How to get there
Where is Shiga Kogen?
Shiga Kogen, otherwise known as Shiga Kogen Heights, is located in the Joshinetsu National Park in the northeast of Nagano Prefecture. Ichinose (one of the main villages) is about 50km northeast of Nagano and approximately 250km northwest of Tokyo.
Shiga Kogen is a collection of 21 different ski areas, most of which have an associated village. The villages are spread out along two windy mountain roads. It’s about 14km from Okushigakogen at the northern end of the Shiga Kogen to Hasuike, a main intersection in the lower parts of Shiga Kogen. From Hasuike, it’s about a 7km drive along route 292 to the ski area in the southern most part of Shiga Kogen.
The town of Yamanouchi sits at the base of the mountain, about 14km from Hasuike.
Flights
Tokyo Narita is the most convenient gateway airport for most travellers. Another option is Matsumoto airport which is closer to Nagano, with JAL flights from Osaka Itami, Fukuoka and Sapporo New-Chitose airports.
To search for flights to Tokyo Narita and compare lots of different airlines and routes, use one of our recommended
flight aggregators.
Travel from Narita Airport to Nagano
The Narita Express train (NEX) has frequent departures from the Tokyo Narita Airport terminals to the city of Tokyo. The trip takes about 1 hour.
From Tokyo catch the bullet train to Nagano which takes about 100 minutes. Departures are pretty regular during the main part of the day, but you can check
Hyperdia for specific times. Nagano is at the end of the line so there’s no fear you’ll miss your stop!
The most economical way to catch the NEX and the Shinkansen is to buy a
Japan Rail pass. A JR East 4 day pass provides four days of flexible train travel over a one month period. Purchase the voucher and then exchange it for the rail pass at the Narita train station.
For train travel to Nagano from Kyoto, Nagoya, Osaka, or other parts of Japan, see
Hyperdia for schedules, routes and fares.
Bus from Nagano to Shiga Kogen
You may wish to stop in at the Nagano Information Centre at the train station. They have English speaking staff and can provide bus timetables to get to Shiga Kogen, maps of Shiga Kogen, and information regarding activities around Nagano.
Nagaden buses depart regularly from the east (Higashi) exit bus stops. There are schedules listed on the bus stops in English or you can check the
Nagaden Express website for the latest timetables (in Japanese but hopefully you can use google translator). The bus stops at many of the Shiga Kogen villages and all three wings of the Prince Hotel at Yakebi.
The bus trip takes about 70 minutes from Nagano to Sun Valley and another 10-15 minutes to Ichinose and Yakebi. The bus fare needs to be paid in cash on the bus and it costs ¥1,900 one way if you’re going to the upper ski areas (which is applicable to most people), or ¥1,600 if only going to Sun Valley, Maruike or Hasuike (2011 rates). If you’re staying at the south-eastern end of Shiga Kogen (not many westerners stay here), there are only a couple of buses each day that go from Nagano to Kumanoyu. The other option is to catch a bus to Hasuike, and then get the local shuttle to Kumanoyu or Yokoteyama.
Driving to Shiga Kogen
The drive from Tokyo takes about 5 hours. Unlike many other Japanese ski resorts where you can pretty much just drive up to the ski resort, the road up to Shiga Kogen is very windy and often snow covered. Snow tyres are highly recommended or even chains. The drive from Yamanouchi town up to the main parts of Shiga Kogen takes about 20-30 minutes.
Private Transport Providers
Another option is to get the
Nagano Snow Shuttle bus which travels from Tokyo Narita Airport to various Shiga Kogen villages. There’s only one schedule a day and this option will suit travellers with flights that arrive at Tokyo Narita airport in the late afternoon. Catching this bus directly from the airport to Shiga Kogen provides the convenience of not having to drag your luggage between trains and buses.
Getting Around Shiga Kogen
Shiga Kogen is very spread out. The various villages are distributed along a stretch of mountainous road approximately 21km long. So whilst it’s possible to navigate each of the villages on foot, it’s obviously not possible to walk between the villages of Shiga Kogen.
Shuttle buses operate between the villages, which are complimentary if you have a lift pass. Shuttle timetables are available from some accommodations, the Hasuike Information Centre, the Nagano Information Centre, or on the bus stops. The shuttles operate from 8:30am to 17:30, so evening transport is very limited.
The
Prince Hotel Yakebitaiyama provides a shuttle service between the three hotel buildings and Ichinose. The last bus leaves Ichinose at 9:30pm with a special late night service at 9:50pm on Saturday nights (that’s their idea of a late night!!).
Skiing or boarding is an easy way to get around between the villages because the ski areas in the northeast are inter-connected. However if you want to get between the northeast villages and the southeast resorts, you’ll need to catch a shuttle bus. Schedules from the furthest northeast villages (e.g. Yakebi, Ichinose, Okushigakogen) are irregular, so either ski or catch a bus to Hasuike. From Hasuike there are more regular bus services to Kumanoyu and Yokoteyama. The buses stop at every stop so it’s a painstaking hour long trip from one end of Shiga Kogen to the other.
It’s also possible to book a taxi to get around Shiga Kogen, although it’s somewhat expensive because the taxis come from the bottom of the mountain.
Other Ski Resorts Nearby
There are other major ski resorts near Nagano, so it’s easy to combine Shiga Kogen with another ski resort or two on your Japan ski holiday. Nearby ski resorts include
Nozawa Onsen,
Myoko Kogen and
Hakuba. Unfortunately the cheapest way to get to any of these ski resorts is to catch the bus back into Nagano and then get another bus out, but this is somewhat time consuming. Otherwise you can catch a taxi. As a guide to rates, a taxi from Shiga Kogen to Nozawa Onsen costs about 21,000 yen (convert here).
Closer to Shiga Kogen near the town of Yamanouchi is Kita Shiga Kogen which has four ski resorts: Ryuo Ski Park with the big cable car; Takaifugi Ski Resort; Yomase Onsen Ski Area; and Kanbayashi. Kanbayashi is of particular interest for shredders because it has various terrain park features including a half pipe, and was the venue of the first Olympic halfpipe event in 1998. The base area is within walking distance of the Jigokudani snow monkey park.
Shiga Kogen Transport Listings
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Nagano Snow Shuttle
Nagano snow shuttle is the ideal way to get to and from Tokyo (Narita) airport to Hakuba, Shiga Kogen or Nozawa Onsen. Buses leave after 3pm & are only filled to 75% so plenty of room for luggage.
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International Rail - JR Rail Passes
International rail is a specialist rail travel company. Buy JR East Rail Passes online. 5 or 10 consecutive days or 4 days in a 30 day period. Non-Japanese residents only. Must be purchased outside of Japan.
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