Appi Kogen Ski Resort

I visited it twice in two years. The trails are well designed, as a snowboarder, I enjoyed it. We were lucky enough to enjoy the powder snow most of the time. There r trails for beginner and advanced, ungroomed trails r fun. There r tree runs for those who r interested too.

Really enjoyed our time at Appi. The snow was massive for Christmas (seems to be a common theme here in Japan) and it basically never stopped snowing the 3 days we were there. We stayed off resort so it was reasonable and shuttles ran frequently through the quaint snow covered “town.” Don’t expect too much night life here, it’s about families and powder. Runs were nice but really cater to beginner and intermediates. We brought our own skis this time as rentals run the same price as lift tickets and sizes max out at a quite small 170cm (this has been consistent in Japan as well). They have cat skiing but it runs quite pricy at about $200 USD per day, so that was a pass. Knocked off one star because they have lots of trees but no tree skiing. The trees are very dense, but could be opened up in the off season at the resort’s discretion. As such, in combination with the lack of much of a steep pitch, there were very limited options for advanced skiers. Please open those trees! Limited wait on lifts given the holidays, but you should never see 1 or 2 people on a quad with folks waiting.

The trails are great. Great snow, we'll groomed. The staff are not very good. The gondola line will wrapping around in a U shape with a 20 minute wait, meanwhile the staff are allowing groups of 3 to take an entire carriage that can fit 8 people even though the signs there say to fit at least 6. The bus situation is a mess if you're trying to stay in Morioka so you dont have to pay a small fortune for the on site lodging. Even though I'm sure it's a common occurrence, apparently the bus company can't fathom more than 2 busses of people trying to get to the ski resort. They didnt have any sort of standby system for extra people. When not everyone fit on the 2 7:40 am busses we had to wait for another bus that didn't leave until 8:30 am which is 50 minutes. Pretty bad considering their scheduling is terrible and even the 7:40 am bus arrives 30 minutes after the ski lifts open. And the 8:30 am bus didnt even fit everyone so we had to wait for another bus. So despite being 15 minutes early for the earliest bus I didnt get to the resort until 100 minutes after the lifts opened.

Good facilities and nicely groomed runs. Bit disappointed with the tree riding as a snowboarder. Totally doable but trees are relatively tightly spaced and get tracked out quickly. We were looking forward to hiking into the 'Attack Zone' but it's strictly off limits because of the Cat operation. All about the $$ it seems.

Our coach Max Northey really did an excellent job coaching my daughter and I on the ski lessons. Very detail oriented and patient. Excellent job!

One of my favorite places to ski/snowboard in Japan. Not crowded most of the times and many options on the slopes for different levels and skills. facilites are nice with plenty of options for food. Hotel, rentals , food, toilets and all in one place. Surroundings is very quiet but great to rest after 🏂 session. Might not be your place if you’re looking for nightlife.

Undoubtedly the worst ski resort I’ve ever been to. The customer service is embarrassing for a place like Japan and the staff are shameless in their attitude and handling of complaints. We came with the family with enthusiasm to try a new place in Japan but it quickly becomes apparent that all this place cares about is making money and no thought about overall customer experience. My wife mistakenly purchased an extra ski ticket which they said was non refundable even though only one ski lift was open. They also charged 3,000 per day for just ski poles and would not provide refund or even vouchers for not using a second day. If you’re thinking about coming here, think again. Do yourself a favour and head somewhere like Niseko, Hakuba, Nozawa onsen, Madarao, Minakami, etc which are a million times better

Overall a great resort for beginners and intermediate skiers. Lots of options and very friendly greens and reds. The food option at the food hall is great as well.

This is a solid ski resort that's pretty well maintained and not too crowded. I visited on a holiday weekend and upgraded to the gold pass thinking it'll be helpful to bypass potentially long lines for the lifts/gondola. While the gold pass saved me a decent amount of time otherwise waiting for the gondola, I really didn't need it for any of the lifts because the lines were generally short. Compared to some other places I've visited in Japan, this spot seems pretty local and not overly touristed at all. If you're visiting and didn't pack gear with you, luckily the rental store onsite is pretty good. All the clothing and equipment were high quality and in great condition. The only downside is that you can't rent goggles or gloves, so those have to be bought at a store in the same building complex. There seemed to be ample parking spots at this ski resort, although I didn't personally use it because I arrived via the free shuttle that my ryokan provided.

Absolutely loved this place!! Our view was beautiful, staff was amazing, and slopes were perfect!! I have to give a shoutout to Sam and Alex!! Sam was my snowboarding instructor and he was fabulous to work with! I highly recommend him!! Alex was working in the bar/cafe area and she was absolutely the sweetest!! I sprained my ankle and she went above and beyond to help me!! She literally saved me!! She had extra crutches and she gave them to me, which was a life saver!! The only thing bad I would have to say about this is that there is not much food options. There was a fancy restaurant, the buffet, and the bar/cafe. We had to eat at the buffet for breakfast and dinner for ¥4500 per person. It was delicious, but I would've loved more options. The slopes were perfect! Powder was perfect!! Def coming back next season!!

Stayed at the Appi Grand Hotel for 3 days. Couldn't be more convenient...everything from rentals, tickets, hot spring bath, parking, and restaurants was perfect. Down the elevator and its a 1 minute walk to your first ski lift of the day.

Love this ski resort! I mostly snowboard in Southern California, which back country is sub par. But here Appi, it was a dream come true! Back country runs were full of fresh soft powder, nearly 3 feet deep. One of my back country runs was almost 3 miles long! Their freestyle park had plenty of 7-9 foot jumps and kickers, but lacked jibs. Possibly 2 boxes, and 3 rails. Wait time for the lifts were averaging less than a minute throughout the day. At the time I went, they reported an 18 ft base, which was incredible. I recommend taking the Gondola to the top at 38,000 ft altitude, which begins with a black diamond, then splits off to intermediate runs with the option of 4-5 back country runs. Halfway down the mountain, there's a nice restaurant called Red Horse. They have a great selection of rice dishes, and ramen bowls. If you like Chuhi, they unfortunately only have one flavor there. The only disappointment was their gift shop. I really wanted a resort hoodie or T-shirt, but the selection was lacking. And all the clothing in Japan run much smaller, so you would need to go up a size or two. Would I come here again? Absolutely.