No snow yet. 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 →
Sakae village opened this ski area in 1996 and runs it as a municipal enterprise. Mount Naeba and the Echigo Sanzan peaks are visible from the top, and a groomed detour route lets beginners come down from there as well. On weekdays in January and February the slopes are left ungroomed as far as possible. Sources: vill.sakae.nagano.jp, sakaeclub.jp (sources read 11 Oct 2026; an AI draft the site operator has not yet checked)
Weather models read low in the mountains: a Japan Meteorological Agency station 11 km away measured 987 cm a winter over the last three seasons, against 569 cm from the model.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cupid Valley Ski Area | 7.9 km | 553 cmsame grid cell | 61 |
| New Greenpia Tsunan | 13.0 km | 618 cm | 36 |
| Nozawa Onsen | 13.0 km | 450 cm | 108 |
| Togari Onsen Ski Resort | 17.0 km | 450 cm | 108 |
| Gala Yuzawa Snow Resort | 21.0 km | 618 cm | 36 |
Compare side by side with Cupid Valley Ski Area and New Greenpia Tsunan →
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.
Only 40% of the vertical on the runs descends to the north or east. The most common direction is south (55%).
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 36% 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 70 cm, more than the median of 46 cm.
Across the 12 winters measured, the average is 553 cm, and 5 of them fell short of it. The leanest was 2015/16 with 301 cm; the biggest was 2016/17 with 693 cm (2.3 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.
Nozawa and Kijimadaira webcams & snow report — all 4 ski areas →
Total snowfall from December to March recorded at the 津南 weather station — 11 km from this ski area, 132 m below its mid-slope.
| Three-season average | 987 cm |
| 2023/24 | 817 cm |
| 2024/25 | 1240 cm |
| 2025/26 | 903 cm |
The figure calculated on this page is 569 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
1 hot spring sources with published analyses lie within 5 km of this ski area, nearest first (the hottest is 33.5 °C).
| Source | Distance | Temperature | pH | Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 宮野原宮野原 | 2.7 km | 33.5℃ lukewarm | 8.6 alkaline | 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Sakae Village History and Culture Museum栄村歴史文化館 | Museum | 3.5 km |
| Ryūgakubo竜ヶ窪 | Nature | 6.5 km |
| Matsunoyama Onsen松之山温泉 | Hot spring town | 8.3 km |
| Bijinbayashi美人林 | Nature | 12.3 km |
| Nozawa Onsen野沢温泉 | Hot spring town | 13.2 km |
| Kiyotsu Gorge清津峡 | Nature | 17.4 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.
Getting there
Source: sakaeclub.jp · checked 2 Nov 2026. Shuttle days and times change with the season; check the official site before you go.
Checked on the official site (11 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.
1 properties on Rakuten Travel lie within about 3 km of this ski area. The table shows the nearest 1 with a listed price.
| Property (links to Rakuten Travel) | Lowest listed (per person, tax incl.) | Rating | Distance | Getting there |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 中条温泉 トマトの国 | ¥11,050 | 4.00／5 12 reviews | 0.7 km | JR飯山線 森宮野原駅よりお車にて約3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)
7 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: 5.2 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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