Please email us, or ask your front desk for information. There are several exceptional restaurants within easy driving distance from the village. There are wineries and sake breweries within easy driving distance too. Obuse is a historic market town a short drive away, with a museum of Hokusai prints, good restaurants and souvenir shops, and a sake brewery.
Try an onsen. Visit the ski museum. Have another onsen. Go hiking. Take an onsen. Visit the snow monkeys. Bathe.Take a soba-making class. Go to the onsen. Sit in one of the many cafes and read a book. Go back to the onsen.
Your front desk staff will have plenty of suggestions for you!
Yes, subject to availability. Please email us at least a week before your arrival if you need a babysitter.
Yes. There is a day-creche run by the ski resort, at Hikage base station. Please book at least three days in advance.
If you require assistance in booking, please email us at least a week before your arrival with the necessary information (e.g. child's name, age, allergies, things to take note of, potty trained, dates and etc.)
Most of our properties offer free guest laundry facilities for use. Detergent is provided free-of-charge as well.
Yes, the emergency number can be found in the information booklet in your accommodation. The nearest hospital is in Iiyama city, a 20-minute drive.
Yes, and in the gondola stations, although coverage isn’t universal.
It depends on the type of accommodation you’re staying in. For apartments or self-contained lodges that come with a kitchen, no meals will be provided, though we do provide simple breakfast ingredients or a welcome basket for some houses.
Nozawa Onsen is 258km north of Tokyo, roughly 3.5 hours’ drive, or a little over 2 hours by public transport.
Just yourself and your camera. The host will provide everything else needed for the class.
Depends on the difficulty level. Soba-making is about an hour, while Japanese handicraft can go up to three hours.
Please check with the front desk for the schedules.
You should book at least a day in advance. Note that most lessons need at least two guests.
At least three days’ notice for cancellation
The local artists spend time and effort preparing for the lessons in advance.
Please order at least five days in advance. If you’ve only remembered your wife’s birthday on the day, ordering flowers is the least of your worries.
Yes. Rates begin from JPY 3,000 + delivery fee JPY 1,200.
- Letter cake
- Photo cake
- Strawberry cake
- Chocolate strawberry cake
- Fruit tart
- Gluten-free/Egg-free/Dairy-free cake (unavailable over certain weekends)
Rates begin from JPY 2,500 + delivery fee JPY 1,200.
Please let the yoga instructor know about your back problem during class. She will select poses that do not hurt your back and soothe out the back aches.
Our yoga instructor will be happy to help with your flexibility.
Yes. Please book at least a day in advance. For more information, please approach the front desk.
It’s an outdoor tour, with a couple of kilometres of rough trail hiking, so please consider your clothing and footwear.
You should book at least one day in advance. For more details, please check with the front desk.
Most rental shops on the home slopes offer overnight storage for your equipment. If you have your own equipment, or have rented in the village, you’ll need to bring it back to your accommodation. There are limited storage lockers up at Hikage gondola.
Generally, yes. If you’re really concerned, please email us and we’ll check for you.
Up to you. There are good courier services (usually delivering within 24 hours) from the airport to the village so you don’t need to carry your skis on the train. However, rental equipment is of good quality.
It depends on what grade you’re looking to hire – Standard, Latest Model, Premium.
Rates usually begin from JPY 3,500 per person per day. Rates are usually available from November onwards. You may email us to check on the rates.
There’s no need to book in advance. If you want high-specification pro gear you can reserve this at most rental shops a day before. If you wish to rent in advance, please go to this page.
Generally from 8am to 5pm. You may double check with the front desk staff before you go to the shop.
There are many ski rental shops in the village. We recommend using those close to the home slopes as they generally have storage facilities (so you don’t have to carry your equipment to and from your accommodation).
Once you’ve exchanged for lift passes or used the lift passes, there’s no refund.
You have up till the start date of your pass to cancel.
Cash payment at the front desk when you arrive.
There will be an additional 4.5% surcharge for credit card transactions.
Yes. The lift pass will expire 10 days after the start date.
We sell up to 8-day lift passes.
However, the resort currently can only issue a maximum of 3 days on one pass. If you’ve ordered a longer pass, you’ll need to exchange the voucher every three days at a lift ticket counter.
You can order your lift passes from November onwards via email. You may make payment at the front desk in cash only. An e-voucher will be given to you. Please exchange it for lift passes at the gondola ticket office.
Alternatively you can buy lift passes at the resort (with cash or a credit card). Note that the resort only sells up to 3-day lift passes.
Either is fine; if you book after you’ve arrived, please give us a day’s notice.
You strap small platforms to the bottom of your regular walking boots, that allows you to walk on snow without sinking in. You can then enjoy hiking on snow.
It’s up to you. Some people say that surfers/skateboarders find snowboarding easier, while skaters and rollerbladers find skiing easier. Snowboarding is quite physical while skiing can be less physically challenging. And the fashion style is different!
It’s up to you, and how you like to learn. A lot of your competence will come from practicing what your instructor has taught you so you may not need to be with an instructor the whole time.
You can book a private lesson together. However, lessons work better if everyone is roughly the same level and so you might want to consider separate lessons for part of your day, and then ski/board together after your lessons.
We can request this as a private lesson, but we do not recommend it as the techniques are very different and few instructors can teach both.
You can book a private lesson together. Note that private lessons work better if everyone is roughly the same level.
You can book ski lessons at the same time as your accommodation. Alternatively, your front desk staff can book for you, with three days’ notice.
We can usually find a Mandarin-speaking instructor but please let us know your request at the time of booking your accommodation.
Yes. If you’d like to engage an instructor, please let us know at the time of booking your accommodation.
Go to the ski school building at Hikage ski area. A public snowmobile shuttle will ferry passengers to and fro every 10-15 minutes for free. Feel free to ask the front desk staff for directions.
If you’re skiing on-piste then there’s no need, although a mountain guide might help you understand the available trails more quickly. If you’d like to ski off-piste then common sense dictates that you take a guide. Good guides are scarce so please book as early as possible, ideally at the same time as you book your accommodation.
The distance varies depending on which accomodation you are staying at. Please approach the front desk staff for directions.
You can bring a small onsen towel with you to the onsen. You must not bring it with you into the bathwater though.
Furusato no Yu, and Sparena, charge for entrance. All other onsen are free, although you may make a donation to their upkeep in the donation box at the entrance if you like.
There are several foot onsen dotted around the village. Please ask your front desk for directions.
Yes, at Sparena - swimwear is required. Feel free to ask the front desk for directions to the onsen.
Some hotels like Residence Yasushi have private-use onsen, usually exclusive to hotel guests only.
Yes, there is a simple supermarket in the village. There are much bigger supermarkets in Iiyama where the Shinkansen station is. Please feel free to ask the front desk for directions.
Yes, but please advise us at the time you reserve your accommodation.
Not necessary. It is a small village and everything is within walking distance.
Yes, we have limited parking at some hotels and available on a first-come, first-served basis. Please inform us that you need a parking space at the same time as you reserve your accommodation. If there are no parking lots left available, we will guide you to the nearest public parking.
Yes, we can. We need at least two weeks’ notice. Please email us with the necessary details (e.g. pick-up location, travel date, arrival time, no. of people, no. of baggage & etc).
The JR pass is very good value if you are travelling on multiple long-distance trains. There are several options, please click here to see if it would make sense for you.
If you are certain that you need a JR pass, you must apply for it before you arrive in Japan, and collect your pass at the first station that you want to use it.
From Iiyama Station to Nozawa Onsen, if you have a reserved seat on the Shinkansen, please email us at least three days in advance with the train number and time of arrival at Iiyama Station, and we will book a taxi for you. If not, there are often taxis waiting at the train station's taxi stand.
If you would like to book a taxi from Nozawa Onsen to Iiyama Station, please let the front desk know at least two days in advance, especially if it is over the weekend.
You do not need to book it unless you are arriving in a group of 20 or more. At peak periods, if one departure is full, the bus operator will automatically provide another bus to match demand.
You can book a reserved seat up to one month before the departure date, at any JR main station or here.
Note that all Shinkansen that stop at Iiyama also have unreserved seats that you do not need to book. Ticket vending machines have an English menu and sell both reserved and unreserved seats; they take JPY cash, and local credit cards; if you want to use a foreign credit card, you should go to the counter.
Please email us at least a week in advance with the following information:
Your Name:
Booking ID of your reservation:
No. of adults:
No. of children (aged 12 and below):
Flight Arrival/Departure date:
Flight Arrival/Departure time:
Airport:
No. of luggage/ski bags:
The Nozawa Liner bus schedule is available at the front desk. Alternatively, you could go to this website.
The train schedule is available at the front desk. Alternatively, you could try this website.
It depends on your luggage size and weight. It is usually between JPY 2500 - JPY 4000 per luggage.
Yes, you can send your luggage in advance. Please let the front desk know when you check-in that you would like to send your luggage and they will advise further.
To the airport, you would need to send your luggage at least 48 hours before your flight. To other places in Japan, it will take 24 hours.
Yes, and we would encourage you to do so.
Recommended courier company: Kuroneko Yamato (the logo is a black cat with a yellow background)
Simply present the accommodation address in Japanese to the courier staff at the airport, and they will handle the paperwork for you. Your luggage should arrive at the hotel in 24 hours. If you are sending your luggage more than three days before your arrival, please let us know.
Yes, you can use the facilities after you have checked out, for that day.
Yes, we will look after your luggage for you after you have checked out, for that day.
Please let us know at least 2 days before your arrival. We will send you the door code (if applicable to your hotel) and check-in instructions, so when you arrive, you may collect your keys at the front desk, and deal with the check-in formalities in the morning. Please bring along your passports for check-in.
If you are staying at Paradise Chalet, please note that you must check in at Address Nozawa between 11:00 and 14:00 JPY. Any later than 14:00, you may miss the last gondola that will take you to Paradise Chalet. In winter, there is no other way to go up to the mountains other than taking the gondola.
Yes, we will have at least one bilingual staff who is fluent in English and Japanese in every property to assist in reservations and simple translations.
Yes, we will have at least one bilingual staff who is fluent in English and Japanese in every property to assist in explanations and simple translations.
Yes. Please order at least a week in advance or use this link.
No need to book. You can simply head to Chuo Bus terminal and wait for the inter-resort shuttle. Prices start from JPY 6,200 per person. Check with the front desk for the bus schedules and directions to the bus terminal.
Absolutely! Not only can you ski on the easy home runs, but several of the easiest runs are towards the top of the mountain, so you can ride the gondola and enjoy the same wonderful views as expert skiers.
27% are expert, 22% are intermediate, 51% are beginner runs. There are two designated cross-country courses, and many possible snowshoe routes.
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