Hakuba: skiing the Olympic runs of Happo-One and an alkaline onsen

A valley with 10 ski resorts on one ticket, which hosted the 1998 Olympics: the downhill course, powder bowls above the tree line, a terrace at 1,400 meters with pizza, and an onsen that smooths your skin. Closer than Niseko and more Japanese.

A ski day at Happo-One, in the middle of the Hakuba Valley, which hosted the 1998 Olympics. You start at the rental shop at the base, ride the Adam gondola up to the Usagidaira terrace at 1,400 meters, eat lunch there, and in the afternoon go up to the Kurobishi bowls and ski through the forest back to the village. In the evening, beer in Happo village, dinner in Echoland, and a bath at the village onsen before it closes at 21:00. The walks in the village are short, up to 20 minutes, and in the evening there is a night bus. The money in the 2026-27 season: a Happo-One day ticket is ¥9,800 at peak and ¥6,400 early in the season and in spring, ski rental ¥9,000 a day, and the bath ¥1,000.

Verified online, September 20267 stops · 08:15 to 20:55¥26,700 · ≈ $169 per personWalking between stops: 40 min · Transport: ¥500Winter (December to April)Good with kidsCheaper than Niseko

The day on a map

7 stops, in order

Stops: 7
Walking minutes: 35

Stop number on the timelineWalkingTrain, metro or busBase map: © OpenStreetMap

Open this day in Google Maps

The same stops with the same numbers, and the way from stop to stop. On a phone it opens in the app, and that is what you navigate with in Japan. Pin names on the map are in Hebrew.

Getting there: From Tokyo: the Kagayaki shinkansen to Nagano, 80 minutes, ¥8,450 with a reserved seat, and from there the Alpico express bus to the Happo stop, 70 minutes to two hours depending on the route, ¥2,900 by the 2026 fare table (the fare table for winter 2026-27 has not been published yet). Or a direct bus from Busta Shinjuku, about 5 hours, at a price that varies by date. From Matsumoto: the JR Oito Line train, ¥1,230, about an hour and 40 minutes with a change at Shinano-Omachi. Inside the valley: the Hakuba Valley Line V shuttle runs between all the resorts, ¥800 with an online ticket only, and free for holders of a Hakuba Valley ticket. In the evening there is a night bus, Line VN, ¥500.

08:1508:45
Stop 1GearMust
Spicy Rental: rental at the Happo base
You start at the rental shop. Spicy is a rental chain with several branches in the valley, one of them at the Happo-One base. In the 2026-27 season a full ski set, skis, poles and boots, costs ¥9,000 a day at the regular price, and online booking has a separate price list. Ski clothing is for rent too, a jacket and pants for ¥6,600 a day, for anyone who came from Israel without it. The branches also sell lift tickets, so you go straight up to the gondola.
¥9,000 · ≈ $57Booking recommendedOpen in Maps
Walk to the gondola
- Walk · 5 minFrom the shop to the bottom station of the Adam gondola, at the base of the resort.
08:4512:00
Stop 2SkiMust
Hakuba Happo-One: the Olympic course and 1,000 meters of descent
For one day, a Happo-One-only ticket is enough. In the 2026-27 season it costs ¥9,800 at peak, from 19 December 2026 to 22 March 2027, and ¥6,400 early in the season (1 to 18 December) and in spring (23 March to 5 May 2027). The 'Hakuba Valley' ticket for all 10 resorts, ¥11,100 a day, costs more and is unnecessary for a single day. The Adam gondola climbs in about 8 minutes to Usagidaira, 1,400 meters, and from there long runs for every level, and about 1,000 meters of descent down to the village. The view of the Northern Alps ridge is the reason.
¥9,800 · ≈ $62Booking recommendedOpen in Maps
Ski to lunch
- Ski · 0 minThe Usagidaira terrace sits at the top station of the Adam gondola, so you finish a run and ride the gondola up to it, or stop there on the way down.
12:0013:15
Stop 3LunchRecommended
Lunch break at Usagidaira
You eat at the Usagidaira terrace, 1,400 meters, with a huge window facing the mountains, ¥1,500 to ¥2,000 a dish. It fills up at 12:30. If you prefer soba: the Kitaone Kogen terrace, 1,200 meters, serves soba and rice bowls, 09:00 to 15:00. The options:
- Usagidaira Kitchen
  Pizzas, margherita and the house pizza, fries and apple pie, and draft beer, inside the terrace.
- Cafeteria Yeti
  The big restaurant on the second floor of the terrace, 350 seats: a roast beef bowl with Azumino wasabi, a katsu bowl in a Shinshu sauce, and a sanzoku-yaki bowl, fried chicken. Food 10:00 to 15:00.
- Ramen Chacha
  Miso or soy ramen in a bonito and chicken broth, on the same floor. 11:00 to 14:00, and it opens only at the end of December.
- Sun Terrace PanoramaVegan options, not kosher
  A restaurant on the Panorama slope, on the second floor: beef stewed in beer, pork curry, fish and chips, and a vegan curry. Food 10:00 to 15:00, last order 14:30.
- Kosher or vegan? Every kosher and vegan place in this city
¥1,600 · ≈ $10Open in Maps
Up to Kurobishi
- Ski · 0 minFrom the terrace, continue up on the lifts to the Kurobishi area, where the Kurobishi No. 2 quad lift and the Kurobishi No. 3 pair lift run.
13:1516:00
Stop 4SkiRecommended
Happo-One Kurobishi: the Kurobishi and Riesen bowls, powder above the tree line
In the afternoon you ride the upper lifts, Kurobishi and Riesen, to open bowls and the view, and from there you ski down the forest runs back to the village. If you want a taste of a second resort: the Hakuba Valley Line V shuttle runs between all the resorts, ¥800 with an online ticket only, and free for holders of a Hakuba Valley ticket. Iwatake also has a free line, Line E. At any other resort you need a separate lift ticket.
FreeOpen in Maps
Down to Happo village
- Walk · 10 minFinish the run at the gondola base, return your gear if you want, and walk to the bars of Happo village, on the way to the bus station.
16:3017:45
Stop 5Apres-skiIf there is time
Hakuba Brewing Company: bars in Happo, local beer by the fireplace
Happo village has a few Alpine-style bars, some run by New Zealanders and Australians working the season, ¥1,500 to ¥2,500. Quieter than Niseko, and that is an advantage. Hakuba Brewing Company's local beer is brewed in the valley, but the brewery itself is in Kamishiro, to the south, not in Happo village.
¥1,800 · ≈ $11Open in Maps
Ride to Echoland
- Shuttle · 10 min · ¥500The night bus, Line VN, from the Happo bus station at 17:50, reaching Echoland at 17:55. In the 2025-26 season it ran from 26 December to 22 February, and you pay in cash or with an online ticket.
- or: Walk · 20 minOn foot along the road from Happo village to Echoland, about 1.4 km.
- or: Taxi · 5 minA taxi from the Happo bus station.
18:0019:35
Stop 6DinnerRecommended
Dinner in Echoland
Echoland is the valley's restaurant street: izakaya with gyoza, sanzoku chicken, soba, and horse meat for the brave, ¥3,000 to ¥4,000. In season book ahead, especially for a group. Eat early, because the onsen closes at 21:00. The options:
- Izakaya HieUp to ¥4,000
  A small Japanese izakaya on Echoland's main street: Shinshu trout sashimi, tuna with avocado, and in the evening up to ¥4,000 per person. Opens at 18:00, and the opening days change by season.
- Men Sakura
  Tonkotsu ramen from a broth of Hakuba pork, and gyoza, on a side street near Echoland's main street. Dinner 17:30 to 20:30, no closing days in winter.
- Sarugaku
  A Japanese izakaya in Echoland, with many original dishes. Dinner from 18:00.
- Kosher or vegan? Every kosher and vegan place in this city
¥3,500 · ≈ $22Booking recommendedOpen in Maps
Walk to the onsen
- Walk · 20 minFrom Echoland on foot along the road to Happo village, about 1.4 km, to Happo no Yu next to the bus station.
- or: Taxi · 5 minA taxi. The night bus from Echoland to the village leaves only at 20:34, too late for the last entry at 20:30.
20:0020:55
Stop 7OnsenMust
Happo no Yu: alkaline water that smooths your skin
You finish at the big public bath of Happo Onsen, at the entrance to the village: highly alkaline water, and an outdoor pool, in the snow, facing the three peaks of Hakuba. Open 10:00 to 21:00, last entry at 20:30. ¥1,000 per adult, towel set ¥600. The combination of post-ski muscles and water like this is all you need. From there you go to bed at 22:00, and that is fine.
¥1,000 · ≈ $6Open in Maps

Hakuba: skiing the Olympic runs of Happo-One and an alkaline onsen

7 stops, in order

Spicy Rental: rental at the Happo base

Hakuba Happo-One: the Olympic course and 1,000 meters of descent

Lunch break at Usagidaira

Happo-One Kurobishi: the Kurobishi and Riesen bowls, powder above the tree line

Hakuba Brewing Company: bars in Happo, local beer by the fireplace

Dinner in Echoland

Happo no Yu: alkaline water that smooths your skin

Takayama: the morning markets, the Sanmachi lanes, sake and Hida beef

Shirakawa-go: the thatched village in the valley, from the morning viewpoint to the Wada House

Kanazawa: Omicho Market, the geisha district, Kenroku-en Garden and gold leaf

Matsumoto: wasabi in the field, Yayoi Kusama, the frog street and the Crow Castle

Nagano: the snow monkeys in the onsen, Zenko-ji Temple and the town of Shibu Onsen

Tateyama Kurobe: crossing the Japanese Alps from Toyama to Nagano in one day