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Nagano Ski Safari

Japan

Scenic Hakuba © Ski Japan Holidays
Combine powder and piste skiing with authentic Japanese culture, touring Nagano by train before ending on a high with a night out in Tokyo on our Nagano Ski Safari.
  • Culture
  • Nightlife
  • Non-Ski Activities
  • Once-in-a-Lifetime
  • Off the Beaten Track
  • Village Charm
Beginner
Intermediate
Advanced

Set on the main island of Honshu, this ski safari has the perfect balance of skiing and culture. A bullet train ride from Tokyo, many of the ski resorts near Nagano City are accessible on Japan's excellent rail network. Some journeys can take up to half a day, creating a sense of adventure that really adds to the experience.

With huge variety, the main ski area of Hakuba Valley has ten shuttle-linked resorts all offering something special. Nozawa Onsen is a cultural immersion with its traditional accommodation, cobbled streets and hot springs plus superb intermediate powder terrain.

Depending on your preference, we can recommend the best places for piste skiing and powder, and it’s also worth taking a day out to visit the famous Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park. Finishing with a night or two in Tokyo is another essential Japanese experience.

"Each of these resorts offers a very individual experience that’s not to be missed. For a culture and skiing combination, Nagano is fantastic."

Suggested itinerary

This sample itinerary is just our suggestion of how you could divide your time between Nagano’s best ski areas and Japan's famous cities.

Days 1 to 8

Touchdown in Tokyo and travel to the Hakuba Valley via bullet train. Spend up to four days exploring Honshu’s largest ski area, travelling between local resorts via shuttles. The main resort of Happo-One makes the best base but our favourite places for day trips are Tsugaike, Hakuba47 and Goryu. Take a day out to see the red-faced macaques bathing in hot springs at Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park. For the best experience, a full-day tour includes Zenkoji Temple and lunch.

Days 9 to 2

Transfer two hours to Nozawa Onsen, Japan’s oldest ski resort is as famous for its centuries-old onsens (hot springs) and annual Fire Festival (February) as it is for its long, cruisey ski slopes.

Days 13 to 14

Finish with a few nights in Tokyo, staying at a city centre hotel in the heart of the action. Explore the mega-malls, tour the temples and eat as much sushi, ramen and katsu curry as you can handle.

Like the look of this itinerary?

Our Prices

Every holiday is tailor-made, just for you.

To give you the most choice and best value, we create every holiday from scratch. This means that the quotation you receive is unique, based on your preferred departure dates, group size and holiday preferences.

We save you time and get the most for your money.

We sift through the prices and promotions for every airline, hotel and resort, exploring all options. We don’t publish all our prices online. Instead, we give personal quotations within 1-2 days of receiving your request.

Customer Reviews

What our customers say about Nagano Ski Safari.

A good range of skiing and we were lucky enough to have fresh snow on 4 mornings. Most of the time there were no queues to the lifts and the pistes were fairly quiet. The gondola staff would take your skis and put them on the gondola and take them off again at the other end. Nice service. We enjoyed our stay at the Goryukan (Hakuba) which is a good 4* hotel and would recommend it. We had a Japanes…
Lorna Rusdale
26th March 2017
Trip was flexed to suit our travel arrangements, staff at Ski Safari were always a pleasure to deal with whenever I had any questions, or wanted to add on extras at the last minute!
Anne Woods
15th February 2016
An amazing experience! The hotels were fantastic and the itinerary pack was amazing help to navigate our way around Tokyo and Hakuba! Best holiday I have been on! Ski Safari have done a fantastic job organising it!
Camilla Fallows
9th February 2015
Amazing time. We went to Kyoto, then Nowaza Onsen, Hakuba & finally Toyko, and it was excellent.
Stephanie Monks
21st January 2015
Had a blast in Japan... with a capital "B". It is easily the most enthralling holiday I've had in many ways. The people are the best! All went well... so absolutely no complaints.
Paul Blakeborough
11th March 2014
Andrea tailored the trip as we wanted to be on the slopes on New Year. We couldn't have been more happy, especially for the value. The information on train times, platforms, and suggested routes/aps to help us really helped us in an unfamiliar country. Thank you Andrea, we mentioned how grateful to you we were almost every day! You made the holiday perfect for us.
Jennifer Siggs
16th January 2014
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