A vehicle or a guide for your group alone. What you get for the price depends on the start point, and on details the listings often leave open.
The short answer
For a private snow monkey tour from Tokyo, the van by Zameer haider for up to five people is the most-reviewed private tour on this site and is priced per group. Luxurious Travel Master also takes up to five, includes tolls, parking and fuel, but charges park entrance and meals on top. Before you book any private tour, ask who buys the park ticket, because on busy winter days that decides how quickly you get in.
Pick the day you want to see the monkeys, or the first and last day of your trip. We look at the booking calendar of every tour from Tokyo, Nagano and the ski resorts and list the ones that still take bookings.
Starts at: Tokyo
Starts at: Hotel in Tokyo or Yokohama
Duration: 8 h
Starts at: Hakuba
Starts at: Tokyo
A private car from Tokyo does not make the road shorter: it is still about three and a half hours to the trailhead at Kanbayashi Onsen. What changes is that the day starts at your hotel and the stops after the park are yours to choose.
"Not stated" means the listing does not cover the point. Where no unit is shown under a price, the listing does not make clear whether it is per person or per vehicle.
| Photo | Tour | Starts at | From Tokyo | Group | Park ticket | Driver or guide | Reviews ↕ | Price ↕ | Book |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Private Snow Monkey and Nagano Day Trip Zameer haider | Tokyo | Van, 10 to 11 h | Up to 5 | Not stated | Not stated | ★ 4.9 (230) | $418per group | Book now |
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Tailored Private Snow Monkey and Nagano Tour Luxurious Travel Master | Hotel in Tokyo or Yokohama | Car, 10 to 12 h | Up to 5 | Not included | English-speaking driver | ★ 4.8 (187) | $424per group | Book now |
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Private Nagano Day Tour Japan Awaits | Not stated | Private tour in Nagano | Not stated | Not stated | Not stated | ★ 5.0 (76) | $330 | Book now |
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Private Snow Monkeys, Onsen and Heritage Tour Private tour jp | Hakuba | Starts in the mountains, about 8 h | Not stated | Not stated | Not stated | New tour, no reviews yet | $409per group | Book now |
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Bullet Train Day Trip to the Snow Monkeys MY Travel Consulting | Tokyo | Shinkansen, about 12 h | Not stated | Not stated | Not stated | New tour, no reviews yet | $1217 | Book now |
Each price is the one GetYourGuide or Viator shows right now, taxes and fees included. Shared tours are charged per person and private tours usually per vehicle; the line under the price tells you which.
One tour for each way of doing the day. Every tour on this page is listed further down with its full details.
Van for up to five from Tokyo. Jigokudani, Zenko-ji, Shibu Onsen, Obuse and Matsushiro are on the itinerary, and the price covers the whole group.
The Shinkansen with a private guide instead of the motorway, about 12 hours in all. By far the most expensive way to go, and new on the platform.
A day of about eight hours from Hakuba with the monkeys, an onsen and heritage stops, for your group alone. New, no reviews yet.
A private day in Nagano prefecture by Japan Awaits. Where it picks you up is on the booking page.
Open a card for the start point, the stops and what the tour leaves out.
Van from Tokyo for up to five, one price for the group. Zenko-ji, Shibu Onsen, Obuse and Matsushiro are on the itinerary.
A private day by van from Tokyo for groups of up to five. The itinerary on the listing names Jigokudani, Zenko-ji, Shibu Onsen, Obuse and Matsushiro.
The price is per group, not per person.
Facts from the tour listing on the booking platform, checked in November 2026.
Hotel pickup in Tokyo or Yokohama, English-speaking driver, tolls, parking, fuel, water and coffee included. Meals and all entrance fees extra.
A private car with driver from Tokyo for up to five people. Tolls, parking and fuel are included; entrance fees and meals are not. Stops named for this tour are the monkey park, Zenko-ji, Obuse, Matsushiro and Shibu Onsen.
The driver handles the logistics and is not a licensed culture guide, so at Zenko-ji you explore on your own.
Hotel pickup in central Tokyo and Yokohama; pickup in Hakuba, Nozawa or Obuse is also mentioned for this tour.
Facts from the tour listing on the booking platform, checked in November 2026.
Private day in Nagano prefecture; the pickup point and the stops are on the booking page.
A private day in Nagano prefecture by Japan Awaits. The pickup point and the stops are listed on the booking page.
Facts from the tour listing on the booking platform, checked in November 2026.
About eight hours from Hakuba for skiers who want the day to themselves. New on the platform.
A private day from Hakuba for skiers who want the monkeys without joining a group. New on the booking platform, no reviews yet.
Facts from the tour listing on the booking platform, checked in November 2026.
Private day of about 12 hours that travels by Shinkansen instead of the motorway. New on the platform.
A private day from Tokyo that uses the Shinkansen to Nagano instead of the motorway. It is the only bookable day trip on this site built around the bullet train.
Facts from the tour listing on the booking platform, checked in November 2026.
Where each tour starts and ends, how you get there from Tokyo, the time at the park and whether ticket and lunch are part of it. "Not stated" means the listing does not say.
| Tour | Starts at | From Tokyo | Whole trip | Time at the park | Ends at | Park ticket | Lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Private Snow Monkey Park and Nagano Day Trip from Tokyo | Tokyo | Private car from Tokyo | 10–11 h | Not stated | Not stated | Not stated | Not stated |
| Tailored Private Snow Monkey and Nagano Day Tour from Tokyo | Hotel in Tokyo or Yokohama | Private car from Tokyo | 10–12 h | Not stated | Not stated | Not included | Not included |
| Private Nagano Day Tour with the Snow Monkeys | Not stated | Not stated | 8 h | Not stated | Not stated | Not stated | Not stated |
| Private Snow Monkeys, Onsen and Heritage Tour from Hakuba | Hakuba | Starts in the mountains | 8 h | Not stated | Not stated | Not stated | Not stated |
| Bullet Train Day Trip to the Nagano Snow Monkeys | Tokyo | Shinkansen, as a private tour | 12 h | Not stated | Not stated | Not stated | Not stated |
Taken from the tour listings, checked in November 2026. The length of the whole day is the operator's figure.
Both cars from Tokyo take up to five people, and both name the same kind of extra stops: Zenko-ji in Nagano city, the onsen town of Shibu, Obuse and Matsushiro. The van by Zameer haider is priced for the whole group, which is why it makes sense with four or five travellers and less with two. For the car by Luxurious Travel Master the listing does not make the price basis clear, so look at the booking page before you compare.
Luxurious Travel Master spells out what the price covers: the vehicle with an English-speaking driver, hotel pickup, tolls, parking and fuel, and water and coffee on board. Meals and every entrance fee, including the monkey park, are paid by you. The driver looks after the logistics and is not a licensed guide, so at Zenko-ji you explore on your own. Pickups in Hakuba, Nozawa Onsen or Obuse are also mentioned for this tour.
On the group tours the operator handles the park entrance; on a private car that is often your job. In winter tickets may need to be reserved for a time slot, so check before you go and agree with the operator who books it and for which hour. A second point concerns parking: on peak winter weekends and holidays the car parks near the trailhead can be closed to private cars. Ask the operator how they deal with that on your date. The answer tells you a lot about how well they know the route.
MY Travel Consulting is the private option for people who do not want seven hours on the motorway. Travelling by bullet train cuts the time to Nagano to about 80 minutes each way, and the whole day runs to about 12 hours. It is by far the most expensive way to see the monkeys and has no reviews yet. Compare it with booking the train yourself and joining a group in Nagano on the bullet-train page.
Skiers in Hakuba can book a private day of about eight hours with Private tour jp that combines the monkeys with an onsen and heritage stops; it is new and without reviews. For Nagano itself there is a private day sold on a separate booking page, with its start point given only there. If a shared tour is fine, the tours from Hakuba and Nozawa Onsen and the tours from Nagano Station cost less per head.
Travelling as a couple, you pay the full vehicle price for a car that sits half empty. The H.I.S. coach from Shinjuku includes the park ticket and lunch, and the Machinovate tour from Nagano adds Zenko-ji and sake to both, with a guide. A private car pays off when you fill the seats, need a hotel pickup, or want to stop where the coach does not.
On a private tour from Tokyo you spend the day with your driver, and the reviews show both sides of that. Some praise a careful driver who waited for a slower walker. Others found they had a ride rather than a guide, little time at Zenko-ji, and a sedan with tight back seats for the long drive each way. Before you book, ask which vehicle comes and whether the driver also explains the places.
“We had a fantastic experience. The snow monkeys and the Zenko-ji Temple were highlights of our Japan trip so far. Our driver and guide were great! We rode in comfort and appreciated the breaks. …”
“Cheema our guide was excellent. He made allowances for my wife who uses a walking stick as it took longer to reach the Snow Monkey Park. Very polite. We Had a good trip and Cheema was a safe driver. Would recommend.”
“The activities were great; we loved the snow monkey park. We also loved the temple, but didn't have enough time to see it properly. The description of the tour is totally misleading. A. It's not a tour, it's a taxi service. B. A 10-hour 'tour' is actually 3.5 hours there, 50 mins from the park to the temple, and 3.5 hours back. That's 2 hours to actually do anything. …”
“Seeing the monkeys was fantastic. The driver was polite. However the sedan was uncomfortable for the 3hour ride each way. Front seats pushed back so there was little leg space in the back seat. …”
“… He did not give us much information during the tour either. Other than that, the Snow Monkey Resort was amazing. Being able to see the monkeys bathing in the onsen and playing with snow was amazing.”
Real traveller reviews from GetYourGuide.
Up to five on the van by Zameer haider and up to five on the car by Luxurious Travel Master. The van is priced per group.
Luxurious Travel Master excludes all entrance fees. For the other private tours the listing does not say, so ask before you book. In winter, tickets may need to be reserved for a time slot.
On the Luxurious Travel Master tour the English-speaking driver handles the logistics and is not a licensed guide. For the other private tours the listings do not say.
Not on the road: both need about three and a half hours each way. The car saves the walk to the meeting point and lets you choose the stops. Only the private tour by Shinkansen is faster.
Start point, park ticket and lunch for every snow monkey tour.
See the comparison