11:30–11:50 Echigo-Yuzawa Station: Reception Now Open

12:00 Departure from Echigo-Yuzawa Station

1:00 PM Matsudai NOHBUTAI, [Lunch] Echigo Matsudai Satoyama Shokudo

The entire building is composed of art. A hub facility for the Echigo-Tsumari Art Field

You can view “Kavakov’s Dream,” a project by Ilya & Emilia Kavakov, one of the leading artist duos of the Echigo-Tsumari Art Field. An outside snow play area has also been set up, where you can play in the snow to your heart’s content.

Facility

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Enjoy a healthy buffet featuring preserved foods and other items

A buffet featuring a selection of dishes that put a modern twist on local specialties. Enjoy your lunch while taking in the view of the snow-covered hills spread out before you.

Lunch Local vegetables Rice from The Rice Fields

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3:30 p.m. Sansho House: Check-in

Spending time in the wooden school building on the hill overlooking the village

A former elementary school in the area that was converted into lodging following the 2006 Echigo-Tsumari Art Field. After checking in and getting ready for the evening’s activities, it was time to set off.

Closed School

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4:30 p.m. Lantern Release & Snow Fireworks

A Wish Under the Night Sky

At New Greenpia Tsunan, located on the highlands of Tsunan town, let’s launch lanterns filled with our wishes into the winter night sky.

Snow Fireworks Lantern

6:00 p.m. [Bathing] Nast View Yuyama

Relax at One of Japan's Three Great Medicinal Hot Springs

Come enjoy a soak at the day-trip hot spring facility in Matsunoyama Onsen, one of Japan’s Three Great Medicinal Hot Springs. This natural hot spring has a high salt concentration and will warm your body right down to the core after it’s been chilled by the snow. (Photo for illustrative purposes only)

7:30 p.m. [Dinner] Sansho House

Mochi-Pounding Festival

The residents of the village will serve as instructors for a mochi-pounding event. We’ll enjoy freshly pounded mochi and a dinner featuring plenty of local ingredients from Sansho House.

New Year's Traditions

10:00 p.m. Bedtime

8:00 [Day 2] Breakfast

9:00 Making Chin-koro

Tokamachi Specialties: Winter Good-Luck Charms

"Chinkoro" are puppy-shaped talismans that have been made in the Echigo-Tsumari region since the Edo period. Once completed, they develop cracks—a sign that the chinkoro is protecting you from misfortune. You’ll create your very own chinkoro with guidance from local mothers.

[Lunch] Yukimi-Gozen

For lunch, we’ll sample local “special occasion” dishes

A variety of flavorful dishes, prepared by the mothers of the village and packed with wisdom for staying healthy through the harsh winter. The dishes are served on lacquerware that was once used for the village’s weddings, funerals, and other ceremonies and has been carefully passed down through the generations. Please enjoy the unique flavors of this region, passed down alongside the way of life in these snow-covered rural mountains. The venue will be “Tobu District.” (Photo is for illustrative purposes only.)

1:30 p.m. Tokamachi city Museum

Discover Tokamachi city’s Kimono, Snow, and Jomon Culture

Tokamachi city is known as the site where National Treasure flame-shaped earthenware was unearthed, and the culture that has been nurtured here since the Jomon period continues to this day. Join us for a guided tour led by a curator to explore the themes of nature and culture in the Echigo-Tsumari region—which also serve as the backdrop for the Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennale artwork.

Museum on Echigo-Tsumari, MonET

Experience a museum dedicated to one-of-a-kind site-specific art

At this art museum, which is representative of the Echigo-Tsumari region, visitors can view artworks that engage with the local landscape and pieces that allow them to experience the passage of time and the changing nature of space. The museum shop offers original products from the Echigo-Tsumari Art Field.

Art Museum Flagship Facility

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4:30 p.m. Bird Scare

Little New Year Celebrations in Echigo-Tsumari

A Little New Year’s festival in Echigo-Tsumari where people chase away birds that ravage the fields to pray for a bountiful harvest. Local fathers teach the participants the “bird-chasing” song, and they sing it as they parade through the Kotani settlement, visiting homes along the way.

New Year's Traditions A Bountiful Harvest of Five Grains

6:00 p.m. [Bathing] Shiba-toge Hot Springs: Sea of Clouds

Enjoy natural hot springs at an elevation of about 400 meters

Relax and rejuvenate your body in the therapeutic hot springs located at the summit of the Matsudai area. (Photo for illustrative purposes only)

7:30 p.m. 　

[Dinner] Sansho House

　

Creative Cuisine

10:00 p.m. Bedtime

8:00 [Day 3] Breakfast

9:30 Dondo-yaki

Participating in Local Events

A Little New Year festival where fires are lit to pray for a bountiful harvest and good health. Visitors can watch as the community burns lucky charms and calligraphy pieces they have brought.

New Year's Traditions Good Health and Freedom from Illness

12:00 [Lunch] Hegi Soba

[Lunch] Hegi Soba

One of Tokamachi’s signature dishes, featuring smooth-textured soba noodles made with “funori” seaweed as a binding agent, served in a bowl called a “hegi.” It is also connected to the kimono industry. (Photo for illustrative purposes only)

1:15 p.m. "Tunnel of Light" by Ma Yansong / MAD Architects

Enjoy Art and Snowy Scenery at the Kiyotsu Gorge Tunnel

Inside this 750-meter-long tunnel, you can admire the fusion of the gorge’s natural beauty and art. The breathtaking natural scenery, which changes with the seasons, is also a must-see.
*Please note that the Kiyotsu Gorge Tunnel may be closed due to snowfall. In that case, we will make a stop at another artwork instead.

Tunnel Columnar jointing Scenic spot

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3:30 p.m. Echigo-Yuzawa Station—End of Tour