Ski

Sapporo · Night skiing

Sapporo Teine

A ski area inside the city of Sapporo: JR train from Sapporo Station to Teine Station (about 11 minutes), then a 16-minute JR bus to the Olympia base or 28 minutes to the Highland base, ¥1,000 each way. An adult 1-day ticket in the regular season (19 December 2026 to 7 March 2027) costs ¥9,800 at the counter and ¥8,800 bought online in advance, and it is valid until night skiing ends. Opening is planned for 21 November 2026, and a special spring season runs until 5 May 2027. There is a marked beginners' area, and one lift in the Olympia zone runs until 20:00, so you can ski in the evening after a day in the city.

¥9,800 · ≈ $62MapsSourceTickets on Klook

✓ Price checked October 2026

Sapporo · Near an onsen

Sapporo Kokusai

A ski area in the south of Sapporo, in the Jozankei area, about an hour by car from the city centre. You get there on ski buses from Sapporo, and they run by advance booking: the resort says to book the return trip too, or you may be left without a seat. An adult 1-day ticket for the 2026-27 season costs ¥7,000 at the counter and ¥6,700 online (until 31 March 2027), plus a ¥500 deposit on the IC card, refunded when you return it. The season is planned from 20 November 2026 to 5 May 2027, and in April the 1-day ticket drops to ¥6,500. The main bus line also stops at Jozankei Onsen, so you can combine a ski day with a night at the onsen.

¥7,000 · ≈ $44MapsSourceTickets on Klook

✓ Price checked October 2026

Ski day · Good for beginners

Sapporo Teine: a ski day on the 1972 Olympic runs, without leaving your hotel in Sapporo

Sapporo's own ski resort, a train and a bus from Sapporo Station: in the morning the slalom runs of the 1972 Winter Olympics from a summit a

Onsen village · Free baths

Nozawa Onsen Snow Resort

An onsen village with a ski area above it. The nearest shinkansen station is Iiyama, and from there the Nozawa Onsen Liner bus takes about 25 minutes and costs ¥600, no booking needed; it does not wait for every train, so check the times in advance. An adult 1-day ticket in the regular season (19 December 2026 to 28 March 2027) costs ¥7,800, with no deposit on the IC card, and it does not include night skiing; a separate night ticket costs ¥2,850. The village has 13 public baths (soto-yu) that are free to enter, with a donation box at the entrance. The resort was one of the venues of the Nagano Olympics in 1998.

¥7,800 · ≈ $49MapsSourceTickets on Klook

✓ Price checked November 2026

Nagano · 18 ski areas

Shiga Kogen

18 ski areas on one plateau above Yudanaka, with one joint ticket for all 45 of their lifts and gondolas. From Tokyo: Hokuriku shinkansen to Nagano (1 hour 19 minutes), then a direct Nagaden bus from the east exit, or the Nagano Dentetsu train to Yudanaka and a change to a bus. An adult 1-day ticket for the 2026-27 season costs ¥9,500 at the counter, and online sales open on 1 November 2026. The joint ticket season is planned from 5 December 2026 to 5 May 2027. The 2 to 10 day tickets can be used on non-consecutive days through the season, which suits anyone combining skiing with sightseeing in the area.

¥9,500 · ≈ $60MapsSourceTickets on Klook

✓ Price checked October 2026

Ski day · Good for beginners

Nozawa Onsen: a ski day above an onsen village, and a free soak at Oyu to finish

An old onsen village in northern Nagano with a ski resort above it: 44 runs, about 40 percent of them for beginners according to the resort,

Hakuba · English ski school

Hakuba Goryu and Hakuba47

Two linked ski areas in the Hakuba valley with one ticket for both, and also part of the Hakuba Valley ticket for ten resorts in the valley. From Tokyo: Hokuriku shinkansen to Nagano (about 1 hour 40 minutes) and a bus of about an hour to Goryu. An adult 1-day ticket for both areas in the 2026-27 season costs ¥10,000 at the counter, of which ¥500 is a deposit on the IC card that is refunded, and ¥9,500 including the deposit for a first purchase online. Goryu opens on 21 November 2026, about two weeks earlier than last season, thanks to new snowmaking machines. Goryu has an English-speaking ski and snowboard school, and night skiing too.

¥9,500 · ≈ $60MapsSourceTickets on Klook

✓ Price checked October 2026

Winter (December to April) · Good with kids

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

Mount Fuji · Night skiing

Fujiten Snow Resort

A ski area with 7 runs at the foot of the north side of Mount Fuji, in Narusawa village, with the mountain behind the runs. Last winter a paid round-trip bus ran from Kawaguchiko Station (¥4,000, booked in advance), and details for the 2026-27 season have not been published yet. At 2025-26 season prices, an adult 1-day ticket cost ¥5,800 on weekdays and ¥6,800 on weekends and holidays, plus a ¥500 deposit on the card. The resort plans to open in mid-December 2026. On some days there is night skiing from 16:00 to 21:00, and there is a separate snow play area for small children.

¥6,800 · ≈ $43MapsSource

Bus from Sapporo · Night skiing

Rusutsu Resort

A resort with hotels, reached from Sapporo (near Sapporo Station) by the Rusutsu Express bus in about 105 minutes. From 28 November 2026 the winter bus is paid: ¥3,000 each way, booked online by 15:00 the day before. An adult 1-day ticket in the regular season (19 December 2026 to 14 March 2027) costs ¥16,700 at the counter and ¥13,200 online, so it pays to buy ahead. The season is planned from 28 November 2026 to 31 March 2027, and at the start and end of the season the 1-day ticket is cheaper. There is night skiing from mid-December to 30 March 2027, from 16:00 to 20:00, and an adult night ticket costs ¥4,000.

¥16,700 · ≈ $106MapsSourceTickets on Klook

✓ Price checked October 2026

Niseko · Night skiing

Niseko Annupuri

One of the four Niseko ski areas, about 10 minutes by bus or taxi from JR Niseko Station, or about 3 hours from Sapporo on Chuo Bus's Niseko highway bus. An adult 1-day ticket in the peak season (24 December 2026 to 28 February 2027) costs ¥7,800, and in the regular season (12 to 23 December 2026 and 1 to 22 March 2027) ¥7,500. The season is planned to open on 28 November 2026, and the resort's ski school runs until 5 May 2027. In the peak and regular seasons there is night skiing from 16:30 to 19:30, and a night ticket costs ¥3,700. If you also want to ski Grand Hirafu, you can buy a joint ticket for all four Niseko areas, and there is also a joint ticket for Annupuri and Niseko Village.

¥7,800 · ≈ $49MapsSourceTickets on Klook

✓ Price checked November 2026

Winter (December to March) · Good with kids (ski school in English)

Niseko: a ski day in Hirafu powder, apres-ski in a fridge, and an onsen in the snow

The resort that became Asia's international ski destination: 15 meters of dry snow a season, 4 resorts on one mountain on one ticket, Mount

Otaru · Bus from Sapporo

Kiroro

A ski area in the mountains, with buses from Otaru (28 November 2026 to 25 April 2027) and from Sapporo (10 December 2026 to 11 April 2027), and also a bus from Grand Hirafu in Niseko on some days. An adult 1-day ticket in the high season (12 December 2026 to 11 April 2027) costs ¥9,200, and in the opening season and spring ¥5,800; buying on the resort's site gives 5% off, and there is a ¥500 deposit on the card. The season is planned from 28 November 2026 to 5 May 2027, and an adult night skiing ticket costs ¥3,000. If you come on the Powder Express bus from Sapporo (19 December 2026 to 28 February 2027), you board the gondola in the quarter hour before it opens at 9:00, at no extra charge.

¥9,200 · ≈ $58MapsSourceTickets on Klook

✓ Price checked October 2026

Hokkaido · Families

Furano Ski Resort

A ski area in the city of Furano in central Hokkaido: by train about 70 minutes from Asahikawa or about 3 hours from Sapporo with a change at Takikawa, then about 12 minutes by taxi from Furano Station; there is also a direct bus from Sapporo to Furano Station. An adult 1-day ticket in the regular season (5 December 2026 to 22 March 2027) costs ¥9,000, and in the first week and the spring season ¥7,500. The season is planned from 28 November 2026 to 5 May 2027. Children up to the end of elementary school ski free, and you need to pick up a free ticket for them at the counter on the day. There is night skiing: on weekdays 16:00 to 18:00, and on weekends, holidays and over the New Year until 19:30.

¥9,000 · ≈ $57MapsSourceTickets on Klook

✓ Price checked October 2026

Day trip from Tokyo · Shinkansen

GALA Yuzawa

A ski area connected directly to its own shinkansen station, and according to the resort the ride from Tokyo Station on the Joetsu line takes 71 minutes at the fastest; there is also a free shuttle bus of about 10 minutes from Echigo-Yuzawa Station. An adult 1-day gondola and lift ticket for the 2026-27 season costs ¥8,000 at the counter and ¥7,500 online, and up to two preschool children per adult ski free. Skiing is open from 19 December 2026 to 5 May 2027, and in the week before only the gondola and the sightseeing lift run, with no skiing. This season the south area is closed, and with it its ungroomed runs and the link to Yuzawa Kogen, which is now reached by shuttle. The ungroomed Super Swan run in the north area stays open. The base building has equipment rental and an onsen, so you can arrive without gear and be back in Tokyo the same evening.

¥8,000 · ≈ $51MapsSourceTickets on Klook

✓ Price checked October 2026

Snow monsters · Onsen village

Zao Onsen Ski Resort

A ski area above the onsen village of Zao, near the city of Yamagata: from Tokyo the Yamagata shinkansen (about two and a half hours), then a bus of about 40 minutes from Yamagata Station. In winter some of the runs pass between juhyo, trees coated in ice and snow that are called 'snow monsters' in English. An adult 1-day ticket for the 2026-27 season costs ¥8,000 in the regular season and ¥9,000 in the peak season (26 December 2026 to 3 January 2027 and 30 January to 28 February 2027), and ¥4,800 at the start and end of the season. Opening is planned for 12 December 2026, and the season can run until 5 May 2027. The 1-day ticket is also valid for night skiing in the Uwanodai area on the days it runs, until 21:00.

¥8,000 · ≈ $51MapsSourceTickets on Klook

✓ Price checked October 2026

Myoko · Onsen village

Akakura Kanko Resort, Myoko

A ski area above the onsen village of Akakura in Myoko, Niigata Prefecture: from Tokyo the Hokuriku shinkansen to Nagano and then the Shinano Railway to Myoko-Kogen Station, about two and a half hours in total, or a Nagaden express bus from Nagano. From 19 December 2026 to 22 March 2027 a free shuttle bus runs from the onsen village to the resort, between 8:00 and 16:40. The season is planned from 19 December 2026 to 5 May 2027. An adult 1-day ticket costs ¥7,000 according to the price list shown on the resort's site in October 2026, which does not say which season it is for, and in spring, from 23 March, ¥4,000; a joint 1-day ticket that also covers the neighbouring Akakura Onsen ski area costs ¥10,000. Preschool children ski free.

¥7,000 · ≈ $44MapsSource

Ski day · Day trip from Tokyo

GALA Yuzawa: a ski day from Tokyo, with no luggage and no gear

The ski resort with its own shinkansen station: per the resort, 71 minutes from Tokyo Station on the fastest train.