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Outlet Shopping in Japan’s Leading Summer Resort Area 👜 Karuizawa Prince Shopping Plaza

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Karuizawa (軽井沢) is an upmarket mountain resort in Nagano Prefecture. It's one of the most popular resort places in Japan, so much that the Japanese emperor and his family go there yearly. There are various of outdoor activities like golf, hiking, tennis, skiing and ice skating, and of course lots of opportunities to shop! Karuizawa is most beautiful in the fall when the leaves are changing, but it's really popular all year long. We went when the leaves were still changing, making it a beautiful experience!!! We wanted to get some shopping done, and heard that Karuizawa's shopping outlet was really famous for being a huge outlet that's surrounded by Nagano's beautiful mountains and trees. So we went to check it out~★



If you're using the JR Kanto Area Pass, then it's a lot more convenient for you to come here directly!
Karuizawa is also easily accessible by the Seibu bus 

★Karuizawa Prince Shopping Plaza
(軽井沢プリンスホテル)

⏰ Shops, Food Court, Restaurant, Cafe: 10:00~7:00
Karuizawa Aji no Machi: 11:00~22:00
STARBUCKS COFFEE: 9:30~19:30
TULLY'S COFFEE: 9:30~19:30
(※changes depending on season)
💻 Official Website (English)
💳VISA, MasterCard, American Express, JCB, Diners Club, and Union Pay credit cards are accepted



From Karuizawa Station, you can also go to Gunma Prefecture's SUPER famous and most visited tourist spot Kusatsu Onsen.
At the opposite side of the station, get on the bus stop #2 and it'll take you all the way there!!
In our next article, we'll mention more about getting to Kusatsu Onsen and what sort of stuff you can do there!





Karuizawa Prince Shopping Plaza 
 ●Winter Illumination● 
 
As the sun goes down the lights around Karuizawa Prince Shopping Plaza go up! During the fall/winter, Karuizawa has a special illumination and it really does change the mood completely. With all the mountains, ski slopes, trees, it was truly beautiful.







WINTER ILLUMINATION
📅 11/1/2017~3/31/2018
⏰ 5:00 to 9:00pm 


 EDIFICE IENA 
 ●Fashion● 



The popular brand in Japan, Edifice Iena, is a store that offers clothes of the latest trend mixing original and imported goods. Also if you don't know Japanese, there are phrase cards hanging outside the dressing rooms. 

 



Normally these clothes would be pretty pricey, but since it's an outlet store you get everything at a lower price. The store also has a variety of famous international brands available in the back of the store.
 

★EDIFICE IENA
Floor Guide: TREE MALL (TM-09)
TAX-FREE
-Dogs allowed in if carried-


COACH
 ●Fashion● 



In Japan you can see MANY women with COACH bags and wallets. We were curious what sort of stuff they sold compared to America so we went to check it out.



A good variety of men's, women's, and children's apparel along with bags, wallets, keychains and more that you can touch!
 



What was great though was they had some of the lines that were sold out in America!

★COACH
Floor Guide: TREE MALL (TM-08)
TAX-FREE
-Dogs allowed in if carried-


 Better Living 
 ●Kitchenware● 



Getting older we've found ourselves always checking out home deco/kitchenware stores. Something about it is just really fun! It's even more fun in another country because you never know what sort of thing that country sees useful, popular, and interesting. 
 



A lot of the kitchenware for sale here were special handmade by Japanese craftsmen, "Made in Japan" stuff. Like a traditional grater that's labeled as "shark skin grater"…is this really shark skin!? It looks like it'd work really well though. Even if you don't buy anything, it's always fun to look!

 ★BETTER LIVING 
Floor Guide: WEST MALL (W-15)
TAX-FREE
-Animals not allowed-


Syunsui
 ●Nagano/Karuizawa Souvenir Store●
  



Comes with shichimi which contains 7 different spices/chili peppers and it’s said that there isn’t a single household in Nagano that doesn’t have it.

Nagano has some of the best soba. But if you don't have the right soba soup things can go wrong. That's why the soba set is pretty helpful. Inside contains snacks/side dishes that are special to Karuizawa. 



Just LOOK at that! It looks crazy good!!!

Baumkuchen is a very popular snack/dessert in Japan, and apples are very famous in Nagano. So it's no surprise they combined the two!! 1852yen (about $16) isn't a bad price but when we were there though they had a deal where they were selling it for 1200yen (about $10) so maybe you guys will get lucky too!



Love how stylish this bottle is!

This was our favorite!! Karuizawa sake that's bottle is decorated with the concept of Japanese pattern. You can drink the sake and keep this pretty bottle! We got one for our parents ^-^ ★720ml (24.3fl oz) = 2160yen (about $19)
 

Syunsui
Floor Guide: SOUVENIR COURT (SC-04)
-Animals not allowed-


SAKUYA 
HONTEN DASHI TO SHINSHU GOHAN
(出汁と信州ごはん佐久屋本店)
 
●Restaurant● 



This restaurant specializes in food that uses local ingredients.



We had this places #1 menu, which happened to be hot pot that had all sorts of yummy fresh fish and local veggies.
 



Some other local specialties are Karuizawa original sake and Sakuya's very own shichimi. It has a very distinctive taste, still spicy but has a real earthy. If you like it you can also buy some from here for 907yen.
 

★SAKUYA
Floor Guide: GARDEN MALL (GM-12)
-Animals not allowed-

💼 🍂 💼 🍂 💼 🍂 💼 🍂 💼​

Keep your eyes out for our next article about Kusatsu Onsen and getting there from Karuizawa!

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NAME:Karuizawa Prince Shopping Plaza

MAP

ADDRESS:

KARUIZAWA PRINCE SHOPPING PLAZA Karuizawa, Karuizawa-machi, Kitasaku-gun, Nagano

ACCESS:Karuizawa (軽井沢)

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      On the other side of the Seto Inland Sea opposite Japan’s main island, Shikoku (四国) is a region made up of four prefectures: Ehime, Kagawa, Kochi, and Tokushima. The area is famous for its udon (in Kagawa), and the beautiful Dogo Onsen hot springs (in Ehime).

    • Kagawa Prefecture is on the northern part of the island of Shikoku, facing Japan's main island and the Seto Inland Sea. It's known for being the smallest prefecture in Japan, by area, but at the same time Kagawa is called the "Udon Prefecture" thanks to its famous sanuki udon. Aside from Kotohiragu Shrine and Ritsurin Garden, the prefecture's small islands are popular, and Kagawa is full of unique destinations, like Angel Road. They say that if you lay eyes on Zenigata Sunae, a huge Kagawa sand painting, you'll never have money troubles ever again.

    • Located in the most southwestern part of Japan, Kyushu (九州) is an island of 7 prefectures: Fukuoka, Saga, Nagasaki, Kumamoto, Oita, Miyazaki, and Kagoshima. The island's unique culture has been influenced by Chinese and Dutch trade, along with missionaries coming in through Nagasaki's port. Modern-day travelers love the lush natural scenery and fresh food, plus the natural hot springs found all throughout the area (thanks to volcanic activity)!

    • FUKUOKA

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      Fukuoka Prefecture has the highest population on the southern island of Kyushu, with two major cities: Fukuoka and Kitakyushu. Thanks to growing transportation networks, Fukuoka is more accessible than ever, and so are the many local attractions. On top of historical spots like Dazaifu Tenmangu Shrine, travelers shouldn't miss Fukuoka's food scene, with motsu nabe (offal hotpot), mentaiko (spicy cod roe), and famous Hakata ramen―best eaten from a food stall in the Nakasu area of Hakata. Plus, it's full of all sorts of destinations for travelers, like trendy shopping centers, and the beautiful nature of Itoshima and Yanagawa.

    • KAGOSHIMA

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      Kagoshima Prefecture played a major role in Japan's modernization as a backdrop for famous historical figures like samurais Saigo Takamori and Okubo Toshimichi, who pushed Japan out of the Edo era and into the Meiji. Because of that, Sengan-en Garden is just one of many historical destinations, and when it comes to attractions Kagoshima has plenty: the active volcano of Sakurajima, popular hot springs Ibusuki Onsen and Kirishima Onsen, World Heritage Site Yakushima Island, even what Japan calls the "island closest to heaven," Amami Oshima. Kagoshima might be found on the very southernmost tip of the southern island of Kyushu, but there's plenty to see.

    • OKINAWA

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      The island chain of Okinawa (沖縄) makes up the southernmost tip of Japan, which is why it's also the most tropical area in the country. Thanks to a history of independence and totally distinct political and cultural events, Okinawa has a unique culture, and remnants of the Ryukyu Kingdom are still visible all over the islands. Food, language, traditional dress, it's all a little different! It's also said to be the birthplace of karate.

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