【水上高原スキーリゾート】平日限定ポールレッスンバーンが登場！
By: Minakamikogen Resort · 3 Mar
No snow on the ground or falling right now. 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.
Opens
18 Dec
Typical snowfall
291cm
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 →
- Elevation
- 851–1,244 m
- Across
- 2.0 km
This season so far (1 Nov to 9 Nov): 3 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 →
Minakami Kogen Hotel 200 stands right at the foot of the slopes, so guests can walk out the door and ski. A free bus loops between the hotel and the day-visitor ski centre. Dog sledding, snow rafting and snowmobiling can also be booked for those who are not skiing. Sources: minakami-ski.jp (sources read 13 Oct 2026; an AI draft the site operator has not yet checked)
Weather models read low in the mountains: a Japan Meteorological Agency station 2 km away measured 828 cm a winter over the last three seasons, against 307 cm from the model.
How much snow it gets
Modelled from weather data the same way at all 3,069 ski areas we cover. These are not the resort’s own published figures.
Seasonal snowfall
291cm
per season
Worst of 12 winters
183cm
The middle winter of the 12: 281 cm. The best: 374 cm.
World rank
514
of 3,069 worldwide
Rank in country
158
of 397 in Japan
Elevation rank
125
Highest to lowest, of 397 in Japan. The centre point sits at 991 m, 225 m above the national median.
Quality rank
94
of 397 in Japan
Temp when snowing
−4.5°C
Japanese median: −3.6°C
Rain days
13%
Japanese median: 16%
Days over 5 cm
18%
Japanese median: 15%
Wind when snowing
18km/h
Average daily peak, 10 m above ground across a model grid cell; not the wind on ridges or lift tops
Dryness 46
Frequency 53
Freedom from rain 67
Calm when snowing (model grid) 97
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).
Compared with what is nearby
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fujiwara Snow&Spa Resort | 1.2 km | 291 cmsame grid cell | 514 |
| Hodaigi Ski Resort | 2.9 km | 291 cmsame grid cell | 514 |
| Tambara Ski Park | 8.4 km | 423 cm | 144 |
| Okutone | 9.1 km | 198 cm | 1164 |
| Kawaba Ski Resort | 9.4 km | 423 cm | 144 |
Compare side by side with Fujiwara Snow&Spa Resort and Hodaigi Ski Resort →
Runs and lifts
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.
Marked runs
12
Run length
7.8km
Lifts
4
Vertical
393m
Top 1,244 m · base 851 m
Run map
EasyIntermediateAdvanced Lift
Slope shape, difficulty and lift types
The shape of the mountain
Longest run on the map1.3 km
Steepest pitch31°measured over at least 30 m
Average gradient of the runs9.7°
Which way the slopes face
North 19%
East 5%
South 22%
West 54%
Only 24% of the vertical on the runs descends to the north or east. The most common direction is west (54%).
By difficulty
Easy 3 · 2.6 km
Intermediate 7 · 4.3 km
Advanced 2 · 1 km
Lift types
- Chairlift4
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.
When it falls, and how winters differ
Month by month
The most snow falls in January. March brings 53% of January’s snowfall.
71cmDec
99cmJan
69cmFeb
52cmMar
Winter by winter
Across the 12 winters measured, the average is 291 cm, and 7 of them fell short of it. The leanest was 2015/16 with 183 cm; the biggest was 2024/25 with 374 cm (2.0 times as much).
291
183
358
277
278
269
264
372
284
298
374
249
14/1515/1616/1717/1818/1919/2020/2121/2222/2323/2424/2525/26
Snowfall each winter (December–March total). The dashed line is the average; the numbers mark the leanest and the biggest winter.
Live cameras
Footage remains the copyright of each operator. JAPANSNOWLINE neither stores nor redistributes it.
Minakami webcams & snow report — all 8 ski areas →
Videos
Videos remain the copyright of whoever filmed them. JAPANSNOWLINE stores no video and plays everything through the standard YouTube player.
Official YouTube channel
More than we show here.
What was actually measured nearby
Total snowfall from December to March recorded at the 藤原 weather station — 2 km from this ski area, 249 m below its mid-slope.
| Three-season average | 828 cm |
| 2023/24 | 686 cm |
| 2024/25 | 1072 cm |
| 2025/26 | 726 cm |
The figure calculated on this page is 307 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
Hot springs nearby, as analysed
2 hot spring sources with published analyses lie within 5 km of this ski area, nearest first (the hottest is 80 °C).
Show the sources
| Source | Distance | Temperature | pH | Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 湯の小屋 | 1.8 km | 80℃ hot | 7.6 mildly alkaline | simple |
| 宝川第5号 | 3.1 km | 73℃ hot | 7.1 neutral | 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
Worth seeing nearby
Within 20 km in a straight line, nearest first. Some lie over a pass that is closed in winter.
Show the list
| Place | Type | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Naramata Dam奈良俣ダム | Landmark | 2.7 km |
| Yagisawa Dam矢木沢ダム | Nature | 6.3 km |
| Doai Station土合駅 | Landmark | 10.5 km |
| Tanigawadake Ropeway谷川岳ロープウェイ | Nature | 10.8 km |
| Mount Tanigawa谷川岳 | Mountain | 13.6 km |
| Oze尾瀬 | Nature | 17.6 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.
Going with children
- Kids’ area
- Yes (details in Japanese on the official site)
- Childcare
- Yes (details in Japanese on the official site)
- Parking
- Yes (details in Japanese on the official site)
- Rental
- Yes (details in Japanese on the official site)
Checked on the official site (13 Oct 2026) · Source. Compare with other ski areas →
Places to stay nearbyPR
Contains advertising. Property names and Rakuten Travel’s booking pages are in Japanese.
24 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 水上温泉郷 水上高原ホテル200 | ¥11,550 | 4.13／5 2302 reviews | 0.4 km | 関越自動車道「水上IC」から19km(30分)/上越新幹線「上毛高原駅」から送迎シャトルバス有(3日前までの要事前予約) |
| 大沢荘<群馬県> | ¥7,800 | 4.00／5 30 reviews | 1.0 km | 上越線水上駅よりバスにて40分/関越自動車道水上ICより湯の小屋方面へ25分 |
| 温泉ロッヂ たかね | ¥9,800 | 4.30／5 37 reviews | 1.2 km | 関越道 水上ICより35分 |
| 11種類の貸切露天風呂 水上高原/奥利根温泉 ホテルサンバード | ¥8,800 | 3.99／5 786 reviews | 1.4 km | 車で関越自動車道・水上ICから30分・JRで上越線 水上駅より 湯ノ小屋行きバスで藤原スキー場入口下車900M |
| Earthboat Minakami Fujiwara | ¥17,467 | — | 1.4 km | 水上ICから国道291号線→県道63号線を藤原 湯ノ小屋方面に約30分 |
| ペンション らいらっく | ¥6,500 | 3.50／5 10 reviews | 1.5 km | 水上駅よりバスで約50分、関越道水上ICより車で約50分 |
| 源泉掛流しの湯めぐりテーマパーク 龍洞 | ¥6,930 | 4.10／5 749 reviews | 1.8 km | JR:水上駅から湯の小屋温泉行きのバスに乗車して40分/終点バス停(湯の小屋)下車・徒歩2分 |
| 湯の小屋温泉 照葉荘 | ¥7,700 | 4.73／5 82 reviews | 1.8 km | 上越線 水上駅から車で約30分/上越新幹線 上毛高原駅 |
| 湯の小屋温泉 民宿 やぐら | ¥11,500 | 5.00／5 19 reviews | 1.9 km | 上毛高原駅 水上駅/水上ICから車で30分 |
| 貸切風呂と地産地消 樹林-kirin- | ¥3,500 | 4.44／5 23 reviews | 2.3 km | 上越線 水上駅から車で20分/上越新幹線 上毛高原駅から車で45分 |
| Earthboat Minakami Hodaigi | ¥17,467 | — | 2.3 km | JR上越線 水上駅から、バス・車で約30分。関越自動車道 水上ICから車で約30分 |
| animal lodge ^ | ¥12,760 | — | 2.4 km | 湯檜曽駅より車で17分 |
Pick dates and guests to check rooms on Rakuten Travel
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)
Places to stay on the map
1 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: 2 km
Show the nearest places
Nearest first
- 洞元荘温泉 2.0 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.
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