Madarao Nozawa Onsen
We have posted a few Summer activities going on in our neighbouring resort Madarao about time we put up a winter shot. Madarao is located just across the Chikuma river and you can see it from the upper slopes of Nozawa.
The resort was very popular with students mainly in the early 90s and used to be completely packed. Like many resorts in Japan it got quiet pretty quickly after the boom times. Aki san and the team over there have been working hard on putting it back on the map and it is becoming popular again. They have been concentrating on their powder game with 60% of courses ungroomed. There are some great tree runs and amazing views to be enjoyed. It has also retrieved a large influx of overseas skiers in the past few years since we wrote this article first back in 2015.
Madarao Nozawa Onsen
It only has 440m vertical compared to 1085m at Nozawa Onsen so often people will only stay for a few days also not much of an après scene without the village atmosphere of Nozawa. So it makes for a great day trip from Nozawa Onsen and we have a bus running daily. Here is a link: Bus Nozawa to Madarao
It takes a bit over an hour and only costs 1200 yen One way. Need to book a day in advance so either ask your lodge to book or go to the ticket counter in Nozawa.
Ski Runs & Trail
- Top Elevation 1350m
- Bottom Resort 910m
- Total Vertical 440m
- Runs – Groomed 60%, Non Groomed 30%, Moguls 10%
| Beginner Course & Area | 30% |
|---|---|
| Intermediate Course & Area | 35% |
| Advanced Course & Area | 35% |
- Ski Lifts; 15 in Total
- Number of Runs; 29
- Longest Run; 2500m
Tangram is the resort next door that interconnects with Madarao and if going well worth spending the extra yen to get a dual ticket as makes it easier to access some of the tree runs. This photo was taken from there and has amazing views of Lake Nojiri.
More info on Madarao Kogen Resort here.
https://vimeo.com/42186247