Hakuba Village in Nagano Prefecture is THE place for skiing in Japan! Blue Resort Hakuba Sanosaka is the closest ski resort to Hakuba from Nagano IC and has a lot of sunny nice weather too. It is an authentic resort type slope with many straight and wide courses, so everyone from beginners to advanced skiers can enjoy. A great view of Lake Aoki can be seen from the lift landing on the Lake Down Slope lift! Another unique aspect of this ski resort is snow rafting like a roller coaster that runs on the snow via snowmobiles, and snowshoe tours that walk around the snowy forest. Snowshoe tours are guided and there are few climbs, so over elementary school students (6+) can participate.

Photograph provided by Nagano Tourism Organization