The Japanese ski resorts with the most intermediate terrain
Which Japanese ski resorts give an intermediate the most to ski? We ranked 41 resorts on how much intermediate terrain they have, the length of their longest run, their vertical and their lifts. Here are our top 15.
All the figures are the resorts' own. The list goes by the amount of intermediate terrain, not the share of it, so a big resort with a mix of runs can rank above a small one that is mostly blue. The number of intermediate courses is an estimate: each resort's course count times the share it marks as intermediate, rounded.
Hakuba Valley
Ten resorts on one lift pass along the valley, from Happo-One's 1998 Olympic downhill to the tree runs at Cortina. About 50 of the courses across the valley are intermediate, the most on this list, and Happo-One alone has an 8km run.
- Intermediate courses
- ~50, 4 in 10 of all courses
- Longest run
- 8km at Happo-One
- Vertical
- 1,071m at Happo-One
- Lifts
- 82 across eight areas
- Areas counted
- Hakuba Happo-One, Hakuba Goryu, Hakuba 47, Tsugaike Kogen, Hakuba Iwatake, Hakuba Cortina, Hakuba Norikura and Hakuba Sanosaka
Myoko Kogen
Five ski areas around Akakura below Mount Myoko: Akakura Onsen, Akakura Kanko, Ikenotaira, Seki Onsen and Suginohara. Suginohara alone has an 8.5km run and 1,124m of vertical, and the five areas add up to about 25 intermediate courses.
- Intermediate courses
- ~25, 4 in 10 of all courses
- Longest run
- 8.5km at Suginohara
- Vertical
- 1,124m at Suginohara
- Lifts
- 32 across five areas
Niseko United
Four linked ski areas on one Hokkaido mountain, on a single all-mountain pass. About 25 of its 77 courses are intermediate, spread across the four areas and 28 lifts.
- Intermediate courses
- ~25, a third of all courses
- Longest run
- 5.6km
- Vertical
- 1,000m at its biggest area
- Lifts
- 28
Kagura
Three ski areas, Kagura, Mitsumata and Tashiro, linked by ropeway above Yuzawa and under 90 minutes from Tokyo by Shinkansen. Its 1,225m of vertical is the biggest on this list, and more than four in ten of its courses are intermediate.
- Intermediate courses
- ~13, 4 in 10 of all courses
- Longest run
- 6km
- Vertical
- 1,225m
- Lifts
- 18
Nozawa Onsen
An onsen village with 13 free public bathhouses, at the foot of 1,085m of vertical. Its 10km longest run is the longest on this list, and about 13 of its courses are intermediate.
- Intermediate courses
- ~13, 3 in 10 of all courses
- Longest run
- 10km
- Vertical
- 1,085m
- Lifts
- 20 to 21
Zao Onsen
Tohoku's largest ski resort, above a centuries-old sulphur onsen town, with snow monster trees reached by ropeway. About 10 of its courses are intermediate, with a 9km longest run and more than 40 lifts and ropeways.
- Intermediate courses
- ~10, 4 in 10 of all courses
- Longest run
- 9km
- Vertical
- 881m
- Lifts
- 40+
Joetsu Kokusai
Japan's biggest single ski area at 380 hectares, with its own JR station near Echigo-Yuzawa. Half of its 22 courses are intermediate, spread across four zones and 817m of vertical.
- Intermediate courses
- ~11, half of all courses
- Longest run
- 6km
- Vertical
- 817m
- Lifts
- 19
Shiga Kogen
Eighteen linked ski areas on a high plateau in Nagano, home to the 1998 Olympic courses, all on one pass. About 35 of its courses are intermediate, the second most on this list, with 48 lifts and gondolas.
- Intermediate courses
- ~35, 4 in 10 of all courses
- Longest run
- 2.4km
- Vertical
- 720m at its biggest area
- Lifts
- 48
Sugadaira Kogen
Gentle cruising on a high plateau near Ueda Station, long known as a summer training-camp ground. Six in ten of its 60 courses are intermediate, the highest share on this list, which comes to about 35.
- Intermediate courses
- ~35, 6 in 10 of all courses
- Longest run
- 4km
- Vertical
- 400m
- Lifts
- 19
Furano Ski Area
Two linked zones in central Hokkaido, quieter and more local than Niseko, with its own JR station. It has a 4km longest run and 839m of vertical, and about 11 of its courses are intermediate.
- Intermediate courses
- ~11, 4 in 10 of all courses
- Longest run
- 4km
- Vertical
- 839m
- Lifts
- 9
Ryuoo Ski Park
A Nagano local's favourite, built around a 166-person ropeway, with a north-facing tree run zone. About eight of its courses are intermediate, on 1,080m of vertical from an 850m base to a 1,930m summit.
- Intermediate courses
- ~8, 4 in 10 of all courses
- Longest run
- 6km
- Vertical
- 1,080m
- Lifts
- 9
Rusutsu
Two mountains either side of a highway, with some of Japan's best lift-served tree runs. Its 37 courses add up to 42km, and about 15 of them are intermediate, on 18 lifts including four gondolas.
- Intermediate courses
- ~15, 4 in 10 of all courses
- Longest run
- 3.5km
- Vertical
- 594m
- Lifts
- 18
Appi Kogen
One of Japan's largest ski resorts, with 45km of piste and plenty of black runs by Japanese standards. About eight of its courses are intermediate, with 18 lifts to reach them and a 5.5km longest run.
- Intermediate courses
- ~8, 4 in 10 of all courses
- Longest run
- 5.5km
- Vertical
- 708m
- Lifts
- 18
Ishiuchi Maruyama
About 80 minutes from Tokyo by Shinkansen, with night skiing on nine lit runs. Its groomed fall-line runs suit carving, and about nine of its courses are intermediate.
- Intermediate courses
- ~9, 4 in 10 of all courses
- Longest run
- 4km
- Vertical
- 664m
- Lifts
- 14
Tomamu
A resort base built around a heated wave pool and a winter Ice Village, with good tree skiing behind it. About 12 of its 29 courses, across the two mountains, are intermediate.
- Intermediate courses
- ~12, 4 in 10 of all courses
- Longest run
- 3.3km
- Vertical
- 585m
- Lifts
- 6
How the list is ranked
Half the score is the number of intermediate courses. The length of the longest run and the vertical are a fifth each, and the number of lifts is the last tenth. Where a group of linked ski areas makes the list, its member areas are counted within it and not listed again. For a group, the vertical and longest run are those of its biggest single area.