuizawa, and Japanese-style inns or ryokan (旅館) abound, many want to keep that exclusive feel.
A shift from summer resorts to tourist hotspots
While Karuizawa rules domestically, for a time, Nikko looked like it would become Japan’s international summer resort. By the early Shōwa era, over 40 foreign embassy villas lined Lake Chūzenji. The town also has culturally significant sites like the Tōshōgū Shrine that make it more than just a pretty escape from the summer heat. Really, it’s no wonder it drew people in.
The only problem was that, with foreign tourists crowding Nikko, a lot of domestic travelers no longer wanted to go. Nowadays, Nikko is not so much a hisho-chi as it is yet another tourist destination. It still sees impressive numbers, hitting nearly 2 million in 2024, with foreign overnight stays hitting new records.
Hakone is also starting to see this happen. Visitor numbers hit 20 million in 2024, and of the roughly four million who stayed overnight, almost an eighth (493,000) were foreigners. That’s 149,000 more foreign travelers than the previous year, all the while domestic travelers went down.
For now, it’s a slight decrease, but a real estate magazine noted that more than half of vacant property inquiries in the area are from people looking to operate short-term rentals. It’s just another sign that it may be following in Nikko’s footsteps.
Keeping hisho-chi under control and away from overtourism
Known as a hot domestic tourist attraction, Atami is host to Jūgoku-tōge, which provides spectacular views and cool weather at elevation. (Picture: booji / PIXTA(ピクスタ))
Most of the hisho-chi circuit, including Nasu Highlands, Kamikōchi, and Furano, want to maintain their status as premier summer getaways. Overcrowding makes it hard to relax, after all.
Funnily enough, the prefectures with hisho-chi (like Nagano, Tochigi, and Yamanashi) don’t see huge spikes in tourist growth as you see in event-driven destinations. For example, Osaka for the World Expo last year, or the Seto Inland Sea islands for the Setouchi Triennale. This is because for hisho-chi, it’s mostly long-term repeat visitors who take up bookings.
Take Kamikōchi. It’s one of Japan’s most famous alpine valleys, but private vehicles are banned for the entire open season. Visitors have to park outside the valley and catch a shuttle in. Despite how restrictive it sounds, it achieves exactly what it goes for: ensuring that the valley isn’t clogged with traffic and overrun by tourists, a struggle faced by other small villages such as Shirakawa-gō.
Atami is another interesting example. The city, easily accessible from Tokyo, has long been popular among domestic travelers for the way it combines onsen, ocean views, gourmet food, and a Shōwa retro feel. While not specifically known as a highland vacation spot, it is home to Jūgoku-tōge, which provides great views, cool summer weather, and glamping accommodations.
For those in the know, hisho-chi remain a big draw for domestic travelers who want to escape the summer heat. It’s not just about seeing new places, but knowing where the best already is and sticking to it.
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