Nasu Highlands

Nasu is the skirt of an active volcano, Chausudake, whose crater vents steam visibly from the summit and which a ropeway climbs most of the way up; the last stretch to the crater rim is a walk of about fifty minutes over loose rock. Below it the slopes carry one of the older hot spring districts in the country - Shika no Yu, the deer spring, has been in use since the eighth century - along with dairy farms, cheese and ice cream makers, and a scatter of small museums, animal parks and glamping sites that make it a family weekend destination for Tokyo. The imperial family has a summer villa here, part of whose grounds opened as a public reserve in 2011. Sesshoseki, the killing stone associated with a fox spirit of legend, split in two in 2022 and is still visited on the volcanic flats.

What you actually see

• A steaming crater - Chausudake venting from the summit, ropeway most of the way.
• An eighth-century spring - Shika no Yu, in use for well over a thousand years.
• Dairy country - farms, cheese and ice cream across the highland slopes.
• Sesshoseki - the killing stone of legend, split in two in 2022.

When to go

Early October for colour; May to October generally. Two days.

Honest expectations

The ropeway closes in wind and the crater walk is on loose volcanic rock. Volcanic gas closes sections of the upper trails. The resort strip is spread out and a car is close to essential. Autumn weekends congest the mountain road.

Nearby

Shiobara Onsen is west; Nikko is south-west over the hills.