My wife and I often try to incorporate a National Park with a city stay on our travels in the US, so we thought we'd try something similar in Japan. I have seen only a few posts on Kamikochi and hut hiking, so I wanted to share our experience in case it helps someone else with similar aspirations. Due to our hike being early in the season (late June) and the amount of snow this year, we chose to hike to Karasawa Cirque from Kamikochi and stay at Karasawa Hutte vs attempting any peaks.

Day 0: Tokyo to Matsumoto

We took the Shinjuku Sta to Matsumoto Sta via the 2.5hr Limited Express on the Chuo Line. The JR office kindly helped us book this, but if you know what you're doing I'm sure the automated kiosks are faster. We wanted to be in Matsumoto the day before our hike in order to take the early bus to Kamikochi.

We were briefly rewarded with a clear view of Mt. Fuji from the left side of the train (ultimately, our only view of Mt. Fuji on this trip). Arriving in Matsumoto by 1830 gave us the opportunity to walk around the perimeter of Matsumoto Castle and have a relaxed dinner at an izakaya near our hotel, Toyoko Inn. We grabbed some breakfast and snacks from Family Mart as we'd be departing the hotel prior to breakfast.

Day 1: Matsumoto to Kamikochi to Karasawa

We rose early to be at the bus depot by 0515 and take the 0530 Alpico bus arriving in Kamikochi at 0705. You can book this bus starting one month prior to travel. Use the same service to book a return bus, also one month prior. It was a pleasant drive through the mountains to Kamikochi arriving on time, and there were signs directing us to the luggage check where we left our suitcases and continued with just our backpacks. We walked 5-10 minutes to Kappa Bridge, which I suppose could be considered the true start of the hike. It was virtually empty at this time of morning, and that would not be the case when we returned the next day.

From Kappa Bridge to Karasawa is ~15-16 km depending on who you ask and includes 800m of elevation change. On paper, not too bad - in practice, the bulk of the elevation comes at the end of the hike. The trail starts as a graded path/gravel road along the Azusa River and is very pleasant hiking. There was some construction being done on the river channel, but it didn't detract much from our hike. We passed some monkeys, and made use of the intermediate huts for restrooms and snack breaks, as well as fresh water - note that the huts are cash only. The weather window was fantastic with partly cloudy skies and no rain.

At Yokoo Hut we crossed the suspension bridge over the Azusa and the trail become more rocky and a bit more steep, but quite manageable. That lasted until the next suspension bridge over the creek (Yokoo?) - at that point the trail heads straight up the mountain with few respites and will test your physical shape. The last 1km or so was still a snowfield - ideally, you should have microspikes, but we did not and made it fine to Kurasawa Hutte as the wind picked up and the temperature began to drop. The hike took us 6 hours, arriving by 1330 - most huts will want you checked in by 1500-1600, so we had a good margin.

We typically camp and this was our first experience with a hut. Online booking was a bit tricky for us, so we used a service to book the hut for us, also one month before arrival which went smoothly. At the hut we were given a short orientation and shown to our "room" which was a cozy stall with futons and a curtain. We had a few draft beers(!) and chips in the dining room before unpacking and enjoying the views of the cirque from the deck. We then returned to the dining room for dinner (dinner and breakfast were included in the price). Dinner was a delicious combination of local ingredients with a bowl of rice, and we were treated to the sight of two black bears on the shoulder of a mountain visible from the dining room windows. Exhausted from the hike, we turned in early for shuteye.

Day 2: Karasawa to Kamikochi

Rising early for breakfast, we dawdled a bit at the hut waiting for the sun to soften the snow a bit and then headed back down to Kamikochi without incident. The two bears were still foraging on the distant mountainside. We had a wonderful affogato at one of the huts and saw more monkeys. Back at Kappa Bridge we had a bowl of noodles, checked out the visitor center, collected our suitcases, and walked over to the Kamikochi Onsen Hotel for the night.

Public baths aren't well known in the US, so we were excited for this experience. You might say a few in our group were trepidatious. At check in, we were given yukatas and shown to our Japanese style room. Our rooms did not have showers, which we needed, so we immediately hit the showers and hot bath downstairs - this was a wonderful experience that everyone became addicted to for the rest of the trip. I wish it was a thing in the US. The outdoor hot bath was especially relaxing, certainly after our ~30km roundtrip hike.

Dinner in the dining room was an amazing ~15 course meal of local ingredients. The experience of dining in our yukatas was completely new to us, but very comfortable. Upon returning to our rooms, the staff had laid out our futons for us and we immediately crashed for the night.

Day 3: Kamikochi to Matsumoto to Kyoto

The next morning we rose for the buffet style breakfast (fantastic), took one last bath, and then headed for the bus depot. The staff at the hotel forwarded our luggage for us, though it's a relatively short walk. We took the Alpico bus back, though for some reason it only goes to Shinshimashima Sta instead of all the way back to Matsumoto, but the bus ticket allowed us to transfer to a train at Shinshimashima back to Matsumoto Sta. Somehow, everything just works in Japan.

Once back at Matsumoto Sta, and still unsure of our train booking skills, we utilized the kind staff at the JR office once again to arrange travel to Kyoto via express train + shinkansen.

Final thoughts: I'm so glad we decided to book this hike/Kamikochi stay in the middle of our Tokyo-Kyoto itinerary. It presented us with a completely different and nature-based side of Japan that we otherwise would have missed, as well as allowing us a few days to hike, glamp, and experience onsen culture. I can highly recommend it as part of a Japan trip, and am happy to answer any questions I didn't address.