One of the reasons I decided to settle down in Karuizawa was because there’s plenty to do with children, particularly outdoors. In this article I’ll list some of the activities my family has enjoyed.
Best playgrounds in Karuizawa
There’s a good number of playgrounds in Karuizawa. I’m omitting the small pocket parks and focusing on the major playgrounds that offer parking and public toilets.
Asama Fureai Park
Asama Fureai Park is my favourite playground. The park is just the right size—enough room for kids to run around, but small enough that you can easily keep your eyes on them. It usually isn’t that crowded, as it is in a residential neighborhood. Playground equipment includes a structure with several slides and a set of four swings. There’s also a mallet golf course I’ve only ever seen people use once.
Yukawa Furusato Park
Yukawa Furusato Park is the most popular playground in Karuizawa. There’s a large play structure with different places to climb and several slides, plus a zipline. There’s only a single swing for toddlers. There’s also a dog run and a nice trail that runs along the river. While I sometimes meet other locals there, it feels like it is mostly used by tourists.
Yagasaki Park
Yagasaki Park is a major playground close to Karuizawa Station. It has a relatively basic play structure with slides plus a swing set. If I happen to be in the area with my kids, we’ll drop by, but otherwise I wouldn’t make the trip just to visit it.
Karuizawa Taliesin
Within this private park, there’s a playground with basic “adventure course” equipment. You need to pay to get into the park, and then there are many other attractions like swan boats, go-karts, and other rides which you need to pay even more to use. We only go here when the grandparents want to spoil our kids.
Other playgrounds in Miyota and Saku
There are some other playgrounds in the neighbouring towns of Miyota and Saku that are worth the drive. Notable ones are the newly renovated Chibiko Hiroba in Sesso Park, the dragon-themed Ryūjin’s Forest Park, the precariously high rope structure in Yamayuri Park, and the playground next to Aeon Mall.
Child-friendly hikes
Here are some hikes I’ve taken my small children on.
Sengataki
This hike is an easy one, about an hour round trip. With kids, it’s probably only realistic to do with a car, as although there’s a bus stop 15 minutes away, it only comes a couple of times per day. The hike itself is along the river, and the trail is well maintained. Though there are several sets of stairs, they aren’t too steep. You get a view of Senga Falls at the end, though the boardwalk is damaged, so you can’t get as close as you once could. There aren’t many hikers, especially in the off-season. Beware that the public toilets are closed in the cold season.
Hanareyama
This small mountain in the middle of town rises a couple hundred meters. The hike is a couple of hours round trip. When my kid was five years old he could hike up by himself, though any younger than that and they may need to be carried part of the way.
If you’re going by car, you can start at the Karuizawa Town History and Folklore Museum Parking Lot. This site gives a map of the route. On the west side, there’s a switchback boarded pathway at one point that has no handrails and a sheer drop. Though it’s about a meter wide, it gets my adrenaline pumping as my kids race each other up (my youngest never wants to be carried for this part). If you want to avoid this, you can walk up and down the east side, as it is a gravel road that isn’t very steep.
At the top, there’s a great view of the town and the towering Mount Asama. We usually have a picnic there.
Ice skating
Kazakoshi Outdoor Rink
On a sunny winter day, this is the nicest place to skate. It’s open from mid-November till mid-February from 7:00am to 7:00pm daily. There are occasionally sporting events held here, so check the availability schedule beforehand, but most of the time it is freely usable. Rental skates go up to 29cm. There are also chairs you can rent for an additional ¥500 for pushing around your kid or giving them something to balance with.
In the summer, it turns into a rollerskate track. I’ve taken my kids there a couple of times, but as there’s no shade, it can get quite hot in the early afternoon.
Kazakoshi Ice Arena
This indoor ice rink is open year-round. On most days, it has a single 1.5-hour slot from 13:10 to 14:40 that is open to the public. However, sometimes additional slots are available, and other days there is no availability, so you need to check the schedule in advance.
Kera-Ike Skate Rink
Unlike the other publicly run ice rinks, this outdoor rink is private. It is expensive and quite packed with tourists. I’ve only been once on a weekend. The surrounding nature is nice, so I imagine it could be pleasant on a weekday when it’s less crowded. Rental skates go up to 30cm.
Kazakoshi Pool
This public pool is closed on Monday (or if Monday is a national holiday, the next non-holiday) but otherwise open to the public. It is under renovations until December 15th, 2025. There’s both a normal pool with swimming lanes and an open area to play (120cm depth), and a kids’ pool with 50cm and 30cm sections along with two small water slides.
Children’s Halls
Children’s Halls are only open to residents of Karuizawa, those who own vacation homes, or those with relatives living in Karuizawa. They have toys for kids to play with, books, a small gym area, and often offer different activities. The staff will sometimes play with your children too. If your children are at least elementary school age, they can come on their own.
Nakakaruizawa Children’s Hall
This facility has a playroom, a library room with board games, books, and VHS videos, and a small gym with a basketball hoop. Outside, there are swings, a slide, a jungle gym, and a sandbox. The parking lot is small, with only three spaces, but it usually isn’t very busy.
Nagakura Children’s Hall
I haven’t actually been to this one myself, but I understand that it has some toys and a small gym.
South Children’s Hall
This facility is the most modern Children’s Hall and shares a building with the Hotchi Community Center. There are about eight parking spots, a relatively large gym area with a foosball table, basketball hoop, and mats for jumping on, along with a playroom.
West, Central, and East Children’s Halls
These facilities are associated with each of the elementary schools and primarily serve as after-school care. Even if your child doesn’t attend the associated school, they can use them, provided they meet the general conditions to use a Children’s Hall in Karuizawa. However, if your child will use it by themselves, you need to register their attendance in advance via an app.
Children’s support centre
Ruru-pal is part of the “children’s support centre” run by the town. It has two different playrooms and is rather spacious. However, the main focus is on children under three, with toys aimed at toddlers and below. There’s also a nice fenced-off area outside with a play structure, though it seems rarely used by other children.
Further afield
These aren’t within Karuizawa itself, but are easily accessible by car and make a good day trip.
Toy Kingdom
This small theme park is on the other side of the mountain in Kita-Karuizawa, about a half-hour drive from Naka-Karuizawa. The drive itself offers some quite good scenery, and visiting is almost worth it for that alone. The attractions are aimed primarily at kids ten and below, and include things such as a ferris wheel, a roller coaster, a go-kart track, a merry-go-round, spinning teacups, and other similar rides. I’ve only ever gone in the off-season, when it isn’t very crowded and there’s no wait for most rides. In addition to the rides, there are several playrooms themed around things like Tomica or Sylvanian Families.
With admission, you have two options: purchasing an admission-only ticket and then paying for individual rides, or buying a “free pass” that allows unlimited rides. I’d go with the free pass for kids. For adults, sometimes my wife and I have bought one free pass and one admission-only ticket, and taken turns going on rides with the kids.
Gunma Museum of Natural History
About a 45-minute drive from Karuizawa, this museum has interesting exhibits, including some large animatronic dinosaurs. We spent a couple of hours walking around before heading outside, where there’s a large playground and a very long slide.
Saku Children’s Science Dome for the Future
This science museum is aimed at elementary school–aged children and above, and has several interactive exhibits along with a planetarium. There’s also a small play area for toddlers.
Ueda Aqua Plaza
An hour drive from Karuizawa, this pool features a wave pool, waterslides, and an inner tube waterslide. Both slides require you to be at least 120 cm. The wave pool and slides are only in operation for 10 minutes at a time, but they’re staggered throughout the hour on weekends, so it’s never too long before the next one is open.
The facility is pretty dated, especially from the outside. But admission is cheap, and there is barely anyone using it, especially in winter. In fact, when we went on a Saturday afternoon in January, my son was literally the only one using the water slides, and so could continuously ride it while it was operating.
