With over 1.16 million international ski tourists visiting Japan during the 2019-2020 season, it’s safe to say that a fair few of the international ski-brigade are enjoying Japan’s annual powder fest. This is great news for the Japanese skiing economy and local businesses, but it also means that some snow towns are getting a little more crowded. Now don’t get us wrong, even a “crowded” mountain in Japan is far quieter than a busy day at the average ski resort in Australia or the US.

Most visitors to Japan’s ski fields tend to head to the better-known resorts of Niseko, Rusutsu, Hakuba Valley, Shiga Kogen and Nozawa Onsen, and for good reason as they are incredibly tourist friendly destinations with great accommodation and dining options and excellent ski infrastructure.

But there are another 495 or so amazing resorts to discover for those hoping to have those runs all to themselves and who are prepared to venture a bit further afield. It is worth calling out that many of these resorts are on the smaller end of the spectrum with 300 of them having less than 5 chairs. But, with so many to choose from this shouldn’t be a problem.

In fact, the biggest dilemma is deciding on which of these relatively undiscovered resorts to visit. Here is a list of some of our favourite off the tourist radar ski destinations to get excited about:

• Geto Kogen - Hidden in plain sight within Iwate prefecture, you will find Geto Kogen, a gem of a resort. While it’s on the smaller side of the scale, Geto offers sensational tree riding, deep snow and blow powder by the foot. The remote nature of this resort means that it’s a bit of a ghost town on weekdays, which is our favourite type of theme park. A word of warning though, these powder dumps often come with some fierce winds, unusual for Japan but none the less something to factor into your planning. This shouldn’t put you off though as you’ll be well rewarded with awesome powder for your patience.

• Appi Snow Resort - Appi is without doubt an absolute favourite of the Snow Concierge. It’s got it all, it’s a big mountain by Japanese standards with quiet slopes, especially if you know where to go, blow powder, tree riding zones, traditional old school Japanese ski resort atmosphere (think peak Bubble Japan vibes), a great range of accommodation options, ski-in/ski-out and excellent food options all within the complex. This resort is a winner and it won’t be long before it truly gets discovered. 

• Shizukuishi rewards the adventurous with some real delights, including what was once the women’s championship Super-G course, now converted for cat skiing which lucky visitors to this hidden gem can access on Saturdays for very reasonable rates. That’s not the only reason to stay a few days at this amazing resort. There is of course the ubiquitous blow powder that the region is famous for, near empty ski runs on weekdays, all on a good sized mountain with great infrastructure and ski in/ski accommodation from the ski locker room at the Prince Hotel. 

• Zao Onsen is the home of the famed snow monsters - fir trees that collect so much snow over the course of the winter snow season that they transform into towering statues of snow (affectionately referred to as snow monsters). Despite the name, these monsters are neither dangerous nor scary, (more Totoro than Tengu) and make creative backdrops for those Insta posts. Being situated further north than a lot of resorts on Honshu, Zao tends not to have much in the way of international visitors, meaning you will likely have the run of the place on weekdays. 

• Charmant Hiuchi Ski Resort isn’t for everyone but that’s why we love it, it’s small even by Japanese standards, relatively hard to get to, does not offer any accommodation options – and you’ll need a car to get there. So, what do we love about it? It offers loads of off piste, gets heaps of snow and when it is puking the staff don’t tend to groom the slopes. The remote nature of the resort, the lack of accommodation and the fact that it isn’t on the main powder circuit means that you will have all of this glorious powder to yourself, both on and off piste!!

This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Japan’s best off the radar resorts, we have few more up our sleeves which we are keeping just for our clients (and ourselves of course), so if you are interested in hearing about these incredible and undiscovered Japanese ski resorts, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Contact us

Peace, love and powder days ❄️