An Acorn-Shaped Lodge by Yoshizaka Takamasa
The Nozawa Onsen Lodge (野沢温泉ロッヂ) is a ski lodge of 1969 in Toyosato, Nozawa Onsen Village, Shimotakai District, Nagano Prefecture, and was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure) on March 13, 2025 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
The Agency records a timber and reinforced concrete building of three storeys and a basement, roofed in sheet iron, with a building area of 79 square metres, restored in 2014; registration number 20-0668.
An Acorn-Shaped Lodge by the Nagasaka Slope
Nozawa Onsen Lodge is a three-storey timber ski lodge beside the Nagasaka slope, designed by Yoshizaka Takamasa and Atelier U (U-Kenkyushitsu) (Agency for Cultural Affairs). On a plan based on a regular hexagon, it takes the shape of an acorn, its walls clad in green sheet iron and pierced with windows here and there.
Inside, a spiral staircase rises at the centre, with rooms set around it on split levels (Agency for Cultural Affairs). An Agency survey of modern architecture explains that it was built as lodging for people learning to ski, and that its frame is unusually complex: the posts around the stair do not run through the floors, and the outer posts lean differently on each level to follow the shape.
Why It Was Registered
The Agency registered it as a model of design, a mountain lodge of complex and original composition. The same survey notes how it is made for snow more than 3 metres deep, with sheet-steel roof and walls that let snow slide off on its own.
What to Look For
Look for the acorn shape, the green sheet-iron walls and the central spiral stair (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
Visiting
According to the Agency survey, the present owner took over the building in 2014 and returned its altered interior to the original arrangement of spaces. Its use is given as lodging.
Q&A
- When was Nozawa Onsen Lodge built?
- In 1969 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
- Who designed Nozawa Onsen Lodge?
- Yoshizaka Takamasa and Atelier U.
- What is special about Nozawa Onsen Lodge?
- Its acorn shape and split-level rooms around a central spiral stair.
- When was Nozawa Onsen Lodge registered?
- On March 13, 2025.
- When was the Nozawa Onsen Lodge registered?
- On March 13, 2025 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
Basic Information
| Name | Nozawa Onsen Lodge (野沢温泉ロッヂ) |
|---|---|
| Location | Lot 7812-2 and others, Toyosato, Nozawa Onsen Village, Shimotakai District, Nagano Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2025/03/13 (Reiwa 7) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Timber and reinforced concrete, 3 storeys and basement, sheet-iron roof, 79 m² |
| Owner | Not listed in the Agency database |
| Public Access | Lodging (no visiting information) |
References
- Nozawa Onsen Lodge (Database of National Cultural Properties, Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00015314
- Nozawa Onsen Lodge (Agency for Cultural Affairs, modern heritage survey, Japanese)
- https://www.bunka.go.jp/kindai/kenzoubutsu/research/nagano/013/index.html
- National and prefectural cultural properties designated in Reiwa 6 (Nagano Prefecture, Japanese)
- https://www.pref.nagano.lg.jp/bunkashinko/bunkazai/documents/bunkazair6.pdf
Last verified: 2026.10.16