The Otaki Ice festival, illuminated Misotsuchi Icicles in 2024 – One of the most famous, and beautiful, winter scenes of Saitama is at the Otaki Ice Festival. Located in the former Otaki village (now part of Chichibu city) in the Chichibu-Tama-Kai National Park. The Misotsuchi Icicles are the only naturally formed icicles of the three Great icicles of Chichibu. They light the icicles of Misotsuchi up at night. Each year for about a month you can enjoy this spectacular view in Chichibu, the mountainous area of Western Saitama.
The Otaki Ice Festival was one of only a few January events that went ahead in 2021 despite the pandemic and a State of Emergency. They opened in 2022 too, when few other places did and it was actually one of the best years for the icicles to date thanks to suitable climatic conditions. Between 2019 and 2021 unsuitable weather patterns significantly impacted the formation of the icicles and shortened the period of the festival. Hopefully 2024 will be another cold year that keeps the icicles in prime condition for as long as possible! All things equal, the icicles will be open to the public from around the end of the first week in January 2024.
Misotsuchi Icicles
The Misotsuchi icicles form completely naturally. The main display are neither altered nor aided by human hands. The icicles form from spring water bubbling from the rocks aided by the winter environment of the Okuchichibu region. The icicles are ten meters tall and thirty meters wide! They look spectacular when lit up at night, particularly with the lights reflected in the water. They use four different colors to represent the four seasons of Chichibu-Tama-Kai National Park.
You can view the icicles from either the North side or South side of the Arakawa (Ara River). On the North side, which is more popular because of the convenience, the entrance is by the Woodroof campsite. Moreover, the icicles can be seen from the car park of Woodroof campsite for anyone who is unable to take the craggy, icy walk down to the riverside.
On the south side the entrance (and parking) is at the Tsuchiuchi Camping grounds. It is further and harder to get to. However, Tsuchiuchi campsite have even more icicles – man-made, but equally impressive. They are 25 meters high and 55 meters wide. (You can see them from Woodroof too). Also, Tsuchiuchi serve hot food and drinks during the period of the Otaki ice festival. Please note that neither campsite take over night guests at that time of the year (season is from April to October).
In 2020 the icicles were late forming due to the milder weather. They never really formed properly so there was no entry fee. And for the same reasons they did not support the icicles during the week and only opened the icicles to visitors on the weekends. However, the weather conditions were initially better in 2021. But the milder than normal winter melted the icicles much earlier than normal. Thus, the event abruptly ended earlier than expected. In both 2022 and 2023, they actually extended the period of the ice festival due to the suitable climatic conditions. Summer of 2023 was much longer and hotter than average, we will have to wait and see how winter fares!
Otaki Ice Festival 2024 information
The Misotsuchi icicles are one of the three icicles locations in Saitama. The other two are Ashigakubo and Onouchi. Information for the Misotsuchi Icicles in 2024 is not yet available (as of September 8th 2023). Tentative information:
Dates
Icicles / Ice Festival – expected to be from either Sunday the 7th or Monday the 8th of January to at least February 17th 2024.
Light up – Saturdays and Sundays only. Expected to be from around Saturday January 20th to Sunday February 18th 2024.
Generally, on the last two Saturdays of January they also have a market during the day. The market has not yet been confirmed for 2024.
Hours
Awaiting information for 2024. The hours have changed slightly for 2023. In previous years the hours was from 8.30 am to 5 pm daily. But in 2023 the hours are from 8 am to 4 pm daily. From January 21st to February 19th the festival is on until 8 pm on Saturdays and Sundays for the light up. (Before the pandemic it was 9 pm).
Cost
The entrance fee went up in 2023. From 200 yen to 400 yen for adults or high school aged children. There is no charge for younger children.
Misotsuchi Icicles Access
The icicles are the 47 kilometers from the Hanazono Interchange of the Kanetsu expressway. The parking costs are generally 500 yen per car, 200 yen for a bike and 1000 yen for a bus. The Tsuchiuchi Camping Ground open their car park to the public during the period of the icicles. The camp ground itself closes for the season and will open around the end of March or early April.
From Chichibu Tetsudo Chichibu Main Line Mitsumineguchi station take a Seibu Kanko bus headed to Lake Chichibu 「秩父湖」 . The “Misotsuchi” bus stop is the closest bus stop to the icicles. It is on the North side of the river.
Misotsuchi Icicles access from Tokyo:
Take a limited express train from Ikebukuro to Seibu Chichibu station, from there its about a 3 minute walk to Chichibu railway Mitsumineguchi station from where you get the bus.
In the area:
The famous Mitsumine Shrine, the stunning Toryu bridge, Oboragawatsuri Foot Bridge, Chichibu Lake and Futase Dam.
Other icicles that are illuminated in the area:
For more ideas of what you can do in Saitama in Winter:
First published in November 2016. Updated annually. 1s republish: October 5th 2021, 2nd republish and last update: September 8th 2023.