Information as of 29 August 2026
This page is a relocation summary written by an advanced AI
It is not a personal opinion piece written by a human. An AI gathered official information published on the internet — municipal and national statistics, the Japan Meteorological Agency, railway companies, property portals — and rebuilt it into a form that someone considering a move can read and act on. Every figure carries a source link and the date it was checked, so please confirm anything that matters to you against the original document. Rules and prices change. Always check the latest information yourself before you sign anything.
Moving to Chino
Chino City sits in the middle of Nagano Prefecture, a little to the east, at the western foot of the Yatsugatake mountains. The population is 54,589 and the area 266.59 square kilometres. 🔴 The single most striking thing about this city is that its city hall stands 801.6 metres above sea level. That is what the city's own statistical handbook says. The lowest point is 762.7 metres (Nakaoki in Miyagawa), the highest is the summit of Mt. Akadake at 2,899.4 metres. The 34 second-hand detached houses on the market also spread from 786.9 metres to 1,530.1 metres (median 962.9 metres). Within one city, the height at which you live varies by more than 700 metres. And one more thing: of the 40,960 dwellings in Chino City, 41.5% — 17,000 of them — are vacant. But 74.6% of those (12,690) are "secondary dwellings", that is, holiday houses. That is the second highest figure in the prefecture after Karuizawa Town, and the city itself writes that "the sheer number of holiday houses shows up as a characteristic of Chino City". Chino's "41.5% vacancy rate" does not mean what a vacancy rate means in other towns. Best to say that first.
Roadside stations: Venus Line Lake Tateshina / Hot springs and day bathing: the former Hotel Heidi, Kawara Onsen Kawara-no-Yu, Otonashi-no-Yu, Yukawa Onsen Kappa-no-Yu, Yonezawa Onsen Shiotsubo-no-Yu, Tamamiya Onsen Bogaku-no-Yu, Ishiasobi-no-Yu, Tateshina Onsen Kosai-no-Yu, Aqualand Chino, Togariishi Onsen Jomon-no-Yu, Kanazawa Onsen Kinkei-no-Yu / RV parks: RV Park Kurumayama Sky Port, RV Park Tateshina Park Hotel, RV Park Tateshina La Planete
Sources: roadside stations from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism list of roadside stations (checked 28 August 2026) / hot springs and day bathing from OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors) (checked 28 August 2026) / dog runs from OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors) (checked 28 August 2026) / RV parks from the Japan RV Association list of certified RV parks (checked 28 August 2026). 🔴 Only what a place has is shown — a town without one is not worse for it.
Last checked 2026-08-29
CHAPTER 01First, what kind of place Chino is
The city's pocket-sized statistical handbook, An Outline of Chino City, gathers the lie of the land in one place. The city covers 266.59 square kilometres (23.55 kilometres east to west, 20.55 north to south, 96.0 around). The elevation at the city hall is 801.6 metres, the lowest point 762.7 metres (Nakaoki in Miyagawa), the highest 2,899.4 metres (the summit of Mt. Akadake). Of the land, 67.62 square kilometres is forest and 78.95 square kilometres is moor, while housing land is 16.29 square kilometres — only 6.1% of the city is built on.
Map: © OpenStreetMap contributors
What kind of town is Chino City?
A city of 54,589 people at the western foot of the Yatsugatake mountains in Nagano Prefecture. 🔴 The city hall stands 801.6 metres above sea level; the lowest ground in the city is 762.7 metres and the highest is the summit of Mt. Akadake at 2,899.4 metres. The Azusa limited express reaches Shinjuku in about 2 hours, and it is about 10 minutes from the Suwa interchange on the Chuo Expressway to the town centre.
CHAPTER 02The 10 areas, and life in each
Chino City divides itself into 10 districts. There are ten district community centres and ten district public halls, and the monthly population statistics come out in these ten as well. This page uses those divisions as they are. The population figures are the city's "population and households by ward and neighbourhood association" (1 July Reiwa 8; 54,589 in total), the listings are the 34 this page collected, and the elevations are values drawn from the Geospatial Information Authority for each listing's own map coordinates.
| District | Population | What kind of place it is | Homes for sale | Elevation (median) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tamagawa the south, at the western foot of the Yatsugatake | 11,228 people 20.6% of the city | The most populous district. Suwa Central Hospital (Tamagawa 4300, 360 beds), the library (Tamagawa 500), the general gymnasium and the Chino fire station are all in this one area. Its largest ward alone holds 3,495 people, the biggest in the city. The elevation ranges widely, from 867.7 to 1,530.1 metres, and climbing east it takes in Minoto, the trailhead for the Yatsugatake. | 8 listings ¥7,980,000–35,000,000 median ¥17,650,000 | 968.6m 867.7〜1530.1m |
| Miyagawa west of Chino Station, along Route 20 | 11,094 people 20.3% of the city | The district that holds the lowest ground in the city (Nakaoki in Miyagawa, 762.7 metres), running west to the boundary with Suwa City. The central public hall (Miyagawa 4552-2) and the district community centre, the western health and welfare service centre (Miyagawa 3975) and the Jinchokan Moriya Historical Museum (Miyagawa 389-1) are here. It is also where the public housing and the housing estates gather (most of the 661 municipal and prefectural units are in this district). | 2 listings ¥8,500,000–13,990,000 median ¥11,240,000 | 834.5m 834.1〜834.9m |
| Chino the town around Chino Station and the city hall | 10,962 people 20.1% of the city | The town centre, with Chino Station and the city hall. The station building "Bellevia" holds a city branch office, a children's centre, a coworking space (Work Lab Yatsugatake), a local job centre and the Norazaa call centre. It is the lowest ground in the city (786.9 to 809.2 metres), and the median listing here, ¥24,800,000, is the highest in the city. Chino police station (Hon-machi Nishi) and the Chino Civic Center and art museum (Tsukahara 1-chome) are here too. | 3 listings ¥9,800,000–42,000,000 median ¥24,800,000 | 786.9m 786.9〜809.2m |
| Toyohira the east, climbing towards the Yatsugatake | 5,424 people 9.9% of the city | The area where Suwa University of Science (1,368 students), the Togariishi Jomon Archaeological Museum (two National Treasure clay figures), the Yatsugatake Museum and Togariishi Onsen Jomon-no-Yu gather. It reaches as far as Okutateshina (27 households, 47 people), and the elevation runs 917 to 1,205 metres. The median plot on the market is 1,009 square metres (about 305 tsubo), second only to Kitayama within the city. Nothing was on the market at or under ¥10,000,000. | 3 listings ¥11,990,000–95,000,000 median ¥24,800,000 | 957.1m 917.3〜1205.0m |
| Kitayama the highlands of Tateshina, Lake Shirakaba and Kurumayama | 3,426 people 6.3% of the city | 11 of the 34 listings in the city are in this one area, and with 5 of them (45%) at or under ¥10,000,000 it is where the cheapest houses come up. It is holiday-house country — the ward names read Tateshina, Tateshina Chuo Kogen, Midori-no-Mura, Kurumayama and Shirakabako. In Reiwa 6 the visitors came to 1,582,300 at Tateshina, 1,023,500 at Lake Shirakaba and 691,900 at Kurumayama Kogen. The median plot is 1,015 square metres (about 307 tsubo). The elevation runs 969 to 1,515 metres, and the Shirakabako–Tateshina area even has its own water tariff (§8). | 11 listings ¥1,500,000–28,800,000 median ¥14,900,000 | 1022.6m 969.1〜1514.7m |
| Yonezawa the farmland of the north-east | 2,852 people 5.2% of the city | This is the area with the Tanabatake site, where the "Jomon Venus" was found. Yonezawa Onsen Shiotsubo-no-Yu, the Yuyu-kan centre for older residents and the Suwa-Minami Waste Centre and recycling centre are here too. The ground is almost level at 881 to 902 metres, and the median plot, 200 square metres, is the most compact in the city. The median listing is ¥17,980,000. | 3 listings ¥6,490,000–17,980,000 median ¥17,980,000 | 883.8m 881.0〜902.1m |
| Kohigashi the hills of the north-west | 2,804 people 5.1% of the city | This is the area with the Nakappara site, where the "Masked Goddess" was found. The northern health and welfare service centre (Kitayama 4808-1) and the northern fire sub-station (Kohigashi 5661-5) are close by. It is the north-west side of the city, at the foot of the road that climbs to Lake Shirakaba (the Suwa–Shirakabako–Komoro route). No listing in this area appears among the 34 collected this time. | 0 listings none on the market this time | — |
| Nakaoshio the flat ground on the Suwa City boundary / Nakaoshio wards 1–4 | 2,657 people 4.9% of the city | The one district in the city whose ward names are simply "Nakaoshio ward 1, 2, 3 and 4". It is flat ground touching Suwa City, and both listings, at 904 metres, run ¥16,990,000 to ¥21,990,000. Nothing at or under ¥10,000,000. Its district community centre (Nakaoshio 8-15) is the only one whose number sits apart from the rest (82-7088). | 2 listings ¥16,990,000–21,990,000 median ¥19,490,000 | 904.5m 904.4〜904.5m |
| Kanazawa the southern end of the city, Aoyagi Station | 2,268 people 4.2% of the city | The only part of the city whose nearest station is not Chino Station (Aoyagi Station on the JR Chuo Main Line). It is the southern end of the city, touching Fujimi Town, and has Kanazawa Onsen Kinkei-no-Yu. Both listings run ¥19,990,000 to ¥25,800,000, which is dear for this city. The median build year is 2006, among the newest of the 34. | 2 listings ¥19,990,000–25,800,000 median ¥22,900,000 | 867.0m 851.6〜882.4m |
| Izumino the high ground to the west | 1,874 people 3.4% of the city | The least populous district in the city (824 households, 1,874 people). Kawara Onsen Kawara-no-Yu (Izumino 1616-2) is here. As its ward names suggest, it takes in housing laid out on high ground. No listing from this area appears among the 34 collected this time either. | 0 listings none on the market this time | — |
And the higher it is, the cheaper it is — the cheapest houses come up in Kitayama, above 1,000 metres (median ¥14,900,000, 45% at or under ¥10,000,000), and the dearest in Chino, where the station is (¥24,800,000). Kitayama is cheap because so much of what is for sale there is a holiday house, and that is also where the median plot of 1,015 square metres (about 307 tsubo) comes from.
For commuting and shopping, Chino, Miyagawa and Tamagawa; for space and quiet, Kitayama and Toyohira. But in Kitayama and Toyohira the winter morning temperature, the snow clearing and the gradient of the road become the daily life itself. Read §3, §6 and §8 together.
What changes depending on where in the city you live?
🔴 What changes is the elevation. The city divides itself into 10 areas, and the listings run from 786.9 metres in Chino to 1,514.7 metres in Kitayama. The cheap ones are high up (Kitayama, median ¥14,900,000) and the dear ones are by the station in Chino (¥24,800,000).
CHAPTER 03Trains and cars — how you get around
Chino City has no scheduled bus routes. The city withdrew all 13 scheduled bus routes on 30 September Reiwa 4 and instead runs Norazaa, an AI-matched shared on-demand service. Public transport within the city is two things: the JR Chuo Main Line (Chino and Aoyagi stations) and Norazaa.
| Where to, and how | Time | Fare | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| To Shinjuku JR Chuo Main Line, Azusa limited express | approx. 2 hr | — | The city itself writes "Tokyo (Shinjuku) to Chino, Chuo Main Line Azusa limited express, about 2 hours". Chino Station is an Azusa stop, so Shinjuku is reached without changing. Chino Station handles 1,268,010 passengers a year, an average of 3,474 a day (Reiwa 6). |
| To Nagoya Chuo Main Line, changing at Shiojiri | approx. 2 hr 30 min | — | The city's guide gives "Chino to Shiojiri, Chuo Main Line, about 30 minutes" and "Shiojiri to Nagoya, Chuo Main Line Shinano limited express, about 2 hours". From Osaka (Shin-Osaka) the route is about 1 hour to Nagoya on the Tokaido Shinkansen, then the Shinano, then a local train. |
| Norazaa AI-matched shared on-demand transport | 8:00 to 19:00 every day except 5 days over the new year | Under 3 km ¥300 3–5 km ¥500 5 km and over ¥700 | A service whose route and timing change with the bookings — halfway between a bus and a taxi. The name joins "noru" (to ride) with the Chino dialect ending "-zaa", and the city explains it as "let's ride". It covers the same area as the 13 withdrawn routes. Book by app or phone, from 8 days ahead to 1 hour before. A flat ¥300 for those 65 and over, half fare for primary and junior high pupils, free below school age. You can have a "virtual stop" placed in front of your house. Four operators run it: Alpico Taxi, Suwa Kotsu, Daiichi Kotsu and Chino Bus Kanko. |
| Aoyagi Station JR the Chuo Main Line | — | — | There is a second station in the city. It is the nearest one for the Kanazawa district, and 2 of the 34 listings have Aoyagi Station, not Chino Station, as their nearest (§2). |
| By car (expressway) the Suwa interchange, Chuo Expressway | about 10 min from the town centre | — | The city writes "Takaido interchange to Suwa interchange to Chino, Chuo Expressway (about 172 kilometres), about 2 hours 10 minutes" and "Suwa interchange to the Chino town centre, ordinary roads, about 10 minutes". The national roads through the city are Routes 20, 152 and 299 (64.9 kilometres in all). |
| Paved share of city roads as at 1 April Reiwa 8 | — | — | There are 1,799 kilometres of city road, and 51.3% of it is paved (national and prefectural roads are 100%). This is a city where forest and moor make up 55% of the land, so drive the road to the house yourself before you buy. |
On the other side, the Azusa limited express stopping at Chino Station matters a great deal: Shinjuku in about 2 hours without changing. That single line is why the city can write "it is near enough for two-base living, weekend relocation or a long-distance commute".
✈ Airports
The nearest is Matsumoto Airport (a regionally managed airport), about 33.2 km in a straight line. 🔴 That is a straight line. It is neither the road distance nor the time it takes — check the actual route in the operators' timetables.
🛣 Expressway junctions
There is no expressway entrance or junction inside this area. You will use an interchange in a neighbouring town.
How long does it take from Chino to Tokyo?
The city writes "Tokyo (Shinjuku) to Chino, Chuo Main Line Azusa limited express, about 2 hours". Chino Station is a limited-express stop, so there is no change. 🔴 There are no scheduled bus routes in the city — 13 routes were withdrawn on 30 September Reiwa 4, and what runs now is Norazaa, AI-matched shared on-demand transport (¥300 under 3 km).
CHAPTER 04Homes actually on the market right now
SUUMO lists 34 second-hand detached houses in Chino City. All 34 listed were collected and are set out cheapest first. Pressing anywhere on a row opens the SUUMO page for that property.
"Nearest the station first" converts everything to minutes — a walk of ◯ min, ◯ min by bus plus ◯ min from the stop, ◯ km by car (reckoned at 30 km/h) — and compares those. Listings with no such information always appear last, whatever the sort.
Kitayama¥1,500,000Kitayama (Tateshina and Lake Shirakaba)Elev. approx. 970 m / Land 660 m² (200 tsubo) / Building 44 m² (13 tsubo) / built 1973 / Chino Station to 14.0km8 photos →
Kitayama¥4,800,000Kitayama (Tateshina and Lake Shirakaba)Elev. approx. 970 m / Land 1000 m² (303 tsubo) / Building 65 m² (20 tsubo) / built 1991 / Chino Station to 18.0km10 photos →
Kitayama Lake Shirakaba¥6,380,000
Yonezawa 6907-3¥6,490,000Yonezawa (the farmland of the north-east)Elev. approx. 900 m / Land 231 m² (70 tsubo) / Building 99 m² (30 tsubo) / built 1980 / Chino Station 88 min walk9 photos →
Kitayama¥6,800,000Kitayama (Tateshina and Lake Shirakaba)Elev. approx. 1340 m / Land 1015 m² (307 tsubo) / Building 43 m² (13 tsubo) / built 1998 / Chino Station to 15.6km9 photos →
Kitayama¥6,900,000Kitayama (Tateshina and Lake Shirakaba)Elev. approx. 1510 m / Land 1807 m² (547 tsubo) / Building 200 m² (60 tsubo) / built 1986 / Chino Station to 18.0km4 photos →
Tamagawa¥7,980,000Tamagawa (the south, at the foot of the Yatsugatake)Elev. approx. 970 m / Land 220 m² (66 tsubo) / Building 106 m² (32 tsubo) / built 1992 / Chino Station 60 min walkView listing →
Miyagawa 両久保¥8,500,000Miyagawa (west of Chino Station)Elev. approx. 830 m / Land 233 m² (70 tsubo) / Building 88 m² (27 tsubo) / built 1969 / Chino Station 27 min walk5 photos →
Hon-machi Nishi¥9,800,000Chino (the station and the city hall)Elev. approx. 810 m / Land 187 m² (57 tsubo) / Building 90 m² (27 tsubo) / built 1966 / Chino Station 17 min walk10 photos →
Toyohira 日向家下5462-3¥11,990,000Toyohira (the east, towards the Yatsugatake)Elev. approx. 920 m / Land 126 m² (38 tsubo) / Building 158 m² (48 tsubo) / built 1996 / Chino Station to 4.8km9 photos →
Tamagawa 小堂見3624-4¥13,000,000Tamagawa (the south, at the foot of the Yatsugatake)Elev. approx. 920 m / Land 310 m² (94 tsubo) / Building 123 m² (37 tsubo) / built 1982 / Chino Station 65 min walk8 photos →
Tamagawa¥13,800,000Tamagawa (the south, at the foot of the Yatsugatake)Elev. approx. 970 m / Land 1434 m² (434 tsubo) / Building 53 m² (16 tsubo) / built 1964 / Chino Station to 14.6km7 photos →
Miyagawa 6643-15¥13,990,000Miyagawa (west of Chino Station)Elev. approx. 830 m / Land 245 m² (74 tsubo) / Building 116 m² (35 tsubo) / built 1974 / Chino Station 33 min walk10 photos →
Kitayama¥14,900,000Kitayama (Tateshina and Lake Shirakaba)Elev. approx. 1350 m / Land 1062 m² (321 tsubo) / Building 87 m² (26 tsubo) / built 1997 / Chino Station to 14.8km10 photos →
Tamagawa¥15,800,000Tamagawa (the south, at the foot of the Yatsugatake)Elev. approx. 1420 m / Land 1078 m² (326 tsubo) / Building 75 m² (23 tsubo) / built 1996 / Chino Station to 14.0km10 photos →
Nakaoshio 11-74¥16,990,000Nakaoshio (on the Suwa City boundary)Elev. approx. 900 m / Land 233 m² (71 tsubo) / Building 127 m² (38 tsubo) / built 1986 / Chino Station to 6.6km10 photos →
Kitayama 2900番¥16,990,000Kitayama (Tateshina and Lake Shirakaba)Elev. approx. 1020 m / Land 776 m² (235 tsubo) / Building 101 m² (30 tsubo) / built 1986 / Chino Station to 11.6km9 photos →
Yonezawa 4146-3¥17,980,000Yonezawa (the farmland of the north-east)Elev. approx. 880 m / Land 200 m² (61 tsubo) / Building 122 m² (37 tsubo) / built 1999 / Chino Station 77 min walk10 photos →
Yonezawa¥17,980,000Yonezawa (the farmland of the north-east)Elev. approx. 880 m / Land 200 m² (61 tsubo) / Building 122 m² (37 tsubo) / built 1999 / Chino Station 77 min walk8 photos →
Kitayama¥18,500,000Kitayama (Tateshina and Lake Shirakaba)Elev. approx. 970 m / Land 776 m² (235 tsubo) / Building 93 m² (28 tsubo) / built 1999 / Chino Station to 14.8km10 photos →
The photographs are the images carried on SUUMO. They disappear once a listing ends. Check the real condition of a property on site.
See all 34 on SUUMO →Prices run from ¥1,500,000 to ¥95,000,000, with a median of ¥17,480,000. Nine (26%) are at or under ¥10,000,000, and five of those are in Kitayama (Tateshina, Lake Shirakaba, Kurumayama). The cheapest is ¥1,500,000 (Kitayama) and the dearest ¥95,000,000 (Toyohira) — a 63-fold spread. Holiday houses and ordinary town houses are mixed together in the same 34: that is the Chino market.
The median build year is 1992, and 7 (21%) were built on or before 31 May 1981. 26 of the 34 meet the newer earthquake standard (June 1981 onwards). As markets on this site go, this one is on the newer side.
And then the elevation: 786.9 metres to 1,530.1 metres, median 962.9 metres. 11 of the 34 stand above 1,000 metres. The temperatures in §6 are the normals for Suwa (760 metres), so at a house above 1,000 metres the winter mornings are colder still (Hara Village, at 1,017 metres, has 139.9 winter days a year). Check the elevation of the house before you buy. The right-hand column of this table carries the elevation of each listing.
Akiya bank
No houses are registered for sale. Every property listed in this chapter is on the open market. (as checked on 28 August 2026)
What do second-hand houses in Chino cost?
SUUMO lists 34 second-hand detached houses, from ¥1,500,000 to ¥95,000,000, with a median of ¥17,480,000. Nine are at or under ¥10,000,000. 🔴 The median plot is a generous 449 square metres, and in Kitayama it is 1,015 square metres.
CHAPTER 05Is the ground safe?
Is this town inside a national earthquake-preparedness zone?
For each major earthquake, national law designates the areas where preparation is to be advanced. Whether a town is designated tells you directly how the national government views the shaking and tsunami expected there.
| Nankai Trough Earthquake Disaster Prevention Promotion Area | Designated |
|---|---|
| Tokyo Inland Earthquake Emergency Measures Area | Not designated |
| Japan Trench / Kuril Trench Earthquake Disaster Prevention Promotion Area | Not applicable (the whole of Nagano Prefecture is outside this scheme) |
| Shaking of intensity 6-lower or above within 30 years | 36.5% (6-upper or above: 19.0%) at Chino City Hall. Surface ground AVS30 411 m/s, alluvial fan |
Look up an address on J-SHIS → Designations from the Cabinet Office list of designated municipalities (Nankai Trough Earthquake Disaster Prevention Promotion Area／Tokyo Inland Earthquake Emergency Measures Area／Japan Trench / Kuril Trench Earthquake Disaster Prevention Promotion Area ) / probability and surface ground from theNational Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Resilience, J-SHIS earthquake hazard information API(2024 edition, average case, all earthquakes) queried at the coordinates of the city hall / checked 2026-08-28
At the city hall, the chance of intensity 6-lower or above within 30 years is 19.0%, and of 5-lower or above 36.5%. The ground has an AVS30 of 411.49 metres per second (alluvial fan) — gravel washed down from the Yatsugatake. That belongs to the less shakeable class, firmer than reclaimed land or a delta. But the figure is for a single point at the city hall, so use the city's hazard map below to see how your own address shakes.
Water here means rivers. The city publishes a Reiwa 7 edition "disaster prevention guidebook", and has added the Yanagi River, the Takinoyu River and the Shimazaki River to the Kami River and the Miyagawa it already covered. The lowest ground in the city is Nakaoki in Miyagawa at 762.7 metres, and the built-up area sits on this flat land along the Kami River and the Miyagawa. A more detailed landslide map is on Nagano Prefecture's "Shinshu Kurashi no Map".
And then snow and freezing. The normals at Suwa give 71 centimetres of snowfall in a year and a deepest cover of 21 centimetres. There are 4.5 days a year that stay below 0°C all day. The city's water department warns that "accidents involving the frost-proof tap are frequent". Meeting winter without knowing how the water freezes, and how to thaw it, ends in an accident —
What is the earthquake risk in Chino?
At the city hall, the chance within 30 years is 19.0% for intensity 6-lower or above and 36.5% for 5-lower or above. The ground has an AVS30 of 411.49 metres per second (alluvial fan). 🔴 Although the city is landlocked it is designated a Nankai Trough Earthquake Disaster Prevention Promotion Area, and the city writes that "a maximum intensity of 6-lower is projected".
CHAPTER 06What summer and winter are like
Chino City has no weather station of its own. Here the station in neighbouring Suwa City (760 metres) stands for the built-up area, and the AMeDAS in neighbouring Hara Village (1,017 metres) for the high ground. Chino City Hall is at 801.6 metres and the median listing at 962.9 metres, so the city falls neatly between the two. Read them alongside Tokyo.
| Days per year (long-term average) | Suwa (Elev.760 m) | Hara Village (Elev.1,017 m) | Tokyo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tropical nights (daily low of 25°C or above) | 0.0 days | 0.0 days | 17.8 days |
| Extremely hot days (daily high of 35°C or above) | 0.2 days | 0.0 days | 4.8 days |
| Midsummer days (daily high 30°C or above) | 29.3 days | 15.9 days | 52.1 days |
| Winter days (daily low below 0°C) | 109.6 days | 139.9 days | 15.2 days |
| Days below freezing (below 0°C all day) | 4.5 days | 14.2 days | 0.0 days |
| Annual mean temperature | 11.4℃ | 9.5℃ | 15.8℃ |
| Annual rainfall | 1,301.5 mm | 1,271.5 mm | 1,598.2 mm |
| August daily high / January daily low | 29.5℃／−5.5℃ | 28.1℃／−8.1℃ | 31.3℃／1.2℃ |
Summer nights. There are 0.0 tropical nights a year. 0.0 at Suwa and 0.0 at Hara Village. Against Tokyo's 17.8, a night too warm to sleep is "not what a normal year holds". Extremely hot days are 0.2 at Suwa and 0.0 at Hara Village (Tokyo 4.8). The average August daily high is 29.5°C, 1.8°C below Tokyo's 31.3°C. Chino's summer is made by its height.
Winter mornings. In exchange, Suwa has 109.6 winter days a year — on three days in ten the morning low is below 0°C (Tokyo has 15.2). At Hara Village (1,017 metres) it is 139.9. Days that stay below 0°C all day run 4.5 at Suwa against 14.2 at Hara Village. 250 metres of height triples them.
And these are the normals. The city's handbook records "record low, Showa 56, −23.0°C" (Nagano Local Meteorological Office). The record high is 35.5°C, in Heisei 7.
Snow. The normals at Suwa give 71 centimetres of snowfall in a year and a deepest cover of 21 centimetres. It is not the heavy-snow country of the Japan Sea coast, but winter tyres are essential. Above 1,000 metres in Kitayama and Toyohira, more falls than this.
Rain. The 1,301.5 mm a year is 297 mm less than Tokyo.
What are summer and winter like in Chino?
🔴 Tropical nights number 0.0 a year (Tokyo 17.8) and extremely hot days 0.2. In exchange there are 109.6 winter days a year (Tokyo 15.2) and 4.5 days that stay below freezing. These are the normals for neighbouring Suwa (760 metres); at Hara Village, 1,017 metres up, it is 139.9 winter days and 14.2 below-freezing days.
CHAPTER 07Shops, hospitals, schools
Chino City has one general hospital within its boundaries: Suwa Central Hospital (Tamagawa 4300, 360 beds). It is run by a partial-affairs association of Chino City, Hara Village and Suwa City, and the mayor of Chino chairs it. The city's handbook counts 1 general hospital (360 beds), 42 clinics and 22 dental surgeries, and 137 doctors (172 including dentists, or one for every 317 residents).
| Item | What Chino has |
|---|---|
| General hospital | Suwa Central Hospital (Tamagawa 4300). 360 beds (324 general, 36 long-term care) and 32 departments (internal medicine, paediatrics, obstetrics and gynaecology, surgery, orthopaedics, neurosurgery, psychiatry, ophthalmology, ENT and others). It is a designated emergency hospital and takes its turn on the secondary emergency rota, and it is a primary stroke centre of the Japan Stroke Society and a Nagano Prefecture core hospital for heart disease. Opened in Showa 25 (1950), moved to its present site in Showa 61. It is run by a partial-affairs association of Chino City, Hara Village and Suwa City. |
| Medical care at weekends | It works on a rota of duty doctors and duty dentists. Clinics 9:00 to 17:00, dentists 9:00 to 12:00. The city writes: "always telephone in advance and follow the instructions of the duty doctor or duty dentist", and publishes the monthly rota on its site. If you are unsure at night or at a weekend, the number is the Nagano Prefecture emergency advice line #7119, or #8000 for children. |
| Ambulances | 3,111 call-outs during Reiwa 7, an average of 8.5 a day. Besides the Chino fire station of the Suwa area fire service (Tamagawa 2213-1) there are a western sub-station (Chino 247-5) and a northern sub-station (Kohigashi 5661-5) — three in all. |
| Health and welfare service centres | Four across the city — east (Tamagawa 4300), west (Miyagawa 3975), central (Tsukahara 2-chome, in the Hito-Machi Plaza) and north (Kitayama 4808-1). The health management centre is in Tsukahara as well. That the northern one is in Kitayama, the belt above 1,000 metres, says something about the shape of this city. |
| Schools | 9 municipal primary schools (2,656 pupils) and 4 municipal junior high schools (1,374 pupils). High schools: 1 prefectural and 1 private (1,011 pupils). There is a university — Suwa University of Science in Toyohira, with 1,368 students. There is also a specialised training college (1 public, 86 students). Nurseries number 19 (places for 2,082, with 1,381 enrolled), plus 1 private kindergarten (65) and 3 private integrated centres (357). |
| Library and culture | The library (Tamagawa 500) holds 210,936 volumes and lends 218,525 a year. The Chino Civic Center (art museum, Tsukahara 1-1-1) holds 1,483 works. The Togariishi Jomon Archaeological Museum (Toyohira) has two National Treasure clay figures, and there are the Yatsugatake Museum (Toyohira) and the Jinchokan Moriya Historical Museum (Miyagawa). Public halls number 90 in all: 1 main, 10 district and 79 branch halls. |
| Shopping | In the Reiwa 3 economic census, retail counted 358 establishments, 2,739 workers and ¥55,221,000,000 of annual sales. The station building "Bellevia" holds a city branch office, a children's centre, a coworking space and a job centre. The consumer price index is 111.9 nationally against 113.5 for Nagano City (Reiwa 2 = 100; no separate index is published for Chino City). |
| Hot springs | The city runs six hot spring facilities — Aqualand Chino (Chino), Kawara-no-Yu (Izumino), Kinkei-no-Yu (Kanazawa), Jomon-no-Yu (Toyohira), Bogaku-no-Yu (Tamagawa) and Shiotsubo-no-Yu (Yonezawa). There are 58 hot spring outlets in the city, yielding 12,229 kilolitres a day. |
What are the hospitals and schools in Chino like?
Suwa Central Hospital (Tamagawa 4300) has 360 beds and 32 departments, and is a designated emergency hospital on the secondary emergency rota. There are 9 primary schools (2,656 pupils), 4 junior high schools (1,374 pupils) and 19 nurseries, plus Suwa University of Science (1,368 students). At weekends care runs on a duty-doctor rota, and you must telephone before going.
CHAPTER 08What it costs you every year after you buy
Water and sewerage in Chino City are read and billed once every two months. Two cases are worked out here: 40 cubic metres over two months (that is 20 a month) and 80 cubic metres over two months (40 a month). A 13 mm connection, tax included.
| Item | 40 m³ over 2 months (20 a month) | 80 m³ over 2 months (40 a month) | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water charges | ¥5,170 | ¥10,670 | A standing charge of ¥2,420 for a 13 mm connection (two months) plus volume (¥11 per cubic metre for 1–20 m³, ¥126.5 for 21–60, ¥148.5 for 61–100). The 80 m³ worked example matches the one in the city's own PDF. |
| Sewerage charges | ¥6,237 | ¥13,299 | A standing charge of ¥2,871 (up to 20 m³, two months) plus ¥168.3 for 21–60 m³ and ¥184.8 for 61–100. Public sewerage reaches 97.2% of the city (Reiwa 7). |
| Total | ¥11,407 about ¥5,703 a month | ¥23,969 about ¥11,984 a month | The Shirakabako–Tateshina area has its own tariff. If you are looking in the Kitayama district, check with the water department. |
| Kerosene and heating | — | — | This is the biggest "every year" cost in Chino. 109.6 winter days a year and 4.5 days below freezing all day (the normals at Suwa; more above 1,000 metres). The heating season is long, and the kerosene or firewood adds up. The amount varies so much with the house and how it is used that this site does not put a figure on it. When you view a house, ask the seller or the agent what a winter of kerosene costs. |
| Keeping the water from freezing | — | — | The city's water department warns that "accidents involving the frost-proof tap are frequent". If you do not know how to use the frost-proof tap (the drain valve), it freezes, cracks and leaks. This is where people who move here trip up most often. |
| The car | — | — | There are no scheduled bus routes (§3). The city has 21,739 passenger cars and 16,684 kei passenger cars (1 April Reiwa 7) — 38,423 of them between passenger and kei cars, against a population of 54,589. Winter tyres are essential, and 51.3% of the city roads are paved. |
| Rubbish | — | — | In Reiwa 7 the city handled 15,203 tonnes of burnable waste (277.1 kg a head a year), 1,225 tonnes of recyclables, 328 tonnes of bulky waste and 327 tonnes of non-burnable. It goes to the Suwa-Minami Waste Centre (Yonezawa 2000-3). |
What are the yearly costs after buying a house in Chino?
Water and sewerage are billed every two months, and 40 cubic metres over two months (that is 20 a month) comes to ¥5,170 for water plus ¥6,237 for sewerage, ¥11,407 in all. 🔴 The Shirakabako–Tateshina area has its own tariff. On top of that come heating, winter tyres and the frost-proof tap (the drain valve) — the city warns that "accidents involving the frost-proof tap are frequent".
CHAPTER 09What happens when you want to sell
In the Reiwa 8 official land price survey, residential land in Chino City averaged ¥40,800 per square metre, −0.1% on the year. Commercial land was ¥48,800 (−0.8%) and all uses together ¥45,600 (−0.5%). Close to flat, and towards the top end within the Suwa region.
What are land prices like in Chino?
In the Reiwa 8 official land price survey, residential land averaged ¥40,800 per square metre, −0.1% on the year. 🔴 Set beside Suwa City at ¥36,900, Okaya City at ¥39,700, Shimosuwa Town at ¥40,600 and Fujimi Town at ¥19,600, Chino City is the dearest and has fallen the least.
CHAPTER 10Who lives here, and how many
54,589 people in 25,146 households (1 July Reiwa 8, the city's estimate). 2.17 people per household. 27,381 men and 27,208 women.
Of the 53,723 people living in Chino City, 1,264 are foreign residents. That is below the national average of 3.26%.
Across Japan, foreign residents make up 3.26% of the population (4,031,159 out of 123,767,642).
34 municipalities are above one in ten.
Source: calculated by this site from the municipality-level tables of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, "Population, population change and households based on the Basic Resident Register" (as of 1 January Reiwa 8, published 2026-07-29). The ministry's publication page / verified 2026-08-17
What is happening to Chino's population?
54,589 people in 25,146 households (1 July Reiwa 8). The peak was 57,099 in Heisei 17. During Reiwa 7 the natural change was −460 and the migration change +121 — people moving in are adding to the city. 32.5% are 65 or over, and there are 1,298 foreign residents.
CHAPTER 11Community life and the year's events
Chino City is a place where the wards and neighbourhood associations are alive. There are 81 wards and 15 neighbourhood associations (96 in all), and the city publishes "population and households by ward and neighbourhood association" every month. Public halls number 90: 1 main, 10 district and 79 branch halls. That figure of 79 branches shows how fine the local units are.
What are the neighbourhood associations like in Chino?
🔴 There are 81 wards and 15 neighbourhood associations (96 in all), and the city publishes the population by ward and neighbourhood association every month. There are 10 district community centres and 90 public halls: 1 main, 10 district and 79 branch. Registered citizens' groups number 170, with 5,897 members.
CHAPTER 12Things nearby that move land prices
Three things move house prices in Chino: (1) a position 2 hours from Shinjuku on the Azusa limited express, (2) a separate demand called the holiday house, and (3) elevation.
Is there a burden in Chino you only find out about once you live there?
🔴 Winter, and the car. There are 109.6 winter days a year, 71 centimetres of snowfall and a deepest cover of 21 centimetres. Of the 1,799 kilometres of city road, 51.3% is paved. With no scheduled buses, anything outside Norazaa's 8:00 to 19:00 means driving yourself.
CHAPTER 13What this place makes
What a place earns its living from shows up both at your dinner table and in your work once you live there. The amount raised through the hometown tax scheme is a rough measure of how many products a place has that people all over Japan choose.
478th of the 1,788 municipalities in Japan, and 16th within Nagano Prefecture
What this town names as its own products
🔴 Chino City does not publish a "list of thank-you gifts" on its own site. What the city writes in its own words is the mechanism of "Furusato Oen Nozei", hometown tax paid on the spot, and the list of shops that take part. Those shops are mostly inns, restaurants and leisure facilities at Tateshina and Lake Shirakaba, and the city writes: "people who come here can make a hometown tax donation right where they are". Only what the city actually names is set out here. Furusato Oen Nozei, used on the spot (donate through a QR code at a member shop and spend the electronic voucher there; the list the city publishes, as at the end of March Reiwa 7, has 12 places to stay, 5 places to eat and 3 leisure facilities), the inns of Tateshina and Lake Shirakaba (Tateshina Tokyu Hotel, Tokyu Harvest Club Tateshina, Resort Hotel Tateshina, Hutte Jill Shirakabako and others; 11 of the 12 are in this one area), leisure facilities (Tateshina Tokyu Golf Course, Tateshina Tokyu Ski Resort, Tateshina Tokyu Town Center, all in the Kitayama district), the city's tourism itself (3,635,700 visitors a year: Tateshina 1,582,300, Lake Shirakaba 1,023,500, Kurumayama Kogen 691,900, in Reiwa 6) and giving directly (besides the portal sites, the city explains how to post or fax a donation form to the regional development division at the city office).
Source:Chino City, "Hometown tax" (member shop list as at the end of R7.3 / how to apply)／Chino City, An Outline of Chino City (Reiwa 8 edition) [statistical handbook] (visitor numbers)/ Verified 2026-08-29You can support a town without living there
Even if a move is still some way off, you can be involved from today through the hometown tax scheme. Your donation goes straight to the municipality, and you choose what it is spent on. A way to give something back to a place you got to know here.
Source:Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, "Survey on the state of the hometown tax scheme (conducted FY Reiwa 8)", the table of amounts and numbers received (provisional FY Reiwa 7 settlement), tallied by this site. The rank is out of all 1,788 municipalities in that table / verified 2026-08-14What is Chino known for producing?
🔴 The city does not publish a list of thank-you gifts on its own site. What it writes about instead is "Furusato Oen Nozei", hometown tax paid on the spot, and most of the member shops are inns, restaurants and leisure facilities at Tateshina and Lake Shirakaba. Hometown tax receipts came to ¥660,890,700 from 18,420 donations in fiscal Reiwa 7 (478th in Japan).
CHAPTER 14A message from Chino City
How the receiving side sees it. The city heads its relocation page "Chino City is working to attract people, aiming to be a town that young people choose", and lists three things about the place — "good access from the major cities", "high up, low in humidity, and with a wide range of temperature that makes the four seasons beautiful" and "country enough, town enough — living that is just right".
Beyond that, the Suwa Region Relocation and Exchange Council — "together with the 6 municipalities of the Suwa area, the Suwa branch of the real estate association and the association of people who have moved here, we run seminars, make videos and so on". Relocation is received not by Chino City alone but by the 6 municipalities of the Suwa region together.
Online consultations are open as well. The city writes: "we will tell you what Chino City is really like" and "if you have any question about moving here, contact us by email or by telephone".
Does Chino welcome people moving in? Where do I ask?
The city's banner is a town that young people choose. The places to ask are the Rakuen Shinshu Chino Council for Country Living (city, chamber of commerce and private firms as one; it runs the viewing tours and the try-before-you-move housing) and the Suwa Region Relocation and Exchange Council. The vacant-house grants are 10% capped at ¥250,000 for renovation, 50% capped at ¥100,000 for clearing belongings, and 10% capped at ¥200,000 for demolition.
CHAPTER 15A year in Chino
Figures alone do not carry it, so here is what happens on this ground from January to December. The temperatures and rainfall are the normals for Suwa (30-year averages for 1991–2020, 760 metres up). Above 1,000 metres, in Kitayama and Toyohira, they run lower than this.
| Month | Temperature (daily high / daily low) | What happens this month |
|---|---|---|
| month 1 | 3.8°C / −5.5°C rain 43.3 mm | 🔴 The coldest month of the year. There are 109.6 winter days and 4.5 days below freezing in a year, and most of them fall here. The record low is −23.0°C (Showa 56). This is the month to watch the water freezing (the frost-proof tap) (§8). Norazaa stops for just 5 days, 30 December to 3 January. |
| month 2 | 5.1°C / −5.0°C rain 50.6 mm | The cold holds. Most of the 71 centimetres of snowfall and 21 centimetres of deepest cover (Suwa) comes in these two months. Reckon on winter tyres until March. |
| month 3 | 9.8°C / −1.0°C rain 89.0 mm | The average daily low is still below 0°C. The rain doubles from January. It is the end of the fiscal year, and the city's grants must be completed by 31 March (§14). |
| month 4 | 16.1°C / 4.4°C rain 92.8 mm | 🔴 Applications for the vacant-house grants open on 1 April. The festivals are the Suwa Taisha Ontosai and the Doburoku festival. This is the month the average daily low finally turns positive. |
| month 5 | 21.5°C / 10.2°C rain 111.7 mm | The Awasawa Kannon eighty-eighth night (Tamagawa district). A daily high of 21.5°C and a daily low of 10.2°C — one of the easiest stretches of the year to be outside. |
| month 6 | 24.5°C / 15.2°C rain 155.1 mm | The Yatsugatake mountain-opening festival. The rainy season starts and the rain rises to 1.4 times May's. Even so the daily high is 24.5°C, cooler than Tokyo in June (around 27.0°C). |
| month 7 | 28.2°C / 19.6°C rain 194.0 mm | 🔴 The wettest month of the year (194.0 mm). Even so there are 0.0 tropical nights a year and the evenings are cool. The climbing season opens on the Yatsugatake and Kurumayama. |
| month 8 | 29.5°C / 20.3°C rain 140.8 mm | The hottest month, and yet the daily high of 29.5°C is 1.8°C below Tokyo's and there are 0.2 extremely hot days a year. The festival is Chino Donban. This is the busiest time for visitors, and the roads up to Tateshina, Lake Shirakaba and Kurumayama Kogen fill. |
| month 9 | 24.7°C / 16.2°C rain 176.9 mm | The second wettest month after July. The Ozu Yasujiro Memorial Tateshina Kogen Film Festival. High up, the mornings begin to bite by the end of the month. |
| month 10 | 18.5°C / 9.4°C rain 136.8 mm | The month of the autumn colours. People move up to Tateshina, Lake Shirakaba and Kurumayama. Above 1,000 metres you will see the first frost at the end of this month. |
| month 11 | 12.7°C / 2.7°C rain 69.0 mm | 🔴 The average daily low falls to 2.7°C. The month to change to winter tyres and check the frost-proof tap. Apply for the vacant-house grant by about now, or the work will not be finished by 31 March. |
| month 12 | 6.8°C / −2.4°C rain 41.6 mm | The driest month of the year for rain and snow (41.6 mm). In exchange the average daily low is −2.4°C. Norazaa stops from 30 December to 3 January. |
The information on this site is gathered by an AI that visits primary sources — municipalities, the Japan Meteorological Agency, national statistics — on a regular cycle, and it is updated with a source and a date of verification attached.
What is a year in Chino like?
The Suwa Taisha Ontosai and the Doburoku festival in April, the Yatsugatake mountain-opening festival in June, Chino Donban in August, and the Ozu Yasujiro Memorial Tateshina Kogen Film Festival in September. Applications for the vacant-house grants open on 1 April and the work must be finished by 31 March. The wettest month is July at 194.0 mm, and the coldest is January (daily low −5.5°C).
CHAPTER 16The people who run this city
When you are thinking of moving, who is running this city and where they are taking it is, I think, something the people about to live there want to know even more than those already living there. This chapter sets out, with sources, only what Chino City publishes itself. 🔴 As of 28 August 2026, following the official site, I (the AI) found 4 of the 6 below. The mayor of Chino City is Imai Atsushi (confirmed on the city's introduction page).
| What is published | Published | What you can read |
|---|---|---|
| About the mayor | The mayor's room | Name, career, greeting |
| Policy address | Could not find one | What they say they will do this year |
| List of council members | List of council members | Who the members are, and their groupings |
| Council broadcasts and recordings | September Reiwa 8 regular session, Venus Channel and internet broadcast | Whether you can watch the council in session |
| Searchable minutes | Could not find one | Whether you can search past debates by wording |
| Master plan | Comprehensive plan | How many years ahead this town has decided |
🔴 Age and gender have not been guessed from the name.Only what is published is reproduced here, as published.Chino City introduction page →
🔴 The names, photographs and social media of individual council members are not carried on this site. We point you to where you can read them.
Once you have moved, when your own turn to decide comes round is something those three will tell you.
🔴 And mayors change. This site always records the date it checked (28 August 2026), and reopens the original page every time to check by machine that the name is still there. If you notice something has gone out of date even so, please let us know.
Who runs Chino City now?
The mayor of Chino City is Imai Atsushi (confirmed on the Chino City introduction page on 28 August 2026). What this site looks for is the 6 things: an introduction to the head of the authority, the policy statement, the list of council members, the broadcasting of council meetings, a search for the minutes, and the comprehensive plan. 🔴 No judgement of good or bad is made here. Only whether something is published or not.
CHAPTER 17Where to go on a day off
What does not show up in the numbers of a house search, yet bears directly on how satisfied you are once you live somewhere, is days off. This chapter counts, on the same measure for every area, the places you can go on a day off around Chino (the Yatsugatake and Tateshina) and the places family and friends can stay when they visit. The area currently has 12 hot spring and day bathing facilities, 2 amusement parks, zoos or aquariums and 1 roadside station. 🔴 All the counts are the numbers registered in the map data (OpenStreetMap) — in reality there may be more.
| What | Number counted, and names |
|---|---|
| ♨ Hot springs and day baths | the former Hotel Heidi, Kawara Onsen Kawara-no-Yu, Otonashi-no-Yu, Yukawa Onsen Kappa-no-Yu, Yonezawa Onsen Shiotsubo-no-Yu, Tamamiya Onsen Bogaku-no-Yu, Ishiasobi-no-Yu and Tateshina Onsen Kosai-no-Yu, 12 in all |
| 🏯 Castles and castle sites | Not found in the map data |
| 🎡 Amusement parks, zoos and aquariums | Shirakaba Resort Ikenotaira Family Land and the Tateshina Amusement Aquarium (2) |
| 🖼 Museums, galleries and memorial halls | Barakura English Garden, the Chino City Jinchogu Moriya Historical Museum, the Chino City Yatsugatake Museum, the Jinchokan Moriya Historical Museum, the Koyodo Museum of Kyoto University of the Arts, the Togariishi Jomon Archaeological Museum and the Civic Gallery Art Museum, 9 in all |
| ⛩ Shrines and temples | 26 shrines and 10 temples. The one with a Wikipedia article is Ankoku-zenji (Rinzai school) |
| 🚗 Roadside stations | Venus Line Lake Tateshina |
| 🐕 Dog runs | 1 (no name registered in the map data) |
Somewhere to stay — for family and friends, and for your own travels
| What | Number counted |
|---|---|
| 🏨 Hotels and ryokan | 31 |
| 🏠 Guesthouses and hostels | 9 |
| ⛺ Campsites and auto-campsites | 4 places (no names were registered on the map) |
| 🏕 Glamping | Not found among the campsite or hotel names |
| 🚐 RV parks (overnight in your vehicle) | RV Park Kurumayama Sky Port, RV Park Tateshina Park Hotel, RV Park Tateshina La Planete |
This table is the result of me (an AI) putting the same question to the map data for every area (areas are retrieved in batches, so the verification date on some pages is a day apart). Facilities not registered on the map are not counted. "Not found" does not mean "there are none" — nor that the town is any the lesser for it.
Sources: the counts and names of facilities fromOpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL) / RV parks fromJapan RV Association, list of certified "Kuruma-tabi" RV parks / roadside stations fromMinistry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, list of "michi-no-eki" roadside stations/ Verified 2026-08-28Are there places to go on a day off, and places to stay?
Counting from the map data (OpenStreetMap) and the lists of the RV Association and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, there are 12 hot spring and day bathing facilities, 2 amusement parks, zoos or aquariums, 1 roadside station and 31 hotels and inns. Facilities not on the map are not counted, so in reality there may be more (details in §17).
Compare with other areas
Every page has the same 17 chapters in the same order. Move between them and you can compare the same line.
Areas in the Chubu region
Kofu (1 hr 28 min to Shinjuku by limited express; the castle town of Takeda Shingen and a city of jewellery)Yamanashi Prefecture, Kofu Citylistings239 listings / ¥1,600,000–Ito (the Izu Kogen highland)Ito City, Shizuokalistings300 listings / ¥1,300,000–Hokuto (the southern foot of the Yatsugatake range)Hokuto City, Yamanashilistings36 listings / ¥1,200,000–Gifu (26 min to Nagoya, Mt. Kinka and the Nagara River)Gifu City, Gifulistings339 listings / ¥1,980,000–Places you could look at for a similar price
Beppu (the hot spring town with the most sources and the greatest flow in Japan)Beppu City, Oitalistings132 listings / ¥1,500,000–Kirishima (the town with Kagoshima Airport, the Kirishima range and Kinko Bay)Kirishima City, Kagoshimalistings103 listings / ¥1,500,000–Miyazaki (10 min to the airport by rail, a town of sunshine and clear skies)Miyazaki City, Miyazakilistings679 listings / ¥1,500,000–Kofu (1 hr 28 min to Shinjuku by limited express; the castle town of Takeda Shingen and a city of jewellery)Yamanashi Prefecture, Kofu Citylistings239 listings / ¥1,600,000–What I (an AI) was able to find on this town's official site
This site reads the official sites of every area it covers on the same 30 items, out of 100, to measure how quickly someone thinking of moving can reach the information they need. The site measured was that of Chino City, and the total was 70 points (measured 28 August 2026).
"Not found" does not mean "there is none." It means I followed the official site and could not find it. Tell us the published page and the next measurement will reflect it.
| Area | Score | What was found |
|---|---|---|
| Getting started with a move | 12 / 20 | A relocation and settlement page • a dedicated relocation website • a consultation contact (department, telephone, opening hours) and 2 more |
| Housing | 4 / 15 | There is an akiya bank |
| The money side of living here | 9 / 15 | Water and sewerage charges are readable from a rate table; child-raising support is specific about amounts and scope; there are explanations of national health insurance tax and fixed asset tax |
| Disaster information | 20 / 20 | Hazard maps are published by district; flood, landslide and earthquake are all covered; the year the assumptions were last reviewed is stated; and 2 more |
| Industry and local produce | 10 / 10 | A list of local speciality products is on the official site; hometown tax results are published year by year; there are support schemes for businesses and industry |
| Transport | 10 / 10 | There is a community bus timetable; fares are stated; the date of the last revision is given |
| Can an AI read it? | 5 / 10 | Every page carries an updated date; statistics are published as Excel or CSV; open data is published |
See all 30 items and the pages used to judge them
3 / 3 There is a relocation and settlement pagemoving Go and see → 3 / 3 There is a dedicated relocation site
Yatsugatake Chino Gurashi | Chino City relocation site, Nagano Prefecture Go and see → 2 / 3 A contact point (department, telephone, opening hours)
2 of the department, phone number and opening hours were given Go and see → 1 / 5 Support schemes state amounts and conditions
A guide to the scheme only Go and see → 3 / 3 There is trial housing or a trial-stay scheme
Try-before-you-move housing Go and see → 0 / 3 Vacancies in trial housing are published
Not found 4 / 4 There is an akiya bank
There is a municipal akiya bank 0 / 4 Listings carry photographs, price, year built and floor area
There is no property data this site can take in 0 / 4 Completed deals are organised
As above 0 / 3 The conditions of use are stated
Not found 1 / 5 Water and sewerage charges are readable from a rate table
There is a water and sewerage page Go and see → 5 / 5 Child-raising support is specific about amounts and scope
The scope of free and subsidised care is stated down to the age Go and see → 3 / 3 There are explanations of national health insurance tax and fixed asset tax
Both the rates and the amounts are stated Go and see → 0 / 2 Tie-ups with banks for mortgages and the like
Not found 5 / 5 Hazard maps are published by district
45 documents by district Go and see → 5 / 5 Flood, landslide and earthquake are all covered
Flood / landslide / earthquake Go and see → 3 / 3 The year the assumptions were last reviewed is stated
The Reiwa 7 edition "disaster prevention guidebook" was produced Go and see → 4 / 4 Is it machine-readable (a map system or a text PDF)?
Viewable in a map system Go and see → 3 / 3 Disasters are announced through more than one channel
Disaster email / disaster app / social media / municipal loudspeakers Go and see → 5 / 5 A list of local speciality products is on the official site
3 items (the city's official site) Go and see → 3 / 3 Hometown tax results are published year by year
7 fiscal years are recorded Go and see → 2 / 2 There are support schemes for businesses and industry
Commerce and Industry Division Go and see → 4 / 4 There is a community bus timetable
Go and see → 3 / 3 Fares are stated
Go and see → 3 / 3 The date of the last revision is given
Service starts from mid-October Reiwa 7 Go and see → 3 / 3 Every page carries an updated date
18 of the 20 pages read Go and see → 0 / 2 There is a sitemap.xml
Not found 0 / 2 Site search runs on the server side
It was a Google custom search Go and see → 1 / 2 Statistics are published as Excel or CSV
There is a statistics page Go and see → 1 / 1 Open data is published
Go and see →
Compare with other towns → For municipalities and local organisations (get in touch here) →
Measured by this site. The URL of each official website was taken from the municipality information published by Furusato Choice. The score is a score for publishing information, not a score for how good a place is to live / checked 2026-08-28Is there a mistake on this page?
This page is made by an AI. A number transposed, a scheme that has since changed, a link that no longer works — if you find one, please tell us. No name and no email address are needed. Just what is wrong, and how.
Anything you report is checked by me (an AI) against the primary source before it is corrected. When it is corrected, the "Last verified" date on this page changes.
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