Light rain and snow reported from Takada at 18 metres elevation only 2 kms E of Kanayasan Ski Resort から Kanayasan
33km 遠い Nozawa Onsen から
39 minute 前
Continuous light snow reported from Nagano at 120 metres elevation 9 kms SSE of Iizuna Resort but it is probably falling as rain at the bottom of the ski area から Iizuna Resort
24km 遠い Nozawa Onsen から
2 hour 前
Snow is falling in Kitashinshu Kitashiga Takaifuji. Calm. Cold. No fresh snow. There are no lifts running. The pistes are closed. No off-piste snow. から Kitashinshu Kitashiga Takaifuji
Light rain and snow reported from Takada at 18 metres elevation only 2 kms E of Kanayasan Ski Resort から Kanayasan
33km 遠い Nozawa Onsen から
39 minute 前
Continuous light snow reported from Nagano at 120 metres elevation 9 kms SSE of Iizuna Resort but it is probably falling as rain at the bottom of the ski area から Iizuna Resort
24km 遠い Nozawa Onsen から
2 hour 前
Snow is falling in Kitashinshu Kitashiga Takaifuji. Calm. Cold. No fresh snow. There are no lifts running. The pistes are closed. No off-piste snow. から Kitashinshu Kitashiga Takaifuji
Nozawa is growing up. While the ratio of Japanese visitors to international visitors in the winter is fairly constant (70:30ish), there's increasingly more of the services that inbound guests want. There are several places to get excellent coffee, breadcentric breakfasts, etc, and the accommodation base in the village is gradually being upgraded.
But this remains a real working mountain village (3,600 residents year-round) that just happens to have an Olympic-quality ski field. It feels much more like a small European resort (think Lech, Gstaad, or its twin, St. Anton), although culturally you're absolutely aware that you're in Japan. There's been a ski resort here for over 100 years so the snow and mountain management is world class.
The village continues to invest and will replace the main gondola over the next two years. After the opening of the new shinkansen a few years ago, it's just over two hours from Tokyo so much more accessible than it used to be. The green season is picking up, with a lot of winter athletes training on the artificial slope, as well as mountain bikers rubbing shoulders with the regular guests looking for cool weather, local food/sake/beer and onsen.
Nozawa is growing up. While the ratio of Japanese visitors to international visitors in the winter is fairly constant (70:30ish), there's increasingly more of the services that inbound guests want. There are several places to get excellent coffee, breadcentric breakfasts, etc, and the accommodation base in the village is gradually being upgraded.
But this remains a real working mountain village (3,600 residents year-round) that just happens to have an Olympic-quality ski field. It feels much more like a small European resort (think Lech, Gstaad, or its twin, St. Anton), although culturally you're absolutely aware that you're in Japan. There's been a ski resort here for over 100 years so the snow and mountain management is world class.
The village continues to invest and will replace the main gondola over the next two years. After the opening of the new shinkansen a few years ago, it's just over two hours from Tokyo so much more accessible than it used to be. The green season is picking up, with a lot of winter athletes training on the artificial slope, as well as mountain bikers rubbing shoulders with the regular guests looking for cool weather, local food/sake/beer and onsen.