Shiga Kogen

Gigantic Ski Area

Shiga Kogen is an absolutely huge ski area. The actual resort is made up of several different areas. Basically the resort has two areas. One area is made up of Yokoteyama and Kumanoyu, plus several smaller resorts. The other end of the resort is made up of Ichinose, Yakebitai, Okushiga and several smaller resorts. In total there are 21 resorts which are connected by 60 lifts and shuttle bus. This is undoubtedly the biggest resort in Japan.

Light Dry Powder – the best in Japan

Shiga Kogen has the highest altitude of any ski resort in Japan (2300m at the top of Yokoteyama) and even the bottom lifts at around 1500m are higher than the top of most resorts in Japan! Due to the extra altitude at Shiga Kogen, the powder is light and dry. If you described the powder at Myoko Kogen as great and Nozawa Onsen as fantastic, Shiga Kogen can only be called sublime.

Snow Monkeys

The snow monkeys of Jigokudani yaen koen are a must see for anyone planning a trip to Nagano, and staying at Shiga Kogen you are in the perfect place to visit the monkey park, which is located at the bottom of the road up to the resort. The snow monkeys are famous the world over thanks to a BBC documentary from a few years ago

Snow monkeys video