Nozawa Onsen Accommodation, Nagano, The Alps Japan
Nestled in the Japan Alps is a magical place steeped in culture and with some terrific skiing and boarding. Nagano was home to the Winter Olympics in 1998.
Get in touch if keen to get knee deep in powder or neck deep in a Hot Spring soon…
Video
Check out our video of our 4 main properties below.
Nozawa Onsen is a very traditional town with beautiful hot springs, friendly locals, and awesome snow. Our Lodge gives you amazing value and we have a range of accommodation to suit any budget.
The Lodge is only 100m to the slopes and short stroll to town
Relaxed and comfortable atmosphere
In the centre of Japan’s main Island Honshu easy access from anywhere
You can fly direct to Tokyo and there is a shuttle bus direct to the Lodge
English and Japanese Speaking Staff to help with all your needs
Unique and beautiful place with breathtaking nature and culture
Nozawa Village is also famous for its hot springs, there are many nearby
Lots of terrain, with Gondolas, high speed quads, and long runs – very few lift lines
Thanks Mark – we were first invited to Nozawa years ago and have been enjoyed the skiing, the village and your hospitality ever since. Thanks for helping us enjoy it so much,
We have a nice clear morning here in Nozawa Onsen. Mostly sunny with the occasional low lying clouds in the valleys leading to some great views of the surrounding alps. Crowd levels are not too bad for a weekend either.
Since close of lifts we have had 5cm fall at the top and the bottom of the mountain, with 10-15cm falling mid mountain. This indicates windblown conditions so the will be some quality deep stashes in the more sheltered locations. Even with the sun temperatures are cold, well into the negatives across the board and are set to stay that way all day, with snow showers building into the afternoon.
Yesterday was also a good day for skiing. Extremely uncrowded conditions meant that many areas were quite untracked. Again the snow was windblown so certain sheltered areas had some nice dry and deep stashes, but other more exposed areas had a prominent crust layer underneath. The groomers were nice as always.
Those who follow the snow forecast have great reason for excitement today. Over the past few days we have seen a significant upgrades to snowfalls totals forecast for tonight, with yesterday seeing the most significant upgrade so far. Tonight its predicted that heavy snow showers will accumulate to substantial levels. Based on the predictions 40cm overnight is not out of the question, possibly more. After the initial bout of falls tonight, light to moderate falls should continue all tomorrow.
Conditions should clear briefly on Monday morning before further moderate snow showers move through Tuesday, continuing into Wednesday. Thursday is looking like it will be clear at this stage.
With all the upcoming snow there is no better opportunity to capture yourself skiing in the deep japow. We offer professional action photographic/guiding services for skiers of all levels. Families, or those seeking the steep and deep. Drop into Lodge Nagano or Villa Nozawa to make a booking. 8000 yen per hour or 13 000 for two hours per group.
Its a picture perfect morning in Nozawa Onsen, but only if you are up high on the mountain. The village is cloaked in low-lying fog, however up high we have a beautiful clear blue sky and light winds. Truly a spectacular sight with the towering Japanese Alps rising out of the fog bathed in golden early morning light.
A great day to be up on the hills, cold temperatures should ensure snow will remain smooth and fast on the groomer and there a more than a few stashes of powder amongst the trees, head up to the Yamabiko area early on to get your fix. With the great visibility its a good opportunity to explore the more unknown areas of the resort.
Today marks the day of the annual Dosojin fire festival in Nozawa Onsen. The sake with be flowing, staring around 7:30pm. Clear skies will ensure very cold temperatures so make sure you rug up and wear old cloths, as you may get burnt from the occasional flying ember.
According to the forecast cold temperatures are set to remain for at least the next week. Apart from today and tomorrow, which should be clear, we should experience snow showers on and off over the next week. The heaviest falls are likely tomorrow night and saturday into sunday this week.
Its pretty much a carbon copy of yesterday in Nozawa Onsen, just with 10cm instead of 30cm of fresh snow. Very cold temperatures across the resort, -10C at the top, means the powder will be in excellent condition. Light snow is still falling and expected to continue on and off today.
Yesterday was outstanding with deep but not bottomless powder. This meant that many of the slighter gradients were skiable without getting stuck, great for those just starting out in the powder. It was crowded in the morning but by lunch time the crowds dispersed and lift lines were hard to find. Winds were lighter than expected which made the cold conditions more than tolerable.
With the fire festival tomorrow the village is extremely lively at the moment. Those who were in town yesterday would have seen locals dragging huge trees through the streets for use in the construction of the structure which will be attacked tomorrow night.
Looking at the current forecast we should see a beautiful bluebird day tomorrow in combination with temperatures equally as cold as today. Its sure the skiing will be very good indeed. The next set of snowfalls is expected thursday afternoon/night and at this point in time a solid dump is predicted for Saturday night into Sunday. Of course, this forecast is subject to revisions over the coming days.
As expected it has dumped overnight in Nozawa Onsen, and dumped hard. 30cm of fresh powder has been recorded up near the summit of Mt Kenashi and 20cm down in the village. At the moment snow is still falling at moderate levels and the upper mountain is soaked in fog. Winds are gusting strong up top so be ready for very cold temperatures with a wind chill of around -20C.
Today is a day for the secret spots to escape the long weekend crowds, which are building in the lead up to the annual much celebrated fire festival. Look for locals dragging trees down from the mountain today for use in the ceremony on Wednesday night. There is a definite celebratory atmosphere about the village with the main streets chocker block full of people, well worth a look.
Yesterday we saw great conditions earlier with very cold overnight temperatures sucking the moisture out of the snow creating fast groomers and nice off piste powder. The afternoon saw temperatures warm and subsequently the snow became heavy lower down, good conditions for carving on the groomers but not so nice off piste.
We should expect snow showers to gradually decrease throughout the day before becoming isolated tomorrow. Wednesday should see mostly sunny conditions with some clouds moving across during the afternoon. Further light snow showers are predicted for Thursday.
A semi bluebird morning here in Nozawa Onsen. We have some light cumulus clouds hovering around delivering the occasional snow shower. Since the close of lifts 5cm of fresh has fallen on the upper slopes and a dusting recorded down lower. Visibility is very good across all elevations.
Best riding today will be had all over the mountain from a snow quality standpoint. But head to the quieter areas of the resort to escape the crowds on this long weekend sunday. Be careful in the backcountry as snowpack stability is still a concern after the recent dump.
Yesterday was one of the better days of the season. The powder had settled and consolidated so was much easier to ride although not as deep as the day before, a good chance to explore the excellent Nozawa Onsen tree runs. Visibility was marginal in the morning but improved during the day.
Current predictions indicate a strong dump will occur tonight with snow continuing tomorrow. Its likely we should receive 30cm, possibly more, of fresh over the next 24 hours. Light snow will continue into Tuesday before clearing to bluebird conditions on Wednesday.
