Half-day tour: The Kiyotsu Gorge Tunnel
Last updated: August 26, 2026
Walk the 750-meter Kiyotsu Gorge Tunnel to the Mirror of Water, where one of Japan's three great gorges reflects in a still pool — a half-day from Yuzawa. Along the way, three observation points open onto the V-shaped valley the Kiyotsu River has cut through towering cliffs of columnar rock, with an exhibition corner tracing the gorge through its seasons: soft spring green, cool summer water, blazing autumn leaves and a winter like an ink painting. The shuttle bus makes it effortless: meeting at the Snow Country Tourism office beside Echigo-Yuzawa Station, it links the station with the gorge and its fantastical space of light and sound — the easiest way to reach a place no train serves.
Itinerary
Departure
- Start point: Snow Country Tourism
- Stop at: Kiyotsu Gorge Tunnel (Tunnel of Light)
- Stop at: Echigo-Yuzawa Station
Frequently Asked Questions
The Panorama Station at the tunnel's far end: a shallow sheet of water spread across the floor of a polished half-pipe, so the gorge outside doubles into a perfect circle of cliff, sky and river. It's the signature work of the tunnel's art renovation for the Echigo-Tsumari Art Field, and one of Japan's most photographed installations.
It's counted among Japan's three great gorges: the emerald Kiyotsu River runs through a V-shaped canyon walled with columnar-jointed rock — massive hexagonal stone pillars stacked like organ pipes — best seen from the tunnel's three observation points.
Every season frames the view differently — fresh green in spring, cool mountain water in summer, vivid foliage in autumn, and a monochrome, ink-painting stillness in winter. Autumn is the most popular; winter the most otherworldly.
The shuttle bus departs from the Snow Country Tourism office just outside Echigo-Yuzawa Station — itself an easy Joetsu Shinkansen ride from Tokyo — and drops you back at the station after the visit. No train reaches the gorge, so the shuttle covers the one leg that is otherwise awkward to arrange.