Ishiuchi Maruyama

Ishiuchi Maruyama Ski Resort is a bit of a mouthful so most people just refer to it as Ishiuchi, which is pronounced something like “itchy oochy”!

Ishiuchi Maruyama Ski Resort is located near Yuzawa and is inter-connected with Gala Yuzawa, yet the two ski resorts are somewhat different. Gala Yuzawa is a big commercial ski resort that was purpose built during the prosperous bubble era, whereas Ishiuchi has grown organically. Ishiuchi Maruyama has retained some of the soul of skiing in Japan and it has lots of little independently run hotels and restaurants that line the slopes at the three base areas. Ishiuchi Maruyama has upgraded some amenities in recent years, and it’s more progressive than Gala in terms of its approach to tree skiing. 

Pros and Cons of Ishiuchi Ski Resort

Pros 

• Ishiuchi is very easily accessed from Tokyo, so it’s ideal for a day trip or a weekend getaway from Tokyo, although on weekends it's usually very busy.
• The slopes are perfect for those who like cruisy runs and knowing that the next hot chocolate (or atsukan) stop is never far away.
• The terrain parks are very good by Japanese standards and Ishiuchi has a half pipe.
• The night skiing is decent.

Cons

• The low elevation of the resort can impact on the snow quality when temperatures are marginal.
• If you’re a bit itchy for some Ishiuchi off-piste powder, it probably isn’t the best Japan ski resort for you. Off-piste skiing for introductory advanced riders is good compared to Gala Yuzawa and Yuzawa Kogen, but experienced powder hounds will probably want to go elsewhere.

Pro or Con Depending On Your Perspective

• The little villages provide an authentic old-school Japanese experience and the accommodation is mostly dated yet inexpensive.

Interconnected with Gala Yuzawa

The top of Ishiuchi is connected via the slopes with Gala Yuzawa Ski Resort to the south, which in turn is connected to Yuzawa Kogen. Whilst this is a far cry from Trois Vallees of France, the three ski areas provide a very large ski area to explore (by Japanese standards).

On weekends, the crowds descend on the three ski areas due to the ease of accessibility from Tokyo, although Ishiuchi tends to be much quieter than Gala Yuzawa.

Ishiuchi Ski and Snowboard Terrain

Even by itself, the Ishiuchi Maruyama ski resort is reasonably large for a Japan resort, with the terrain sprawling across three main base areas (Hatsukaishi, Chuo and Kanko/North). Ishiuchi has 27 courses, 664 metres of vertical drop (256 to 920m elevation), and 13 lifts which include a chondola and 4 high speed quad chairs.

The groomers are a highlight of Ishiuchi Ski Resort and the piste terrain mostly consists of cruisy beginner and intermediate runs, along with a couple of groomed black runs. With many restaurants lining the slopes, you don’t have to schuss very far before you can take another pit stop. Another strength of Ishiuchi is the terrain parks, which includes a half pipe. The pipe is run by the local city and attracts an additional charge.

Ishiuchi Maruyama has some advanced rated runs, including a couple that hit 35 degrees for a moment, although other than some bumps, there’s nothing particularly challenging about these runs. Ishiuchi has introduced a couple of small designated tree runs that have wide open trees. Elsewhere off-piste skiing seems to be well tolerated and there is some tasty sidecountry for those with backcountry skills.

See the Ishiuchi skiing page for more information on the lifts and terrain.

Where is Ishiuchi Maruyama?

Despite it actually being part of Minami Uonuma city, Ishiuchi Maruyama Ski Resort can be considered one of the Yuzawa ski resorts because the southern base is only 5km from the Echigo Yuzawa train station (the hub of Yuzawa), from where there are regular buses to the ski resort.

See the Ishiuchi travel page for more information on getting there.

Ishiuchi Accommodation

It’s easy enough to stay in one of the Yuzawa hotels and enjoy the benefits of being in town, and take a bus to the ski resort.

Yuzawa Hotel Listings

Or if you want to stay right near the slopes, there are various Ishiuchi accommodation options, including many convenient ski-in ski-out lodgings. Many of the Ishiuchi hotels and Japanese inns are inexpensive, and there are also affordable pensions and lodges. Keep in mind that evenings in the Ishiuchi villages are very quiet.

Ishiuchi Accommodation Listings

Facilities

The modern Resort Center at the central base area houses a lot of the Ishiuschi ski resort facilities. There are also various small privately owned facilities. The slopes of the base areas are lined with collections of little old school cafes and restaurants, and funny little ski rental shops. These independents are generally not particularly modern, but they’re sort of quaint.

Ishiuchi Ski Resort is also trying to compete hard to attract non-skiers. Pedestrians can use the gondola cabins of the Sunrise Express chondola and head up to the magic carpet serviced snow park for kids. The Veranda has an observation deck, fancy café, and there are dome bubble tents where you can have lunch and enjoy the views and the cheesyness of it all.

There are a few ski schools at Ishiuchi and private lessons in English are conducted by Snowcountry Instructors.