Ōkura is located in a mountainous north-central eastern Yamagata Prefecture, and includes Mount Gassan within its borders.

Its highest accumulation of snow recorded is 414 cm, second place in Japan after Sukayu Onsen in Aomori.

[citation needed] Ōkura has a Humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa) with large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and cold (sometimes severely cold) winters.

After the start of the Meiji period, the area became part of Mogami District, Yamagata Prefecture.

[citation needed] The main industry is agriculture (tomato and buckwheat), sake production, and seasonal tourism to its hot spring resorts.