Shiga Kogen

Great little isolated spot with lots of runs and no crowds, but bring supplies (or be prepared to do dinner roulette). A more traditional Japanese experience vs big resorts. It felt like an ideal place for winter “school camp” with bus loads of young Japanese students arriving by the bus load - not that you see them once you’re on the hill (which was odd but welcome). Dining is super odd - places seem not to open and the listings of opening days and times doesn’t reflect reality. The little corner store has really limited supplies and runs out fast (and opens “around evening” - I wish you luck). It’s best to bring stuff if you can. There is a bus to Nagano and you’re best to book a return ticket b/c other than a private shuttle for 400,000yen it’s your only way out. We ate at, what can only be described as, the canteen just above the ticket office and it was, by far, the best food. For those people booking w the family - we booked a family room (via Agoda) and they stitched us up. The rooms at Grand Shiga Hotel are charged per person (+12 being an “adult”). So we had to do an odd and a bit expensive makeup payment because we paid for the room but not our two kids. Snow was great, place was near enough all to ourselves and we loved the skiing more than Hakuba (but it’s really isolated- that can’t be over stated).

Excellent place especially if you love skiing and snowboarding. Good place to stay near Ichinose with family friendly slopes and ski areas. Yakebitaiyama Family Ski Area near Shiga Kogen Prince Hotel has a free family sledding area fully equip with sleds and a conveyor belt taking you back to the top. There's also a free shuttle bus taking you all around Shiga Kogen.

Good amount of ski slopes and good snow across the whole mountain range/resorts, but very crowded still and some lifts are very slow. Also very annoying that most of the ski slopes aren't connected even though the map makes it seem that way. Yokoteyma had an amazing view though, best I've ever seen. However, snowboard/ski wise, not enough variety in the runs across the resorts to get 5/5.

Lift lines were short even though all the accommodation was full. Lots of groomed run options, plenty of areas to ski. Would suit beginner/ intermediate skies best, a bit light on for advanced runs.

It was beautiful but it wasn’t open when we were there. no restaurant was open either. Beware of the opening date as i see many tourists when up with bus and got disappointed.

Shiga Kogen is an absolutely beautiful ski resort, especially when covered in soft, powdery snow. The scenery is breathtaking, and the vast expanse of the resort makes it a fantastic place for skiing and snowboarding. There are plenty of ski lifts to get you up the mountains, and I was pleasantly surprised that the lift lines weren’t long, even on a busy day. One of the best parts about Shiga Kogen is the convenience—there are plenty of spots to grab food and drinks, as well as rest areas to take a break and warm up. Maps are also posted throughout the resort, which makes it easy to navigate and find your way. The only downside is that the mountains aren’t as seamlessly connected as I’d hoped. After some runs, you may need to stop, unbuckle, and traverse to another area, which can break up the flow of skiing or snowboarding. Overall, though, Shiga Kogen is an amazing place to experience Japan’s winter beauty, with great snow, plenty of lifts, and all the amenities you’d need for a fantastic day on the slopes.

Fantastic ski area. 3 major ski areas are interconnected, central Shiga kogen ski area, Yakebitaiyama area and Okushhiga. If you do not know the way back, go to the base and catch a free bus back. Excellent natural snow conditions. Varied runs from each ski area. There is lunch available for purchase in almost every resort.

People may hate me but I have very mixed feelings about the ski resort. The snow can be great in Japan so that is the one big reason to go. But the resort can be difficult to navigate, it is really a collection of a bunch of small resorts, so you have a lot of traverses and areas were you have to walk. Manny runs are short and lifts are generally very old. If you are not staying up at the resort the transportation to Nagano water a lot of time and can be frustrating. On mountain good was not exceptional, much better food in the cities

Small family run hotel with decor that is charmingly stuck in the 1960s. According to the very nice Yuichi Sato san who mans reception, it opened in 1964. The Japanese rooms are basic and roomy, with the usual tea sets and light futons and quilts. They do breakfasts and dinners, which I would highly recommend you take on as the town is pretty sleepy for a big ski town. (And just in case you're a Pokémon Go addict, bad news - closest Pokestop is at least 10 minutes walk away at Ichinose shrine and the place is a The breakfasts and dinners are very generous spreads in the traditional ryokan fashion, with a hotpot dish, pickles, cold appetizers, hot rice and miso soup as well as a platter of deep fried/grilled items. Later in the week when the crowd builds up, they might do a buffet spread instead of the individual set meals. There are the usual male/female segregated onsen baths which is very good after a full day of snow activities. Besides skiing, you can grab a bus to the Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park which is well worth a day visit. Considering the stay cost us about SGD$110 per head per night, including 2 meals a day, it was probably the cheapest ski place I've stayed at in Japan.