The Skiers' Guide to Shiga Kogen

Shiga kogen is a powder heaven for skiers it has a lot less infrastructure than most of the other ski resorts but you can get to the majority of the 19 resorts by bus, the snow in Shiga kogen is the best I have ever seen with only being here a week we in early December we have already had 80cm of snow.

After doing 2 full seasons in shiga kogen, I have learned the resort and everything it has to offer. Shiga being the largest interconnected resort in Japan means it has lots of groomed runs for all levels. But let's be honest you don't come to Japan for the groomed runs. It's all about the untracked, deep powder tree runs. For this shiga does not disappoint. There is next to an unlimited amount to explore with alot of it being lift accessed. Even after 2 seasons there I feel I have seen less than 10% of what it has to offer. Shiga was described to me as 'the hidden diamond of japan' and I could not agree more. On top of all of this if you feel like a change of scenery you can head on a short bus ride over to Yokoteyama, a separate resort/ mountain that is included in the shiga kogen lift pass. This is a limited mountain for groomers but again the tree runs are out of this world. The cherry on top is the bakery/ restaurant at the top of the mountain. A must visit weather you can ski down or not.

Saying this the resort is aged and a nature reserve, therefore the bars and apre is limited. The layout of the resort is long, meaning everything is rather spread out and you will benefit from having a car to have access to everything.

Consistent snow, easy access from Tokyo, and minimal crowds makes it one of the best resorts I have ever experienced.