Yuzawa

About Yuzawa Area

Yuzawa area is home to some 16 different ski fields, the best of which we have sought out to bring to you. Yuzawa village is itself a bustling town, with a large number of restaurants and eateries, and no short number of Japanese style pubs. To add some apres options to your Holiday, all within walking distance of most accommodations, and with a convenient shuttle bus system, it is hard to go passed Yuzawa!

With a floor plan that oozes efficiency, the new Train/Gondola station at Gala Yuzawa is easily the best gateway into any of the Japanese ski fields. Disembark the train before following the easily visible bilingual signs up the stairs. From there you are standing face to face with the ticket office, more than able to handle the sudden influx of large numbers with ease. The next big ticket item is equipment, but again the floor plan funnels you nicely into either your choice of Snowboard gear or Ski equipment. Once you’ve been kitted up in next to no time, you’ll simply follow the signs to the high capacity locker room. Once changed, and your luggage safely stored, you walk through the opposite side you entered, straight into the Gondola que!

Once up the mountain, Gala offers three distinct ski areas, all offering their own selection of courses. The Central area is for those beginners and intermediates looking for gentle courses. The Northern area offers up mostly intermediate runs, including access to Yuzawa’s well designed and interesting park, home to regular big air competitions. One lonely fresh powder track is on offer here too, but if you’re after more of that style then the third area of the resort will be your spot. Consisting of nothing but steep, un-groomed runs, the Southern area takes a small amount of traversing to get to, but will be any powder enthusiasts pick after heavy snowfall!

The Southern area is also the access point to the connecting Yuzawa Kogen Resort, giving you easy access to an entirely different set of terrain!

The main Ropeway to Yuzawa Kogen ski resort is an inconspicuous building located right in the heart of the Yuzawa Village. As the resort itself is entirely obscured from the main street, you will be forgiven for thinking that accessing the slopes is a longer trek than it actually is. Once up the mountain you’ll find yourself presented with mostly intermediate and green runs, with just the single advanced line to keep the experienced interested. Out of bounds is forbidden, so if you are going to attempt several of the very tasty looking off-piste runs, make sure you do so discreetly, and of course all at your own risk.

Yuzawa Village is centered around its station, which is newly refurbished and now a modern, busy commercial hub. Your accommodation will rarely be a long walk, and subsequently neither will the lifts.

Once you check in and have all your gear, you can either jump on the local village shuttle, or make the walk down to the Ropeway station. Lift tickets can be bought from the first floor, and you will have to catch the cable car all the way up the top to access all but the one beginner run. Be aware that these leave every twenty minutes from the hour, so make sure to time your arrival to avoid waiting.