Big Love for Nagatoro Tourism Day

Today, and July 16th annually, is Nagatoro Tourism Day 長瀞観光の日 in Japan. A day after my own heart, as I really love Nagatoro - it is one of my favorite places in Saitama Prefecture. The photo in this post was taken in July, so it felt fitting for this mid-July commemoration day.

The day was established by the Nagatoro Town Tourism Association to support and promote the growth of local tourism in Nagatoro, a small town in the Chichibu region. The date comes from a clever "goroawase" (play on number's readings) of 7/16 to form Nagatoro; "Naga (7) to (10) ro (6)". An easy and memorable link between the date and the place name.

The goal of the day is simple and heartfelt: to help more people discover Nagatoro’s beauty across all four seasons and encourage them to visit and experience its charm firsthand. I have been to Nagatoro in every season personally. One of the draws of a summer visit is that it a little cooler than the flatlands of summer, but only marginally - it still gets ridiculously hot! Spring is my favorite time to visit for the sakura.

Nagatoro's cherry blossoms are on Japan's official top 100 sakura spots. Nagatoro Gorge is also a designated national scenic spot and the Iwadatami are a natural monument of Japan. Nagatoro is a great spot for river boating, rafting, hiking, camping, flowers, trainspotting (steam locomotive) and seasonal food among other things.