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,
Its been a bit of a disappointing storm system in comparison with the snowfall amounts we were expecting. Overnight we had 10cm of windblown falls, no where near the 50cm we were expecting. Its possible there was some minor variation in wind direction resulting in a dramatically different snowfall outcome.
Right now snowfalls have become isolated and it is a partly cloudy day in Nozawa Onsen with nice breaks of sunshine. Even though we haven’t had the massive totals we expected conditions are still very nice indeed. There is plenty of fresh powder amongst the trees and the pistes are groomed to perfection. It will still be an epic day on the hill.
According to the forecast we should have a break from snow for about 48 hours with clear weather before a cold front will sweep across the region dumping moderate falls on Honshu on Friday morning. This should continue until around Saturday, becoming isolated on Sunday. Further ahead more snow is expected mid next week.
Whilst it has dumped overnight with 10-15cm recorded up top, the totals have been somewhat underwhelming in comparison to the half meter that was expected. Its possible and even commonplace this season that the frontal system will arrive to the region slightly later than predicted, usually between 6-12 hours behind the suggested timings. Therefore more likely than not it will snow hard today, greater than expected, as the weather moves over the region.
Nevertheless, 10-15cm is not to be scoffed at and there is sure to be some outstanding skiing and boarding on the hill today. Temperatures are the coldest of the season, around 4C colder than normal, so make sure an extra layer or two is being worn when heading up today.
According to the forecast snow should continue for the remainder of today before increasing to heavy amounts once again overnight. Conditions will then clear late tomorrow with a bluebird morning expected on Wednesday. Following that more snow is forecast for Thursday and then another strong front is predicted in the long fringe forecast for next weekend.
The prefrontal warmth has hit Nozawa Onsen this morning. High cloud and southerly winds are marking the inflow of an approaching front and its a strong one. The forecast has not backed off regarding predicted amounts so we should see huge snowfall totals overnight tonight. For the remainder of today expect high clouds, some wind and a freezing level of around one thousand meters, which will drop during the afternoon. There will be good skiing and boarding on groomed pistes and up top however the lower trees will retain variable snow that is affected by the warm air. Its a good day to wax the powder skis or board, test the beacons and prepare for the epic week ahead.
Yesterday we had a beautiful bluebird day and as long as you could escape the weekend crowds the snow was very nice indeed. Off to the west the Sea of Japan was almost visible and the surrounding peaks revealed startling detail. A perfect reconnaissance for backcountry touring adventures!
As alluded to earlier we are still in for a perfect week of snow according to current predictions. Kicking things off, around half a meter is expected tonight. Another half meter for tomorrow night as well. It will be good. Light snow for the rest of the week combined with breaks of sunshine, most frequent on Wednesday morning. Another bout of heavy falls is then forecast for Thursday. Cold temperatures throughout.
Its a clear one in Nozawa Onsen this morning and is set to remain that way most of the day in combination with cold temperatures and light winds. The full moon put on quite a show this morning as it set behind the sunrise lit peaks. With plenty of fresh tracks left from yesterday its going to be a great day on the hill, the only downside being potential lines from weekend crowds.
Yesterday we had fresh snow fall for much of the day. It was a little wet and heavy at first, however as it became colder during the day the snow quality subsequently improved. With light crowds and winds reloading slopes whilst the lift runs around were made, it was easy to find untracked powder fields right up to last lifts.
A spectacular forecast continues to tease us for the week ahead with big numbers across the board. It will all kick off tomorrow with light snow flurries that will intensify overnight with a north west wind shift. Very heavy snow and very cold temperatures are predicted. We are talking -15C with 50cm. Quality will be as good as it gets on Monday its safe to say. Another strong front is then forecast for Monday night delivering similar totals. Moderate to heavy falls are then predicted for most of the week.
Snow has returned for the day here in Nozawa Onsen. After clear skies early last night it looked as if not much would fall. However sure enough we woke to a coverage of 15-20cm of fresh on the upper areas of the mountain and 10cm at village level. Clouds are covering the mountain still, it looks like these falls will continue today. Good times await.
Yesterday we had a beautiful sunny spring like day. Many people were stoked to get some sunshine after such and extended period of snow and very cold weather. The snow started out firm and fast with a cold morning. During the day a very slight southerly breeze blew in some warmer air and combining with the winter sun of Honshu the snow became somewhat slushy and forgiving. Really, it was a great day to be cruising about the mountain at a relaxed pace. For the real adventurous there was still more than few fresh tracks to be had in isolated shaded gullies.
A tasty looking forecast awaits us for the next week or so. Snowfalls will clear later today and tomorrow should be mostly sunny with increasing clouds during the afternoon, the buildup to what will be a huge dump. Its looking as if around 50-100cm of snow will fall from Sunday night till Tuesday morning so there will be some powder about. Temperatures will be some of the coldest all season with a freezing level well below sea level. Light to moderate snowfalls are then set to continue for most of next week.
