Snowsure: the Japanese ski resorts that hold their snow in a warm winter
Which Japanese ski resorts hold their snow best when the winter runs warm? We scored 41 resorts on how cold they stay, which way their runs face, how much snow falls and how long it lies, and how long their season runs. Here are our top 15.
The snow figures are averages over the last 14 winters, 2012-13 to 2025-26, taken at the nearest weather station in the valley below each resort. The slopes above usually hold more. The Snowsure score sets each resort against the most snowsure on the list, Kiroro, at 100.
Kiroro
A quiet, modern resort an easy drive from Sapporo and Otaru, with marked tree-run zones and around 20m of snow a season up top. It sits inland in the hills, where the cold stays put well into spring.
- Base and top
- 520m base, 1,180m top
- Runs face
- Mostly north-west
- December snowfall in the valley
- About 2.3m
- March snow depth in the valley
- About 1.5m
- Snow lying in the valley in April
- In 14 of 14 winters
- Planned 2025-26 season
- 6 Dec to 3 May
Niseko United
Four ski areas around one mountain on a single pass, and Japan's most famous ski resort. The snow comes early, and the valley floor below still has snow lying in April.
- Base and top
- 260m base, 1,200m top
- Runs face
- Mostly south-east
- December snowfall in the valley
- About 2.7m
- March snow depth in the valley
- About 1.7m
- Snow lying in the valley in April
- In 14 of 14 winters
- Planned 2025-26 season
- 4 Dec to 6 May
Okushiga Kogen
The quiet, high northern tip of Shiga Kogen, with dry snow and one of the longest seasons in Japan. With the base at 1,473m, it is cold from top to bottom.
- Base and top
- 1,473m base, 2,000m top
- Runs face
- Mostly north-east
- December snowfall in the valley
- About 2.2m
- March snow depth in the valley
- About 1.3m
- Snow lying in the valley in April
- In 10 of 14 winters
- Planned 2025-26 season
- 13 Dec to 3 May
Hakkoda
One big ropeway up Mount Tamoyachi in Aomori, on a mountain most people ski as off-piste. It sits in some of the deepest snow in Japan, with several metres lying at the hot spring at its foot through March.
- Base and top
- 660m base, 1,324m top
- Runs face
- Mostly west
- December snowfall in the valley
- About 3.9m
- March snow depth in the valley
- About 4.0m
- Snow lying in the valley in April
- In 14 of 14 winters
- Planned 2025-26 season
- 20 Dec to 3 May
Sapporo Teine
A former Olympic venue inside Sapporo city limits, close enough to ski in the morning and be back in town by evening. Its runs mostly face north-east, away from the afternoon sun.
- Base and top
- 340m base, 1,023m top
- Runs face
- Mostly north-east
- December snowfall in the valley
- About 1.1m
- March snow depth in the valley
- About 80cm
- Snow lying in the valley in April
- In 8 of 14 winters
- Planned 2025-26 season
- 22 Nov to 6 May
Rusutsu
Two mountains either side of a highway, with some of Japan's best lift-served tree runs. It sits inland from Niseko with a higher base, so it stays a little colder.
- Base and top
- 400m base, 994m top
- Runs face
- Mostly north-east
- December snowfall in the valley
- About 2.1m
- March snow depth in the valley
- About 1.3m
- Snow lying in the valley in April
- In 14 of 14 winters
- Planned 2025-26 season
- 5 Dec to 31 Mar
Kagura
Three ski areas linked by ropeway above Yuzawa, under 90 minutes from Tokyo by Shinkansen. The top reaches 1,845m, which lets it open in November and run into May.
- Base and top
- 620m base, 1,845m top
- Runs face
- Mostly north-east
- December snowfall in the valley
- About 2.2m
- March snow depth in the valley
- About 1.4m
- Snow lying in the valley in April
- In 6 of 11 winters
- Planned 2025-26 season
- 22 Nov to 17 May
Shiga Kogen
Eighteen linked ski areas and the 1998 Olympic courses, spread across a high plateau in Nagano. Everything sits between about 1,325m and 2,307m, Japan's highest lift-served point, so height does the work that latitude does in Hokkaido.
- Base and top
- 1,325m base, 2,307m top
- Runs face
- Every direction
- December snowfall in the valley
- About 1.1m
- March snow depth in the valley
- About 70cm
- Snow lying in the valley in April
- In 10 of 12 winters
- Planned 2025-26 season
- 20 Nov to 17 May
Furano Ski Area
Two linked zones in central Hokkaido, quieter and more local than Niseko, with its own train station. The cold inland air keeps the snow dry and light.
- Base and top
- 235m base, 1,074m top
- Runs face
- Mostly east
- December snowfall in the valley
- About 1.4m
- March snow depth in the valley
- About 70cm
- Snow lying in the valley in April
- In 9 of 14 winters
- Planned 2025-26 season
- 29 Nov to 6 May
Geto Kogen
One modern base building and twelve graded tree-run zones, in the mountains of Iwate. It gets some of the heaviest snow anywhere, more than 18m in a good year.
- Base and top
- 640m base, 1,070m top
- Runs face
- Mostly east
- December snowfall in the valley
- About 2.7m
- March snow depth in the valley
- About 1.7m
- Snow lying in the valley in April
- In 13 of 13 winters
- Planned 2025-26 season
- 5 Dec to 2 May
Tomamu
A resort-style base with a heated wave pool and a winter ice village, and good tree skiing behind it. It sits high on the inland plateau of central Hokkaido, with the coldest base on this list by our reckoning.
- Base and top
- 586m base, 1,171m top
- Runs face
- Mostly south-east
- December snowfall in the valley
- About 1.3m
- March snow depth in the valley
- About 70cm
- Snow lying in the valley in April
- In 12 of 14 winters
- Planned 2025-26 season
- 1 Dec to 5 Apr
Kamui Ski Links
A day resort half an hour from Asahikawa, with about a third of the mountain left ungroomed. The base is low, but it is far enough north for the cold to hold.
- Base and top
- 150m base, 751m top
- Runs face
- Mostly north-west
- December snowfall in the valley
- About 2.1m
- March snow depth in the valley
- About 0.9m
- Snow lying in the valley in April
- In 11 of 13 winters
- Planned 2025-26 season
- 13 Dec to 31 Mar
Nozawa Onsen
An onsen village with 13 free public bathhouses and 1,085m of vertical above it. The upper mountain reaches 1,650m, and the village itself has snow lying in April in most winters.
- Base and top
- 565m base, 1,650m top
- Runs face
- Mostly north-west
- December snowfall in the valley
- About 2.2m
- March snow depth in the valley
- About 1.3m
- Snow lying in the valley in April
- In 10 of 14 winters
- Planned 2025-26 season
- 29 Nov to 6 May
Sahoro
Steep tree runs up to 39 degrees and two hotels on site, a short drive from Tomamu. Its spot in the Tokachi interior keeps it cold, even with the base at 420m.
- Base and top
- 420m base, 1,030m top
- Runs face
- Mostly east
- December snowfall in the valley
- About 70cm
- March snow depth in the valley
- About 60cm
- Snow lying in the valley in April
- In 8 of 14 winters
- Planned 2025-26 season
- 4 Dec to 5 Apr
Appi Kogen
One of Japan's largest resorts, with plenty of black runs by Japanese standards. Its runs face north more than any other on this list, which keeps the snow out of the sun.
- Base and top
- 620m base, 1,328m top
- Runs face
- Mostly north-east
- December snowfall in the valley
- About 70cm
- March snow depth in the valley
- About 20cm
- Snow lying in the valley in April
- In 2 of 14 winters
- Planned 2025-26 season
- 5 Dec to 2 May
How the list is ranked
Cold comes from height and from being further north, so we weigh the two together: one degree further north is worth about 170m of height, worked out from 15 years of temperature records at 26 weather stations across Hokkaido and Honshu. Which way the runs face is measured along every run on our map. The rest of the score comes from December snowfall, snow depth in March and April, and the resort's planned season.