Frequently Asked Questions

What are the different locations suitable for doing winter sports in Japan?

In Honshu, the Shiga Heights Ski Resort located in Joshin Etsu Kogen National Park in the island of Nagano is a place where most snow sports enthusiast do their stuff. It can be reached through Nagano Dentetsu Railway express going to Yadanaka and going in transit via bus or taxi to reach the different ski grounds. The buses travel directly to Shiga from Japan's capital during the peak ski season and a variety of terrains can be found in the said location with 22 different ski grounds to showcase. The snow conditions of the resort are very good and a wide range of terrains exist for all skiers of all levels of skills. Honshu also has other prefectures ideal for snow sports namely, Aomori, Akita, and Iwate.

In Hokkaido, the most-known areas for downhill skiing are the Sapporo International Ski Area and the Mt. Moiwa Skiing Grounds. The Kiroro Ski Resort is also one of the sites snow sports enthusiasts can go to. It takes approximately 2 hours of travel from the Sapporo/Chitose Airport if accessed by bus. It grows abundantly of great snow.

Alternative activities like snow tubing are also provided by some resorts.

How much will a person prepare to engage into a winter sport activity?

Engaging into snowboarding and skiing are not the least costly pastimes wherever. Japan is not exempted from it. Costs in transportation, accommodation and equipment rentals add up to the expenditure of a weekend in the mountains. On the other hand, Skiing in Japan is not as costly as one can think of. Every resort provides its own lift ticket pricing scheme, but majority are fairly foreseeable. The main options at most sites are the "1 day ticket", "half day ticket" and "night" ticket. The cost of day tickets usually range from 3600 yen to 4600 yen. Half day tickets, on the other hand, usually cost in the range of 2500 yen to 3000 yen. The night ticket prices usually fall at around 2000 yen with a feature of slopes that are floodlit from 5 pm up to 9 pm. One-ride tickets or packages of one-ride tickets are provided by some resorts while offer tickets that either include or exclude gondola lifts.

What are the usual inclusions in the package?

Joining one of the various ski tours package definitely could cut down some expenses. Majority of travel agencies provide ski packages to prevalent resort areas. Most of the package ski tours are fairly discreet and usually would just include accommodation, transportation and lift tickets.