Not open yet for 2026/27. We have not yet found an official opening date. The snowfall below is a model figure and does not mean the slopes are skiable.
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 →
Updated: 10 Nov 2026, 12:15
Elevation range is estimated by sampling points across the ski area.
| Date | Weather | Snow (cm) | Low / high (°C) | Wind (km/h) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tue 10 Nov | Snow showers | 0 | −7 to 0 | 19 |
| Wed 11 Nov | Partly cloudy | 0 | −8 to 3 | 10 |
| Thu 12 Nov | Cloudy | 0 | −6 to 9 | 11 |
| Fri 13 Nov | Partly cloudy | 0 | −2 to 11 | 9 |
| Sat 14 Nov | Cloudy | 0 | −3 to 11 | 8 |
| Sun 15 Nov | Drizzle | 0 | 0 to 4 | 11 |
| Mon 16 Nov | Snow showers | 4 | −5 to 6 | 22 |
The five add up to the 100-point Powder Score: more fresh snow, more on the way and colder air all push it up. How we measure
Ski camps and races use the hill on some days, and parts of it may be closed off then. The named runs include Family A, Family B and a beginners' course. Rubeshibe Station is about five minutes away by car, and Kitami about forty minutes. Sources: city.kitami.lg.jp (sources read 12 Oct 2026; an AI draft the site operator has not yet checked)
Counted from the marked runs and lifts on the map, within 2.5 km of the centre of the ski area. These are not the resort’s own published figures.
Source: OpenStreetMap (ODbL 1.0). How finely ski areas are drawn varies by region, so treat the counts as indicative. Difficulty uses the European grades, which do not map onto North American green / blue / black.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oketocho Minamigaoka | 10.0 km | 162 cm | 1517 |
| Wakamatsu Shimin Ski Area | 25.0 km | 149 cm | 1677 |
| Northern Arc Resort | 27.0 km | 148 cm | 1686 |
| Saroma Choei | 29.0 km | 171 cm | 1407 |
| Engaru Rock Valley | 29.0 km | 186 cm | 1270 |
Compare side by side with Oketocho Minamigaoka and Wakamatsu Shimin Ski Area →
The most snow falls in December. March brings 98% of January’s snowfall. That is a gentler fall than the median for ski areas in Japan (52%). In amount, March brings 42 cm, about the same as the median of 46 cm.
Across the 12 winters measured, the average is 166 cm, and 6 of them fell short of it. The leanest was 2018/19 with 118 cm; the biggest was 2014/15 with 276 cm (2.3 times as much). For 63% of the 397 ski areas in Japan the leanest winter was 2015/16; here it was a different one.
Snowfall each winter (December–March total). The dashed line is the average; the numbers mark the leanest and the biggest winter.
2 hot spring sources with published analyses lie within 5 km of this ski area, nearest first (the hottest is 39.6 °C).
| Source | Distance | Temperature | pH | Analysed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ポン湯(北見温泉)三光荘2号 | 3.3 km | 39.6℃ warm | 9.2 alkaline | 1978 |
| ポン湯(北見温泉)三光荘1号 | 3.3 km | 37.9℃ warm | 9.3 alkaline | 1977 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Onneyu Onsen温根湯温泉 | Hot spring town | 8.3 km |
| Yama no Aquarium山の水族館 | Museum | 9 km |
| Roadside station Onneyuonsen道の駅おんねゆ温泉 | Hot spring town | 9 km |
| Kitakitsune Farm北きつね牧場 | Museum | 9.2 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 (12 Oct 2026) · Source. “Not checked” means we have not looked yet. Compare with other ski areas →
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.
Nearest: 1.9 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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