You might not think it, but there are opportunities for hiking, climbing and camping around Nagoya. In fact, nearby Nagano, Shiga, and Gifu Prefectures offer some of the best opportunities in Japan. Camping areas in Japan tend to be a bit more formal than just hiking off the side of the road and setting up your tent, OK, a lot more formal.

They are generally private areas set up as campgrounds, kind of like a KOA in the US, though generally with fewer amenities. The cost is negligible, but you tend to be closer to your neighbors than you might be used to in the great outdoors. That being said, they are clean, comparably comfortable, and safe. If you are interested in checking out a campground why not try one of these?

Campsites in Nagano-ken, Shiga-ken, and Gifu-ken

Togakushi Camp

〒381-4101
3694 Togakushi, Nagano-shi, Nagano-ken
TEL: 026-254-3581
Togakushi Camp Homepage

Hananoko Auto Camp

〒509-9231
589-17 Ueno, Nakatugawa-shi, Gifu-ken
TEL:0573-75-3250
Hananoko Auto Camp Homepage

Makino Sunny Beach

〒520-1814
2010-1 Chinai, Makino-cho,Takashima-shi, Shiga-ken
TEL:0740-27-0325
Makino Sunny Beach Homepage

Miyajima Camp Site

〒508-0351
8581-1 Tsukechi-cho, Nakatsugawa-shi, Gifu-ken
TEL:0573-82-4737
Miyajima Camp Site Homepage

Gramping in Mie – Everglades

Another option for those who are not quite ready to get their own tent and may have small children would be the “gramping” trend – The Japanese took the words “glamorous” and “camping” and in very Japanese fashion squished them together to describe renting a nice, small cottage for a day or two. 

Of particular note are the Everglades resorts in Mie prefecture, which lies to the east of Nagoya and are roughly two and a half hours by car. Your author here is a Floridian and I have to give the team at Everglades American Outdoor Resort a 10/10 here – the palm trees, white stone gravel, tiny houses with patio furniture outside all scream “tiny rural Florida town near a lake” to me and gave me a massive brain fry seeing all of that with Mie’s ample supply of mountains in the background (For those who have not been to Florida, it’s about as flat as a dinnerplate – there are zero mountains). Grills and fire pits are bountiful, so you only really need to bring activities, bedding, and food to cook. 

Everglades tends to have fun children friendly events and even has fenced-in playgorund equipment for those with particularly small children. As with all camp grounds that feature water activities, the canoeing section is not 100% fenced off, so please exercise caution should you go with small children.

Image by jaako via Flickr, CC BY-NC 2.0