Driving from Takayama to Nagano

Hi

Is it feasible to drive from Takayama to Nagano during last week of December ?
Is there anything i should watch out for ?

Actually I have plan to stay 1 or 2 night at Shirawaga-go.
And i would like to visit Takayama & Nagano.
I have 2 options.

option 1 : Shirawaga-go - Takayama ( bus) - Shirawaga-go - Toyama (bus) - Nagano ( train).

Option 2 : Shirawaga-go - Takayama ( car) - Nagano ( Car)

If driving is feasible, i would prefer to drive then to take bus & train.

Without proper winter driving experience it is much better to stick to public transports.

I drove last year during December at Hokkaido. I am comfortable driving during snow. But since Takayma to Nagano is mountainous region, I have no experiencing using chain, thus I am a little concerns.

It depends what REAL winter driving experience you have. I have been on a bus in the road between Takayama and Matsumoto, and their design are comparable to the 2-lane highways that you see in the US, which I used to drive across central Pennsylvania and upstate New York during winter. It also depends on how fast the local council do snow plowing.

The off-roads - say ones toward Shirahone Onsen are much tougher. I would advise against driving them at winter (most of them may actually be closed).

If I have to recommend: if in doubt, don't try. I can see the roads being potentially difficult for people who used to drive in winter. From Takayama, you can take limited-express Hida to Toyama which you can change to Shinkansen to Nagano (and Kanazawa; both are super nice places).

PS: I am speaking as someone who used to live in Washington DC, and had to drive to Toronto quite often even during winter.

Anyway, ironically, I am actually in Japan right now. I will do a day visit at Takayama in a few days!