No snow on the ground or falling right now. Not open yet for 2026/27. We have not yet found an official opening date. Snow depth and the seven-day outlook appear once snow is on the ground or forecast.
A weather-model figure, worked out the same way for every ski area, and lower than what actually falls. Use it to compare ski areas, not against the resort’s own totals. How we measure →
This season so far (1 Nov to 9 Nov): 2 cm. The average for these dates is under 10 cm, so we do not give a percentage yet. The average is over twelve winters on the same weather model. Across Japan →
The beginner A course is a gentle slope, with a line of three kickers just before the bottom. The advanced C course can be used for gate training, and part of the intermediate B course is left ungroomed. The A course is floodlit, so it can be skied at night too. Sources: obanazawa-ski.jp, hanagasakougen-ski-resort.jimdofree.com, yamagatakanko.com (sources read 12 Oct 2026; an AI draft the site operator has not yet checked)
Modelled from weather data the same way at all 3,069 ski areas we cover. These are not the resort’s own published figures.
The tick marks the median across every Japanese ski area we measure. All four bars run the same way — longer is better.
The quality score leaves out how much snow falls (it uses temperature, frequency, rain and wind).
Within 50 km in a straight line. Ski areas in the same weather-model cell (about 30 km across) get the same figure.
| Ski area | Distance | Seasonal snowfall | World rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kurobushi Kogen Snow Park Jangle Jungle | 11.0 km | 302 cm | 472 |
| Spring Valley Izumi Kogen | 22.0 km | 146 cm | 1714 |
| Izumigatake Ski Resort | 24.0 km | 146 cm | 1714 |
| Uenono Ski Area | 29.0 km | 178 cm | 1335 |
| Onikobe Ski Area | 30.0 km | 260 cm | 667 |
Compare side by side with Kurobushi Kogen Snow Park Jangle Jungle and Spring Valley Izumi Kogen →
Counted from the runs and lifts drawn on OpenStreetMap, within the boundary of the ski area. These are not the resort’s own published figures.
95% of the vertical on the runs descends to the north or east. Those slopes get the least sun, so the snow lasts longer.
See past trail maps on Skimap.org ↗
Source: OpenSkiMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL 1.0). How finely ski areas are drawn varies by region, so treat the counts as indicative. Vertical is the difference between the highest and lowest points of the mapped runs and lifts.
The most snow falls in January. March brings 37% of January’s snowfall. That is a steeper fall than the median for ski areas in Japan (52%): the snow here is concentrated early in the season. In amount, March brings 42 cm, about the same as the median of 46 cm.
Across the 12 winters measured, the average is 321 cm, and 5 of them fell short of it. The leanest was 2015/16 with 140 cm; the biggest was 2021/22 with 450 cm (3.2 times as much).
Snowfall each winter (December–March total). The dashed line is the average; the numbers mark the leanest and the biggest winter.
Footage remains the copyright of each operator. JAPANSNOWLINE neither stores nor redistributes it.
3 hot spring sources with published analyses lie within 5 km of this ski area, nearest first (the hottest is 62.4 °C).
| Source | Distance | Temperature | pH | Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 鶴子・尾花新電元1号 | 1.1 km | 30.5℃ lukewarm | 9.3 alkaline | alkaline simple |
| 細野 | 4.4 km | 12.6℃ cold | 8.2 mildly alkaline | sulphur |
| 銀山共同組合3号泉 | 4.5 km | 62.4℃ hot | 7.5 mildly alkaline | — |
These are analyses of hot spring sources, not a list of baths you can visit. They date from 1910 to 2005, many from decades ago, so today’s temperature and chemistry may differ. Names are as recorded in Japanese. Temperature and pH bands follow Japan’s standard for analysing hot springs.
Source: processed from the hot spring analysis data in the Geothermal Information Database (GRES-DB), Geological Survey of Japan, AIST
Within 20 km in a straight line, nearest first. Some lie over a pass that is closed in winter.
| Place | Type | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Ginzan Onsen銀山温泉 | Hot spring town | 4.6 km |
| 東沢バラ公園 | Nature | 10.8 km |
| Hiroshige Museum of Art広重美術館 (山形県) | Museum | 12 km |
| 東根温泉 | Hot spring town | 13.2 km |
| Higashine-no-Okeyaki東根の大ケヤキ | Nature | 13.7 km |
| Funagata Renpō Prefectural Natural Park県立自然公園船形連峰 | Nature | 14 km |
Chosen from the places most read about on Wikipedia, favouring those with an English article. Based on the Japanese Wikipedia lists of sights in each prefecture, as compiled in travel-log-data (CC BY-SA 4.0). English names from Wikidata (CC0). The content of this section is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Checked on the official site (12 Oct 2026) · Source. “Not checked” means we have not looked yet. Compare with other ski areas →
Contains advertising. Property names and Rakuten Travel’s booking pages are in Japanese.
2 properties on Rakuten Travel lie within about 3 km of this ski area. The table shows the nearest 2 with a listed price.
| Property (links to Rakuten Travel) | Lowest listed (per person, tax incl.) | Rating | Distance | Getting there |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| くつろぎの宿 花笠高原荘 | ¥3,600 | — | 0.4 km | JR 大石田駅よりお車で約40分、東北中央自動車道尾花沢ICより約30分、山形空港より車で約60分 |
Prices are the lowest Rakuten Travel lists; a property name, or “Pick dates and guests” above, shows prices and rooms for your dates.
Contains advertising. Property names and Rakuten Travel’s booking pages are in Japanese. · Property data by Rakuten Travel (Supported by Rakuten Developers)
20 places within 12 km of the slopes, as mapped on OpenStreetMap, many of them small inns and pensions. Many are not on booking sites — open the name for the website or the map.
Nearest: 4.4 km
Accommodation data: OpenStreetMap
Other booking sites: Booking.com ↗ · Agoda ↗ · Rakuten Travelad ↗
“ad” marks links that pay us a commission if you book. Links without it are not affiliated.
Planning a trip · 28 Sep 2026
El Niño and Japan's Snow in 2026/27: The Last Five El Niño Winters Averaged 88%NOAA expects a strong or very strong El Niño this winter. We measured every Japanese ski area across the last 12 winters: El Niño winters ran 88% of normal, and the strongest of the twelve left Japan at 63%. But Hakuba held 92% of its average that winter while Niseko fell to 57%.
Where the snow falls · 2 Nov 2026
11 Hidden Powder Ski Areas in Japan, and How to Get There (2026/27)Where the snow falls · 2 Nov 2026
Hidden Ski Resorts in Japan by Train