Hakuba Goryu Snow Resort

Date visited: Dec 18 2025 Condition: Rainy at the bottom and very foggy on top if you take the gondola 🚠 up (only one is open for the date visited) Crowd: 🧍🧍🧍🧍🧍 very very crowded Background: been to Cortina, Tsugauke and Goryu during 6 day trip in Hakuba. My level is just learnt how to turn on a snowboard and need a place to get better at it. This is the beginning of snow season here at Hakuba and some of the ski resort haven’t opened yet. The ones that open have limited number of lifts open. Please make sure you check the website before you go. You can get a lot cheaper price for lift tickets for a lot of these ski resorts by going to a nearby rental shop. They have season passes that they can lend you for multiple day use. I’m not too sure if this is legit but they said they are. Goryu is by far the busiest resort out of the three I’ve visited for my trip. Not as powdery at the bottom and all other lanes eventually merge to one at the bottom and unfortunately this is where the green beginner lane is. You’ll get all the traffic from high up and definitely not a good place to start from my point of view as a beginner. For rental you get the burton shop they only have step on snowboard gear which is good quality but I’m not sure if I’ll like it personally. Price is fair ¥6200 per day for a fairly new burton step on set (check my photo). Way cheaper than shops like Rhythm.

Good for intermediate skier who prefers a quieter and smaller scale resort. It feels personal and cozy. For beginners, you will end up at Hakuba 47 and must take the bus back to Goryu if your base is there. Alps-Daira lifts are always busy but they are worth the wait. The powder was fresh, crunchy and super soft on a late December day.

Really cute resort for either families with kids (wide green runs+ night sking) or people who can ski on the good level. Their "red" runs are steep and good to learn on, but could be slightly intimidating, which is good for learning. Mogul run is pretty long and will burn your legs. Food is not bad 1300-1700 yen. 7-11 is 20 min walking from the resort. Bars are pretty expensive: expect a beer around 1000 yen and a shot of whiskey around 1400-1500. The nature around places to stay is gorgeous.

Family friendly slope with lots of green and red runs. Night skiing looked amazing! Eacal plaza has a wide range of ski gear and ski rental stores. Food options was also good with a massive cafeterie and other smaller outlets like subway.

Great little spot to get your beginner legs back. Limited food and terrain options but steep enough for those transitioning from pizza to parallel. Lifts felt safe but slow and base is central and well stocked. Overnight ski lockers are limited so be sure to grab them early. Leaving (any resort) is pure chaos so be ready to wait if you’re after an uber. They have phones to connect directly to local taxi dispatchers and they mostly speak English. The shuttle does come but it’s a scramble to get on as the lines build. The hill was mostly closed by 4PM and the exodus started about 3PM (so be ready to wait, but nothing crazy).

Terrific ski resort for beginners and intermediates. More advanced ski-ers also have access to Hakuba 47 so whole family can meet up thru the day. Well organised shuttle busses mean its probably better to stay near bus routes rather than near lifts and have to drag your gear to slopes each day. Lift lines were pretty quick ( in January) altho some older ones don't have a safety bar, so not sure about taking young kids up those. Beginners will love the wide slopes and being able to take gondola up top and do a few green runs up top, before taking gondola down again. We did Imori, Goyru and Haluba47. Food was best at Escal Plaza at Goyru - lots of seating inside and many options. Lift tickets lower than prices in Aust and NZ and snow seemed much nicer, lessons and rentals about same - perhaps a bit lower - so good value overall. Unfortunately we booked quite late, so our accom was quite expensive but am sure more resonable options are available if you book earlier. Access from Tokyo was pretty easy - either catch the Azusa train direct from Shinjuku station(8am) to Hakuba Stn or catch shinkensen (fast) train from Tokyo Stn to Nagano and bus to Happo Bus stn.

We had rain one day, massive snow dump the next and sun today. Runs were long, snow was great. Plenty of affordable eateries and shops. Lift lines went quickly. Try and buy your tickets online to save some money.

Same review as Hakuba47. The ski pass allows you to go for both resorts! Best for first timers and beginners. Everywhere else was close except these 2

Had such a great time on this course. Also enjoyed the night ski time. Just wish there was a late open Onsen after the night ski.

Although this resort is on the smaller side it does connect with Hakuba 47 and it's nice to ski at two resorts in the same day. There are great views from the top so definitely take the gondola up just for that alone. The runs are great for beginner and intermediate skiers or snowboarders. If you're more advanced or looking for more challenging runs then I'd recommend going to Happo One. What's nice is the shuttle service in the valley lets you hop from one resort to another and it's super easy to use. The only downside is the shuttle service will drop you off in the morning and doesn't start picking people up until after lunch time. Vail Resorts Epic season pass gives you 5 days in Hakuba Valley and that was the main incentive to visit here. I had a great time and will definitely come back in the future.