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 →
For food and a warm-up, skiers use the neighbouring Shiroi Mori Oguni roadside station on Route 113. The slope has a permanent halfpipe for snowboarders. Ayumu Hirano, who won halfpipe gold at the Beijing 2022 Olympics, trained here as a child. Sources: siroimori.co.jp, yamagatakanko.com, wwdjapan.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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tainai Ski and Snowboard area | 21.0 km | 629 cm | 34 |
| Doshojidaira Ski Area | 22.0 km | 273 cm | 602 |
| Tenoko Ski Area | 23.0 km | 312 cm | 439 |
| Ninox Snow Park | 27.0 km | 567 cm | 54 |
| Onogawa Onsen | 36.0 km | 314 cm | 430 |
Compare side by side with Tainai Ski and Snowboard area and Doshojidaira Ski Area →
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.
100% 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 25% 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 44 cm, about the same as the median of 46 cm.
Across the 12 winters measured, the average is 446 cm, and 5 of them fell short of it. The leanest was 2015/16 with 289 cm; the biggest was 2024/25 with 595 cm (2.1 times as much).
Snowfall each winter (December–March total). The dashed line is the average; the numbers mark the leanest and the biggest winter.
This ski area does not put a camera on its own slopes. The nearest live view is the road below.
Footage remains the copyright of each operator. JAPANSNOWLINE neither stores nor redistributes it.
Total snowfall from December to March recorded at the 小国 weather station — 1.1 km from this ski area, 101 m below its mid-slope.
| Three-season average | 675 cm |
| 2023/24 | 494 cm |
| 2024/25 | 866 cm |
| 2025/26 | 666 cm |
The figure calculated on this page is 481 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
3 hot spring sources with published analyses lie within 5 km of this ski area, nearest first (the hottest is 33.2 °C).
| Source | Distance | Temperature | pH |
|---|---|---|---|
| おぐに横川二宮の湯 | 2.2 km | 33.2℃ lukewarm | 7.2 neutral |
| 小国松風館 | 3.7 km | 14.1℃ cold | 6.2 neutral |
| 小国鉱泉松風館 | 3.7 km | 14.1℃ cold | 6.2 neutral |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Yokokawa Dam横川ダム (山形県) | Nature | 9.3 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: yamagatakanko.com, siroimori.co.jp, jreast.co.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 (12 Oct 2026) · Source. “Not checked” means we have not looked yet. Compare with other ski areas →
3 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: 2.2 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.
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%.
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