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 another clear bluebird day in Nozawa Onsen this morning. Visibility above 1400 meters is outstanding, but a strong inversion layer has trapped haze in the valleys limiting long range views. Overnight snowfalls did not eventuate, with only a dusting received on the upper slopes.
Riding conditions this morning were firm and fast, but surprisingly, not that icy. As the temperature warmed during the morning the snow correspondingly softened and at the moment we have slushy spring snow throughout. Snow conditions will be similar across the mountain with lowers slopes being more slushy and slower than the upper slopes.
Yesterday was another good spring day. We had firm and fast conditions during the morning which softened as the day drew on. The late afternoon saw a dramatic front pass through leading to increased wind speeds and some rain.
At the moment the forecast looks poor. We expect strong winds and rain tomorrow. Tuesday should see lighter winds but passing showers are likely to continue. Wednesday looks to have similar conditions. Further ahead we should see some improvements with a cool front Wednesday night that may produce some snow. Temperatures will remain cold into Thursday.
It’s a mostly fine morning here in Nozawa Onsen today. We have some high altitude cirrus clouds passing overhead that tend to preceded frontal systems. This correlates with the forecast; we expect snow showers to move through later this afternoon and tonight.
Riding this morning will be on classic spring snow; firm in the morning and softening by midday. South facing slopes may become sticky as the sun intensifies. Like yesterday the best riding will be had in the Yamabiko area.
It’s a good day to practice in the park and pipe with the soft forgiving conditions. Likewise mogul runs are as good as they get in these kinds of conditions. Selected off piste gullies may still hold the occasional powder field, although will be heavy going.
Yesterday was an outstanding day of the hill. Light winds, few people, sunshine, perfect views and best of all; excellent quality snow with occasional powder stashes amongst the trees. More of the same please!
Looking at the extended forecast we should see another clear day tomorrow before a warming trend takes hold. Unfortunately very warm temperatures and rain are predicted at the same time on Monday, not a good combination, let’s hope the forecast backs off. The warmth is set to remain until Wednesday night when snow showers and cold temperatures will make a return.
It’s another visually spectacular morning here in Nozawa Onsen. No new snow to report of but there is a clear blue sky with not a cloud to be seen combined with very light winds.
Visibility is excellent with many distant alpine peaks clear. Crowd levels are minuscule and we have some nice spring snow; firm and fast in the morning grading to slushy by late morning. Snow near Yamabiko will remain dry and fast all day with a freezing level of around 1200 meters in the shade.
Yesterday was one of the best days we’ve had in a while with the decent fresh powder on offer and light snow showers continuing all day. With the extremely low crowds there was no rush at all to score fresh tracks even in the well known areas, such as the Yamabiko trees. Depth was manageable for inexperienced powder hounds yet there were quite a few deeper stashes amongst the trees. Stability was very low in steeper areas so avalanche caution was required.
Looking at the forecast ahead, tomorrow morning should be clear before light snow showers move through during afternoon and night. Sunday should see the beginning of warming trend with the distinct possibility of moderate rainfalls on Monday, as much as I hate to say it. The next possibility for snow below the peak is on Thursday of next week.
Madarao and unknown resort in the distance we can see the towering Hakuba range over 65km away.
Base up top: 330cm Temp Top; -11 Degrees
Base at bottom: 155cm
New Snow since close: 10cm
We have some light snow in Nozawa Onsen at the moment. After some rain last night the precipitation quickly turned to snow delivering 10cm of fresh up high, 3cm was recorded in the village.
The conditions will be great for skiing and boarding today with excellent spring powder, cold temperatures and small crowds. Tree runs will be the pick trapping deeper stashes and offering improved visibility. The groomers will also be in fine form today with fast soft corduroy created for your carving pleasure, courtesy of the Nozawa grooming team. We expect moderate winds to decrease as the day moves on with even some sun a possibility this afternoon.
Yesterday was an unusually warm day for this time of year. Hot sunshine and temperatures of 17C in the village meant t-shirts were more than appropriate for the conditions. The best riding was had in the morning before the extreme warmth, when conditions were slushy but fast. Later in the day all but the most well ridden areas became fairly sticky, especially the lower slopes.
During the next few days predictions tend to indicate a general clearing trend with a couple of days of sunshine and cool temperatures before another spring warming trend takes hold on Sunday.
It’s a relatively balmy overcast morning here in Nozawa Onsen with positive temperatures across the mountain. Slushy spring snow conditions will prevail with the best riding to be had on the upper slopes, especially this afternoon.
At the moment we have some heavy, high cirrus cloud passing over Nozawa Onsen accompanied by moderate winds. This is usually an indication of a impending front which is what we expect today. There may be some prefrontal rain this afternoon before a very cold North Westerly airstream establishes itself over Honshu some time tonight. Front this we expect a decent dump of fresh powder.
Yesterday was an unbelievable day in terms of weather conditions. While the snow was of excellent quality and remained dry on the upper slopes, it was the awesome visibility and views that stole the show. Huge mountain peaks were clearly visible, many of them over 100km away! Even Sado Island, way out in the Sea of Japan was easily spotted. The morning remained totally cloudless and the crowds were very light indeed. Let’s hope we have some more spring days like yesterday.
Looking at the forecast ahead we expect snow showers to continue tomorrow from the aforementioned frontal system. From Friday to Sunday we expect clear weather, light winds and a stable freezing level of around 1000-1400 meters. Looks like a nice run of spring weather ahead.
