Kijimadaira Chalet in the Japanese Alps

🏠 Our home is a small modern chalet in Kijimadaira, a little village partway up the mountain in the Japanese Alps. It has a fireplace, modern amenities and a traditional tatami room, but the thing everyone notices first is the view, looking out over the valley with mountains on every side. In winter, you can spot ski resorts in the distance, sometimes lit up at night for night-skiing. ❄️ It'll be no surprise that skiing is what brought us here! A small local resort is a 5-minute walk away, with a whole cluster of others within a 10–30 minute drive, including Nozawa Onsen and Madarao. Kijimadaira gets an immense amount of snow without ever being too cold, and the fireplace and heaters keep the house wonderfully warm. 🌾 In spring and summer, the rice fields are planted and flooded and everything turns green and full of flowers; in autumn it's all orange and red. 🖥️ For remote work, there's a dedicated office upstairs with desks and one monitor, plus fast, reliable internet. Scanning and printing are easy at the convenience stores nearby. It's a genuinely peaceful place to get work done, best for someone after a quiet retreat and a real local experience, not a buzzy resort scene. 🛌 Inside, it's a comfortable mix of modern and traditional. There's 1 closed bedroom (queen bed), 1 tatami room that converts easily into a sleeping space (not soundproof), and 2 tiny attic rooms upstairs. 🛋️ The tatami room is the highlight, with its natural grass-mat smell and soft light through the shoji screens. Big windows in the upstairs office and downstairs living room make the most of the view. The toilet is a modern Japanese washlet with a heated bidet seat, the bathroom has a shower and a good-sized bathtub, and the kitchen is roomy enough to cook to your heart's content. What makes it special, though, is that it's a genuinely local spot, not a resort town. We're in a small neighbourhood of about 20 houses, with apple orchards and rice fields below us, a working village rather than a resort town. Most of our neighbours have lived here a long time; they're friendly, respectful and always a little curious about who's staying next door. It's quiet, and everyday life goes on around: people tending their gardens, heading out on errands. For day-to-day things, Iiyama City is a 10-minute drive, with supermarkets, a sushi train, ramen and other food options. Please note you'll need to rent a car. One of our neighbours rents cars for an affordable rate. ——— 👋🏼 A few things we'd ask of guests: Strictly no shoes in the house. Please leave them by the front door and use the slippers inside. The tatami and shoji screens need care. Only washed feet on the tatami, and please fold the futons away each day so the grass matting can breathe. The shoji screens (the paper sliding panels) tear very easily, even at the lightest touch, so it's best not to handle them, or to slide them gently by the frame only. Rubbish and recycling: Japan's system is strict and a bit involved, so we'll leave detailed instructions and a calendar. Incorrectly sorted rubbish won't be collected from the communal bin shed, and a "sticker of shame" gets left on the bag for all to see. Great incentive to get it right! To keep mould at bay, please leave the upstairs ventilators on at all times, and use the bathroom ventilator when showering. Afterwards, leave the door half open, then switch it off after an hour or two. Be considerate of the neighbours. It's a small, quiet village, so please keep noise down at night and be mindful that sound carries. On walks, carry a bear bell. There's wildlife around and, very occasionally, bears (we have 2 bells at the house). They hibernate in winter, so no need then. No smoking inside, and no parties. Unfortunately, due to the stairs and shoji screens, we're not able to host young children. We'll provide a full list of tips and advice when you arrive to make everything easy, smooth and comfortable. We hope you'll have a very lovely stay!