Matsunoyama is home to one of the big three medicinal hot springs of Japan, along with Kusatsu (Gunma Prefecture) and Arima Onsen (Hyōgo Prefecture). One of the main roads in the town is lined with about a dozen traditional Japanese-style hot spring resorts, attracting many visitors.
Climate
Matsunoyama is also famous for the massive amount of snowfall it receives, with 2 to 3 meters on average during the severe winter months.
History
According to legend, a woodcutter discovered the hot springs 700 years ago when he saw a hawk resting its injured wing in it. It has also been told that the daughter of Uesugi Fusayoshi (the 15th century governor of Echigo Province, current Niigata Prefecture, ja:上杉房能) cured her skin disease by soaking in the hot springs.
^住民基本台帳人口移動報告年報 (in Japanese). 総務庁統計局. 2005. p. 139. Tokamachi-shi, Kawanishi-machi, Nakasato-mura, Matsudai-machi and Matsunoyama-machi were incorporated into a newly established Tokamachi-shi as of April 1, 2005.
^"十日町市の沿革|十日町市". 十日町市 (in Japanese). Retrieved 2024-02-04. 十日町市は、平成17年4月1日に旧十日町市、川西町、中里村、松代町及び松之山町の5市町村が新設合併して誕生しました。