Ski Contest Nozawa Onsen Yesterday was an utterly stunning day up in the mountain and down in the village – you were either skiing or walking through gently falling snow mixed with sunshine creating a magic concoction of glitter in the sky! At some moments, the flakes were so fat, if they caught in your hair they lingered as a new accessory, not melting for a few minutes. Today is the last day of the All Japan National Junior High School Ski Championships. School children from around Japan aged between 13 and 15 years old have been competing this week in a range of disciplines such as downhill racing, ski jumping and cross country skiing. Nozawa Onsen has the competition […]
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Snowy Day Nozawa Onsen
Snowy Day Nozawa Onsen Today is a day for yukimi, snow viewing! Or powder riding! We’ve woken up to a fresh snowfall of 23cm, just under the “Magic Foot”. The snow is still falling gently down into the village, with patterns of azure blue behind the clouds. Looking up into the mountains, it looks like a giant walked through the valley over night, shaking icing sugar everywhere; the sugary snow dusting the trees white. It’s a welcome change after the unusual Spring-like temperatures we’ve had earlier in the week. The local children are walking to school outside my window, all rugged up with waterproof gloves and wooly hats, a few carrying cross-country skis! The Junior High Championships currently in Nozawa […]
Snow Monkeys Nozawa Onsen
Snow Monkeys Nozawa Onsen We were expecting to wake up to light snow this morning but the sun us still winning at this stage. Have a feeling the snow will kick in soon though and will get heavier throughout the day. One of the most special sites to see in Nagano, our prefecture, are the snow monkeys. Just over the hill in Yudanaka National Park, you can find the furry creatures relaxing, playing and bathing in the warm natural spring waters. There’s also an Onsen you can relax in yourself and the monkeys may come and join you! The Jigokudani Monkey Park (Jigokudani Yaen Koen, 地獄谷野猿公苑) was created in 1964, as a conservation area to protect the Japanese macaques who […]
Learning Japanese Nozawa Onsen
Learning Japanese Nozawa Onsen After skiing for several days last week in amongst the clouds, it’s absolutely magic when those clouds and mist lift and we have a day like yesterday – bluebird, where you can see the gorgeous vista far below you. It’s hard not to stop every 10 minutes while riding down the piste to take photos. Today is shaping up to be similar so make sure you get to the top of Yamabiko to try and catch a glimpse of the Sea of Japan to the east. The sun is just poking over Mt Kenashi now and there is not a breathe of wind. Today I wanted to share some tips and tricks and resources for learning […]
Ski Trick Fun Nozawa
Ski Trick Fun Nozawa Beautiful sunny days on the menu for today and tomorrow in Nozawa Onsen. When I was chatting with Nozawa Holidays ski instructor Coco the other day, he expressed to me how skiing and snowboarding are really all about just having fun! It’s very easy to get caught up in the desire to improve and get better, focusing on the technical side of riding. And of course it’s great to challenge ourselves to learn and grow in our skiing and boarding techniques. But it’s also important to remember that being an expert at skiing or snowboarding doesn’t just mean being able to do expert and black diamond courses! Coco said, how about skiing backwards all the way […]
Sunday Pancakes Nozawa Onsen
Sunday Pancakes Nozawa Onsen Waking up to a snowy Sunday morning here in Nozawa. Not a huge dump but enough to freshen everything up and fat flakes still falling outside my window right now. The sun is supposed to make an appearance later today as the snow fall eases. Another week comes to an end in Nozawa Onsen, we’ve had some EPIC powder days and some glorious sunny bluebird days. This weekend in the village, it’s been lively with visitors from Tokyo. But next week, the resort is quietening down meaning no lift lines and being quickly served at restaurants. It’s the best time of the year to visit! Now it’s time for a treat to celebrate the week’s end […]
Best Morning Coffee Nozawa
Best Morning Coffee Nozawa Every season, we are on the search for the best coffee or “Kohi” in Nozawa Onsen. Unfortunately, Japan isn’t always known for its great coffee… But here in Nozawa, there are some places proving that wrong! Chatter on the street says the new Lift coffee shop at Jonnobi in the old gondola is the best. Nozawa Central above the Nozawa Rental shop also always a favourite open from 8;30am to 10;30am. Drop in grab some gear, have a chat to the Nozawa Holidays team and get your daily brew. I’m a fan of a coffee in Shichirohei at Hikage. Before heading out for line-up of my ski instructing job at 10am, I stop by for a […]
Day Tours Nozawa Skiing
Day Tours Nozawa Skiing Rest And the good snow just keeps on coming… Eleven centimetres of fresh powder is ready and waiting for you to carve fresh tracks into this morning. On days like recent, where the snow is just THAT GOOD, it can be really tempting to keep pushing it. But, powder skiing and riding is tiring. And it’s okay to break up your skiing holiday with some rest days. In fact, Nozawa Onsen is the perfect base for some less intense adventures. Some exciting day trip ideas include: A trip to Nagano City – the prefectural capital city. There is a direct bus from Nozawa to Nagano that leaves around 10am or 4pm each day. In Nagano, there’s […]
The Frenchman can Fly
The Frenchman can Fly Coco stood at the top of the ski jump. He felt scared. He tried not to overthink. Looking down the steep narrow slope, 30 meters high, that would soon send him flying into the air, he took a deep breath and pointed straight… Corentin Cesar aka. Coco a Nozawa Holidays instructor could ski before he could walk. His parents put him on skis when he was just a toddler; three years old. Coco’s home ski field in France is Les Arcs in Bourg-Saint-Maurice. It’s where he grew up. “It’s one of the reasons I came to Nozawa… I didn’t want to travel to the other side of the world to ski in another resort,” he […]
Community and Friendship Nozawa
Community and Friendship Nozawa Over the past few days we’ve had some of the best powder days of the season… And how good is it to be able to share these moments with the family we’ve travelled with, the new friendships made and the Nozawa village community? Today will be another with almost a magic foot fallen overnight! A Japanese Proverb says; Akarui tokoro o hitori de aruku yori, kurai tokoro o nakama to aruku hō ga ii. Which translates to; Walking with a friend in the dark is better than walking alone in the light. There’s something so special about skiing and boarding with friends and family… Bouncing together down the moguls, swerving through the trees, giggling and laughing […]