Kaga Spa Japan Ultra-Trail by UTMB
In June 2026, I travelled from Tokyo to Ishikawa Prefecture to race the Kaga Spa 20K at Kaga Spa Japan Ultra-Trail by UTMB®, my second UTMB World Series event after racing in Kenting, Taiwan, earlier in the year.
I finished sixth overall and first in my age group in 1 hour and 47 minutes, after one of those rare races where the plan actually worked almost exactly as intended.
The result made the weekend memorable, but Kaga Spa stood out for another reason. The race is built around Yamanaka Onsen, a historic hot spring town surrounded by mountains, forests and valleys in the wider Kaga Onsen region.
Trail running followed by an afternoon recovering in Japanese hot springs is a pretty good combination.
Travelling From Tokyo to Kaga
I travelled from Tokyo with a friend on the Hokuriku Shinkansen to Kaga Onsen Station, with the journey taking around three hours.
Race registration was conveniently located around the station, which makes the event relatively straightforward to reach from Tokyo and other major cities. From there, we continued to Yamanaka Onsen, the historic hot spring town at the centre of the race weekend.
The difference from Tokyo was immediate. Yamanaka is surrounded by forest and mountains, with traditional buildings, small cafés, local shops and hot spring baths throughout the town.
That’s one of the things I enjoy most about racing around Japan. The race gives you a reason to get on a train, leave the major cities behind and discover somewhere you probably wouldn’t otherwise have visited.
Racing the Kaga Spa 20K
The Kaga Spa 20K covers 20.7 km with 649 m of elevation gain, starting at Kenmin no Mori and finishing in Yamanaka Onsen.
Compared with the longer 50K and 100K events, it’s designed as the more approachable introduction to the race, but there’s still enough climbing and fast trail running to make it properly competitive.
For me, the shorter distance meant there wasn’t much reason to be conservative. My plan was to run the flatter sections hard, power hike the main climbs, attack the descents and then use whatever I had left towards the finish.
Thankfully, it worked.
The course included three main climbs, with plenty of runnable terrain between them. I stayed controlled going uphill and tried to make time back whenever the course opened up or dropped downhill.
By the closing kilometres, I was running amongst some very strong Japanese trail runners and knew there wasn’t much point saving anything. I crossed the finish line in 1:47, sixth overall and first in my age group.
More importantly, it felt like I’d raced it properly. I didn’t finish wondering where I could have pushed harder or where I’d wasted time, which is usually the best feeling I can ask for after a race.
A friend I travelled with also completed his first trail race in the 20K, which showed the other side of the event. You can race it hard at the front, but the distance and cutoff also make it accessible to runners taking their first step into mountain racing.
Kaga Spa: Trail Running Meets Onsen Culture
The defining feature of Kaga Spa Japan Ultra-Trail by UTMB® is the combination of trail running and one of Japan’s historic hot spring regions.
Yamanaka Onsen has around 1,300 years of history and forms part of the wider Kaga Onsen area alongside Yamashiro Onsen, Katayamazu Onsen and Awazu Onsen.
The race uses the surrounding mountains, valleys and forests before bringing runners back towards the hot spring towns. Across the longer distances, the courses include steeper mountain terrain, ridgelines, riverside trails and more than 5,000 m of cumulative climbing in the 100K.
What makes the event work is that the race and destination don’t feel separate from each other.
You arrive through Kaga, run through the surrounding mountains and finish in Yamanaka Onsen. Afterwards, the obvious thing to do is eat, explore the town and get into a hot spring.
That’s exactly what we did.
After the race, we spent the afternoon walking around Yamanaka, eating and recovering in the local onsens. There are certainly worse post-race routines.
Why Kaga Works for an International Trail-Running Trip
Yamanaka Onsen sits beside Kakusenkei Gorge, with the Daishoji River running through a forested valley beside the town.
Around Yamanaka itself, runners can explore places such as Korogi Bridge, Ayatori Bridge and Yuge Kaido, where cafés, local shops and traditional crafts including Yamanaka lacquerware form part of the town.
There’s also plenty to explore beyond Yamanaka. The wider Kaga region includes several other historic onsen towns, while Kanazawa is known for traditional culture, food and art. Komatsu provides nearby airport access, and the Noto Peninsula offers a very different side of Ishikawa along the Sea of Japan.
That makes Kaga Spa particularly appealing for international runners. You can travel from Tokyo by Shinkansen, race a UTMB World Series event and then build several days of food, onsens, culture and regional travel around it.
The race gives you a reason to come, but the region gives you plenty of reasons to stay.
Five Questions With Kaga Spa Japan Ultra-Trail by UTMB® Race Producer Takikawa-san
To learn more about how the event developed and what the organisers want runners from around the world to experience in Kaga, I asked race producer Takikawa-san five questions.
1. What are the unique attractions and characteristics of Kaga Spa Japan Ultra-Trail by UTMB®?
The greatest characteristic of Kaga Spa Japan Ultra-Trail by UTMB® is the combination of onsen culture and trail running, centred around Yamanaka Onsen, which has a history spanning more than 1,300 years.
The wider Kaga hot spring region includes Yamanaka Onsen, Yamashiro Onsen, Katayamazu Onsen and Awazu Onsen, allowing runners to relax and recover in the hot springs before and after the race.
Another major attraction is Kaga’s food culture, particularly seafood, thanks to the region’s proximity to the Sea of Japan.
Race registration is held at Kaga Onsen Station, which is served by the Hokuriku Shinkansen, and there is also an international airport nearby. This makes the event very accessible for runners travelling from both within Japan and overseas.
2. How did this event begin?
The predecessor of this event was the Yamanaka Onsen Trail Race, which our company operated for more than ten years.
The race earned a strong reputation amongst runners from Japan and overseas, and eventually that reputation reached UTMB®. UTMB® then contacted us directly.
We believed becoming part of the UTMB World Series would give us the opportunity to share Yamanaka Onsen’s natural environment, cultural resources and local community with a much larger international audience.
That led to the creation of Kaga Spa Japan Ultra-Trail by UTMB® as part of the UTMB World Series.
3. What kind of runners is this event intended for?
The event is aimed at runners from around the world who want to enjoy not only the race itself, but their entire stay in the Kaga hot spring region.
That includes runners who want to experience Japanese onsen culture, those interested in the atmosphere of a traditional hot spring town, travellers who want to experience mountains, the sea, food and culture during the same trip, and competitive runners pursuing their goals within the UTMB World Series.
We want the event to combine serious competition with the experience of travelling through the region, making it suitable for a wide range of runners.
4. What kind of experience or memories do you hope participating runners take home with them?
What matters most to us is that runners experience the true character of the mountain courses surrounding the Kaga hot spring region.
We want participants to discover the beauty of Kaga’s mountains, which are still relatively unknown, along with the quiet valleys and the warmth of its satoyama communities.
After the race, we hope they can recover in the hot springs, enjoy Kaga cuisine and walk through the historic onsen towns.
Our goal is for runners to take home an experience of the entire region and its culture, not simply memories of the race itself.
5. Is there anything about Kaga, Yamanaka Onsen or the surrounding community that you would especially like international runners to know?
Kaga and Yamanaka Onsen preserve a very Japanese landscape where hot spring culture and nature exist together.
After experiencing the area through the race, we hope international runners will also travel further throughout the surrounding region.
Kanazawa offers traditional culture, art and food.
Komatsu provides convenient airport access and acts as a gateway to the Kaga region.
The Noto Peninsula offers spectacular coastal scenery and its own unique culture.
By travelling more widely around Ishikawa Prefecture, we believe visitors can experience an even deeper side of Japan.
Final Thoughts on Kaga Spa Japan Ultra-Trail by UTMB®
Kaga Spa was my second UTMB World Series race, and finishing sixth overall and first in my age group made it one of my better results of the year.
But, similar to a lot of the trail races I’ve enjoyed most in Japan, the weekend became about more than the result. Before entering the race, I knew very little about Yamanaka Onsen or the wider Kaga region. The event gave me a reason to travel there, and I left wanting to come back.
That’s exactly what I want from races like this.
The Kaga Spa 20K is accessible enough for runners taking on their first trail event while still giving faster runners a proper race at the front. The 50K and 100K offer much bigger mountain challenges for those looking for longer distances.
Whichever race you choose, you finish in one of Japan’s historic hot spring regions with good food, mountains and an onsen waiting nearby.
I’ll happily come back for that.
Plan Your Kaga Spa Trail-Running Trip
- Kaga Spa Japan Ultra-Trail by UTMB® official website
- Official Kaga tourism information
- UTMB World Series
- TrailRunAdvisor
- Read my full 2026 Kaga Spa 20K race recap
Have you raced Kaga Spa Japan Ultra-Trail by UTMB®? We’d love to hear about your experience. Leave your review on TrailRunAdvisor and help other runners discover one of Japan’s most unique trail-running destinations.
Follow @AlextheAthlete_ for more trail-running adventures from Japan and around the world.
Photo credit : @kagaspa.utmb.world/
