Japan Cold Snap Nozawa Japan is being hit by a once-in-a-decade cold snap and we’re certainly feeling it here in Nozawa Onsen. We’ve again hit our two metre mark for the Yamabiko base! Yesterday we woke up to sunshine but by lunchtime, the clouds had crowded in, the winds picked up and the snow started falling. The base went from 150cm to 230cm in just one day! Temperatures are the coldest they’ve been all season so if you’re out chasing some of that powder today, put on double those usual layers and make sure you’ve got your powder planks if venturing anywhere off the groomers. You know its cold when the road heating just can’t keep up. It’s going to […]
Ski Board Rental Nozawa
Boxing Day Nozawa Japan
Boxing Day Nozawa Japan Half a Meter of Snow overnight for Nozawa Boom and just like that the whole scene can change in Nozawa. The snow tap has been turned firmly on the last few days and a Christmas gift of 50cm last night adding to the cheer. Scenery around town is like the Nozawa Winter we know so well, with cars and paths quickly disappearing. Up on the slopes will be magic today with all this fresh snow and should be reasonably quiet being a week day before the New Years break. TODAY: Temperature at the top; -6 degrees New snow since yesterday; a Fabulous 50cm! More than a Magic Foot! Base at the top; 90cm Snow conditions; […]
Compacted snow conditions Nozawa
Compacted snow conditions Nozawa Yesterday was a gorgeous day up the mountain with skiers and boarders floating around on fresh powder! It was great to see lots of people from around the world making the most of the day, riding and having fun. An extra bonus is the mountain is still quite quiet at the moment so there are hardly ever any lift queues! Make the most of this as most of Nozawa Onsen’s accomodation is almost fully booked up for January! TODAY: Temperature at the top; -6 degrees with a windchill down to -7 (not quite as cold as yesterday!) New snow since yesterday; 0cm total Base at the top; 45cm Snow conditions; Compacted snow Weather; It’s a gorgeous […]
Waking Up Nozawa Snow
Waking Up Nozawa Snow The moment we’ve all been eagerly waiting for has arrived – waking up to a thick layering of white powdery snow in Nozawa Onsen village! After the weekend’s big snow forecast not eventuating, many of us pondered when we’d finally catch up to the rest of Nagano and neighbouring Niigata prefectures – even Joetsu, right by the ocean, received it’s first snow dump! But here we are, waking up to a winter wonderland. How good! TODAY: Temperature at the top; -5 degrees with a windchill down to -17 in the morning so make sure to bring those extra layers! New snow since yesterday; 8cm total (wahoo!) Base at the top; 45cm Snow conditions; Fresh powder! Weather; […]
Another day Nozawa Paradise
Another Day Nozawa Paradise It’s a lovely winters day in Nozawa Onsen, waking up to the magic of soft falling snow with the beautiful blue sky peeking through scattered clouds. How lucky are we to be here! It will be a fun day up on the mountain with a consistent top up of snow on the trails all day. TODAY: Temperature at the top; – 6 degrees with a windchill down to -25 so make sure to bring a few extra layers. New snow since yesterday; 10cm total. Base at the top; 45cm (the base continues to build, yahoo!). Snow conditions; Fresh dusting of powder. This will be topped up all day as it continues to snow throughout the […]
Resort Planned Opening Tuesday
Resort Planned Opening Tuesday It was another gorgeous, sunny spring-like day in Nozawa Onsen today. It was a good day trying out a Chouse Bun from Akari House Swiss Bakery, yum! But this weekend should bring a heavy fall of snow to the surrounding mountains. Unfortunately, the previous Sunday forecast of more than 30cm has since dropped to just under 20cm but some snow is better than no snow! At least 4cm of snow should be falling to 600m freezing level on Sunday. The last few days of cool temperatures have seen the snow guns working hard up top. Nozawa Onsen ski resort was hoping to open on Monday but they have just postponed the opening of the field to […]
Ski Board Rental Nozawa
Ski Board Rental Nozawa Meet the Team – Nozawa Holidays Leading up to the season will try and introduce you to members of our team and some local legends about Nozawa. First up introducing our man of many talents – Hugo san Hugo is the top dog in charge of both our rental shop and our ski school. Originally from the wine region Rioja in the north of Spain, Hugo is joining us for his 8th consecutive season at Nozawa Onsen. He’s been riding for more than 30 years. Growing up, it was only a 45-minute drive from his hometown to the bottom chairlift of his local field. When Hugo’s not skiing or boarding, you’ll find him on two […]
First Snow Nozawa Onsen
First Snow Nozawa Onsen It’s day two of winter in Japan and the morning has brought fresh first snow Nozawa Onsen! Since 11 o’clock this morning, our favourite winter sight has been falling from the sky, dusting Nozawa Onsen in white. The morning started with a blue sky and sunshine peaking through scattered clouds but as the day rolled along, dark-grey cloud cover descended on Nozawa Onsen. It’s the first snow in the village of the season. Fingers crossed this is a very good sign for an epic winter to come! Usually, on average, it’s the third snow of the season that sticks around so we are now on our way. The resort is making the most of the freezing […]
Resorts Open Early Japan
Resorts Open Early Japan Harvesting the Veggies in Nozawa before they end up in the cool room. We have had some beautiful sunny days lately and as always helpful with getting work done before the season starts. Conditions look set to change from tomorrow afternoon with a West/ North West wind change dropping temps by over 10 degrees and taking the freezing level down. Resorts Open Early Japan Rain up top will turn to snow and a decent fall forecast for Friday night. Not sure it will be enough to get the lifts turning but with cold temps they can no doubt get the snow making happening too. Stay tuned it is early days. Resorts currently open in the […]
Best Coffee Nozawa Onsen
Best Coffee Nozawa Onsen Getting your morning fix in Nozawa Where is your favourite Coffee in Nozawa? Cold Winter, Hot Coffee or if prefer Hot Chocolate. They kind of go hand in hand and nothing better to warm the soul than a hot brew on a snowy day. For years it was hard to get a good cuppa in Nozawa and I remember people begging us to get a decent coffee Machine. So we did, about 10 Years ago I am guessing, we put it at Nozawa Central and it was the first espresso machine in town. As people’s love of coffee grew in Japan and around the world Nozawa followed and before long there were plenty of places to […]