Nozawaonsen (野沢温泉村, Nozawaonsen-mura) is a village located in Nagano Prefecture, Japan.

The altitude of Nozawaonsen ranges from 300 m above sea level at the lowest, to about 600 m in the village, and 1,650 m at the peak of Mount Kenashi.

Nozawaonsen has no direct passenger railway service, although five stations on the local Iiyama Line (Kamisakai, Kami-Kuwanagawa, Kuwanagawa, Nishi-Ōtaki and Shinano-Shiratori) lie within one kilometer of the village borders.

The village's most important festival is the Nozawaonsen Fire Festival (野沢温泉の道祖神祭り, Nozawaonsen no dōsojin matsuri) held every January 15;[12][13][14] it forms part of a nationwide culture of honoring folk deities, particularly Dosojin.

This is a three-day event, with the most visible element being the battle to burn down a three-story wooden shrine (社殿 shadan) on the evening of January 15.

Part of the significance of the festival is to celebrate boys born during the previous year, and lucky families will create totem poles (初灯籠 Hatsuakarikago).

These are elaborate 9-10m tall umbrella-like structures, made of oak at the bottom and cedar at the top.

The wood that will make the shadan is chosen, cut, and brought down from the mountain to the village during the previous autumn.

Standing 10m high and 8m wide, construction can be dangerous so the work is carried out in silence and without sake.

At 7pm the representatives gather to light the fire by striking a flint, which has been handed down for generations.

The flame is used to light large torches, and the procession heads to the temporary shrine at 8pm.

The attacks succeed in setting fire to the structure after one and a half to two hours, and the shadan burns through the night.

Dosojin statues are common throughout Japan, but the wooden, pencil-like figures found in Nozawaonsen are unusual as (i) they are ubiquitous throughout the village (ii) they are made of wood, and painted.