Yunishigawa Kamakura Festival

Each winter from late January through early March, hundreds of snow huts filled with candles line the riverbanks and hillsides of Yunishigawa Onsen, a mountain hot spring village in the hills above Nikko. The flickering kamakura reflected in the dark river below have made this one of Tochigi's most photographed winter events. The village itself is said to have been founded by Heike warriors who fled here after defeat in the 12th-century Genpei War. Year-round, rustic ryokan offer open-air baths, and local irori cooking, where food grills over a sunken hearth, connects visitors to the village's long history.