Monkeys in April at Jigokudani park

Do the monkeys still bathe there early April? I saw the live webcam online... not many are there.

Just wanted to make sure the trip would be worth the long trek from Kyoto. In addition to the monkey park, we're going to explore Yudanaka and Obuse.

Any suggestions, thoughts, comments?

Do the monkeys still bathe there early April?

They bathe around the year. Sometimes lured into the bath by food thrown into it by wardens.

Ironically, there were more monkeys bathing when I went in August than when I went in February. If you are unlucky, none might be inside the bath during your visit.

For Obuse I would recommend the Hokusai museum, the Lantern museum, Ganshoin shrine (which has a huge red dragon painted by Hokusai on the ceiling) and a chestnut bento box (a specialty of the area). The Yudanaka spa area and it's narrow streets are fun to walk. If you like long walks you can hike from Yudanaka station to the jigokudani in about an hour (through Yudanaka spa).

The Monkeys are quite interesting, but I don't think I'd make a special trip from Kyoto just to see them.
Ok, if you are doing other things around Nagano city, or going up to Shiga Kogen(just nearby) to see some snow, then it might be worth it.

Uji, that's good to know. So it's kind of like an open zoo.

Sandy, right it'll be a long train ride. We're planning on seeing other sights in the Nagano area like the Zenko-ji temple (in Nagano), Hokusai museum, and Masuichi Ichimura sake brewery (in Obuse), and walk around Yudanaka. We'd like to experience the feel a small town.

Steve, we'll definitely try the chestnut bento box. It sounds tasty.

Actually I was just looking at the cam myself. I was quite surprised - more humans than monkeys!

If you are in the area I definitely recommend Togakushi Shrine and the Ninja Museum - see http://myoko-nojiri.com/togakushi/

Also the cherry blossoms in Takada Koen will probably be blooming. So I'd suggest travel Kyoto-Naoetsu (Takada)-Nagano. I'd really recommend a stop in Kanazawa along the way too to see the gardens.