No snow yet. The 2026/27 season is planned to open on 18 Dec (the resort’s announcement; it moves with the snow). 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 →
A piste link joins Ishiuchi Maruyama to neighbouring GALA Yuzawa, meeting GALA's northern Roman Holiday area. Just off the top of the Sunrise Express, halfway up the mountain, The Veranda Ishiuchi Maruyama has a viewing terrace facing the Uonuma Plain and the Echigo mountains. Sources: gala.co.jp, yuzawasnowlink.com, ishiuchi.or.jp (sources read 12 Oct 2026; reviewed by the editor)
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ishiuchi Hanaoka Ski Area | 2.1 km | 695 cmsame grid cell | 12 |
| Gala Yuzawa Snow Resort | 2.4 km | 618 cm | 36 |
| Maiko Snow Resort | 3.9 km | 695 cmsame grid cell | 12 |
| Ippon Sugi Ski Resort | 4.1 km | 695 cmsame grid cell | 12 |
| Yuzawa Kogen Ski Resort | 4.2 km | 618 cm | 36 |
Compare side by side with Ishiuchi Hanaoka Ski Area and Gala Yuzawa Snow Resort →
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.
93% 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 29% 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. For skiing, though, the amount matters more than the share: March brings 76 cm, more than the median of 46 cm.
Across the 12 winters measured, the average is 695 cm, and 5 of them fell short of it. The leanest was 2015/16 with 328 cm; the biggest was 2021/22 with 983 cm (3.0 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.
Echigo-Yuzawa webcams & snow report — all 17 ski areas →
Total snowfall from December to March recorded at the 湯沢 weather station — 3.6 km from this ski area, 243 m below its mid-slope.
| Three-season average | 810 cm |
| 2023/24 | 619 cm |
| 2024/25 | 1080 cm |
| 2025/26 | 732 cm |
The figure calculated on this page is 686 cm.
A weather station is not a ski slope. We picked one at a similar elevation, but it stands in a valley or a village. More snow falls on the mountain above it. We have not tried to guess how much more.
Source: Japan Meteorological Agency historical records
5 hot spring sources with published analyses lie within 5 km of this ski area, nearest first (the hottest is 61.5 °C).
| Source | Distance | Temperature | pH | Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 石打丸山丸山3号 | 1.5 km | 25.8℃ lukewarm | 8.1 mildly alkaline | — |
| 上野鉱泉新泉1号 | 1.8 km | 24.3℃ cold | 8.1 mildly alkaline | simple |
| 上越後楽園上越後楽園 | 3.2 km | 31.1℃ lukewarm | 8.2 mildly alkaline | — |
| 清津峡薬師の湯(小出4号) | 3.8 km | 48℃ hot | 9.2 alkaline | alkaline simple |
| 湯沢第3配湯所 混湯 | 4 km | 61.5℃ hot | 8.3 mildly alkaline | simple |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Kiyotsu Gorge清津峡 | Nature | 3.6 km |
| Yuzawa Kōgen Ropeway湯沢高原ロープウェイ | Nature | 3.6 km |
| Echigo Yuzawa Onsen越後湯沢温泉 | Hot spring town | 3.9 km |
| Mount Makihata巻機山 | Mountain | 15.3 km |
| Mount Naeba苗場山 | Mountain | 16.6 km |
| Mount Tanigawa谷川岳 | Mountain | 19.2 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 (21 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.
68 properties on Rakuten Travel lie within about 3 km of this ski area. The table shows the nearest 12 with a listed price.
| Property (links to Rakuten Travel) | Lowest listed (per person, tax incl.) | Rating | Distance | Getting there |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 石打スキーセンター | ¥7,000 | 4.50／5 42 reviews | 0.7 km | 関越自動車道 塩沢石打ICより車で約3分。アクセスについて詳しくは弊社HPをご覧ください。 |
| アンティーズハウス | ¥7,700 | — | 0.7 km | 関越自動車道・湯沢IC~R17経由で約12分 / JR越後湯駅~7分(送迎あり) |
| ハツカ石温泉 石打ユングパルナス | ¥9,000 | 4.17／5 311 reviews | 0.8 km | 越後湯沢駅より車で10分/関越道 湯沢ICより車で10分/関越道 塩沢石打ICより車で10分 |
| ツインタワー石打/民泊 | ¥12,760 | — | 0.8 km | 石打駅より車で6分 |
| HOTEL1800 ^ | ¥4,872 | — | 0.9 km | 石打駅から徒歩で約7分 |
| ペンション オズ | ¥5,500 | 4.67／5 100 reviews | 0.9 km | JR越後湯沢駅より8分石打丸山運行の無料シャトルバス有/関越自動車道:湯沢ICより5キロ |
| スポーツプラザ白樺 | ¥2,178 | 3.50／5 73 reviews | 1.0 km | 冬季のみ上越新幹線・越後湯沢駅より無料シャトルバス送迎有り(8時半~12時)/関越道・越後湯沢IC~R17号で約5分 |
| あざみ亭 | ¥4,300 | 4.53／5 187 reviews | 1.0 km | 越後湯沢駅より車で10分 関越道湯沢インターより車で10分 塩沢インターより車で10分 |
| アルミュール | ¥6,000 | 4.60／5 117 reviews | 1.0 km | 車:関越道/湯沢ICから国道17号を新潟方面へ約5km熱気球の絵の看板を左折。電車:上越新幹線/越後湯沢駅タクシー約7分 |
| YUZAWA Onsen Lodge House | ¥6,000 | — | 1.0 km | 越後湯沢駅から車で5分・ガーラ湯沢駅から車で3分又は関越自動車道 湯沢ICから7分 |
| ベルビューニシウラ | ¥6,000 | 5.00／5 27 reviews | 1.2 km | 越後湯沢駅・GALA湯沢駅・上越線石打駅/関越高速道・塩沢石打ICより5分 |
| 雪の雫 | ¥14,000 | 4.75／5 41 reviews | 1.2 km | JR 石打駅/塩沢石打ICよりお車にて約10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)
6 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.
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 · 1 Oct 2026
How Japan's Early-Bird Lift Tickets Work: At Hakuba Happo-One, Eight of the Nine Need a Japanese ID CardHakuba Happo-One opened early-bird sales at 10:00 on 1 October. A day costs ¥6,400 against ¥9,800 at the window, 35% off. But every ticket on the list except one needs a My Number Card and a Japanese phone app. A visitor from abroad can buy exactly one of them, at 15% off.
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