Appi Kogen used to be such a fancy ski resort by Japanese ski resort standards, but it’s shortened its name to just “Appi” and it seems that it’s shortened some of its offerings too. Appi is now starting to look like a typical bubble era ski area where negligible money is spent on upkeep. The Appi Grand Hotel was once very grand looking, yet the façade was an old dirty lemon colour and the inside looked tired, and the sad old onsen hotel looked really crappy Appi. The resort hasn’t made any recent upgrades to the lifts, and the old clunkers were still just as slow. The lift towers and lift buildings were all rusted and looked like they needed a good lick of paint as a starting point. A couple of the chair lifts only run on weekends and the Sailor Gondola was rested for 19-20 and it’s unclear as to whether it’s been retired for good. A lot of activity shuttles have ceased, and they’ve stopped running group ski lessons for kids in English. What has happened to the previously swanky Appi ski resort?

Good news however was that Appi have started to shed their conservative approach to off-piste skiing and have undertaken some glading to form designated tree runs. Bad news was that 4 of the 6 runs were officially closed and lord knows why, so it seemed that they’ve got a long way to go to actually become progressive.

The whole vibe at the Appi Resort hotels had changed and the place was full of Chinese tour groups so there was very little Japanese culture remaining. The tariffs for the resort hotels and their restaurants had gone up substantially which may be partly due to the change of demographics (although it seems that 2021 prices have been Covidised). Conversely the pension village had a nice atmosphere. A couple of cute little bars had popped up as well as a few very affordable eateries, and the accommodation was inexpensive.

The pros about the Appi snow and off-piste terrain remained. The snow was a couple of days off being fresh, yet it was still delightful. It was almost advantageous that the tree runs were officially closed because there were still plenty of virgin lines on offer, and by the second day we could just push a bit wider and exit lower to still get freshies. One weekend it was really busy with decent queues for the gondola (but barely anyone was riding off-piste), whilst a couple of days later the place was deserted.

The onsen was also deserted and it was beautiful to sit outside watching the snow falling whilst soaking in the various pools.

Another major pro of Appi is that it’s located within easy driving distance of various ski resorts that are good for powder hounds, so it’s worth including on a road trip or tour of the area.

Appi is fantastic for a day trip or two, whilst for those looking for a destination resort, there are now probably better options in Japan. If you do stay at Appi, unless you need the convenience of ski-in ski-out lodging and have a very healthy budget, we’d suggest staying down in the pension village. See more on our thoughts on the pros and cons on the Appi Kogen overview page. See our video here

Appi Kogen is a large ski resort by Japaneses standards built in bubble era so it is a little light on charm and nightlife. The area is served by a decent lift system and has long runs for a Japanese resort. The clientele is primarily moderate to low ability so the competition for fresh turns is pretty low and off piste skiing is allowed and there are gladed areas as well. Snow quality is excellent due Appi's northern location in Tohoku. Lodging is a choice of one of the resort properties or one of the locally run lodges. I would highly recommend the slope side Shirakaba No Mori or the Pension Alice in the village. Dining is very limited, most visitors will eat dinner where they are staying. Appi Kogen is easy to get to by train from Tokyo in less than three hours via the Tohoku Shinkansen followed by he local IGR line or Shuttle bus from Morioko station. See our video here

As a single I usually have no complaints about lifts but this place sucks!They really have no idea what they’re doing . Slowest old doubles and triples ever and on top of that the operators don double up anyone . If a person can’t ride the lift with someone else they shouldn’t be above the beginner hill period. I paid to shred not stand in a lift line . I spent three days at Shizukuishi, old and past it’s prime but they knew how to move people up hill. I have another month in Japan but this place is of the list , hell I’d rather go back to Niseko and deal with drunk Aussies than slow chairs! See our video here

We can’t help but be a little disappointed when we receive reviews that there are no “black runs” or challenging slopes at Appi, or there are only groomed runs. It’s a shame that some people don’t read our website before visiting Appi! Sure the black pistes are not very steep (as is the case at most Japanese ski resorts) and Appi excels at its grooming and its family friendliness, but behind the façade of this non-challenging resort lies some fun for powder hounds. OK Appi is very conservative and off-piste skiing is not permitted, but where’s your sense of adventure?! If you can be Shhhh and be vewy vewy quiet, you can go hunting white wabbits (the white rabbit is the winter logo of Appi Kogen)! OK enough of Elmer Fudd, if you can be very discrete, there is enough off-piste and sidecountry terrain to keep adventurous advanced/expert riders entertained for 2-3 days, so long as the snow is nice, which it often is. There are also other ski resorts in the area that are excellent for powder chasers.

On our last visit to Appi we scored amazingly deep powder so we had pretty high expectations for this visit. And Appi didn’t disappoint! We had some amazing runs in the off-piste and sidecountry and the quality of the snow was exceptional.

Since our last visit, the number of alternate activities has reduced but the resort has a good program of events on offer instead to mix things up a bit (and to make sure you don’t get cabin fever if staying at the resort). And the addition of group ski and snowboard lessons in English is a huge bonus for international travellers.

See the Appi Kogen overview for more on the pros and cons, and also see our Japan ski resort ratings to see how Appi compares to other Japanese ski resorts. See our video here

I was somewhat disappointed by the lack of challenging (read "steep") runs at Appi, but still had a great time. The black runs were all blue by Ozzie standards. The one mogulled area was the only area that got a sweat up. The snow cover was very good across the resort, with only 2 runs not open due to thin cover at the top. A couple of 5 -10 cm days of fresh powered were most welcome. Without deep powder these slopes are a little ho hum.

Recommend a day trip to nearby Shimokura, where an Appi ticket can be used. Small field, but with a nice variety.

Stayed at the Appi Grand, which was great for ski in, ski out. Meals at the in house restaurants cost and an arm and a leg.

Nice resort, but not enough variety to bring me back again. Learners and intermediates will have a ball with the long, wide, uncrowded slopes. Even the "busy" weekend presented no lift queues greater than 20 people. Great gondolas. See our video here

Built in the 80's this place has some serious infrastructure.

We stayed at Pension Mutti and the Mamma San who operates this place is unbelievable. A true local who speaks english and has spent seasons in europe truly understands westerners and their needs. I have spent many years experiencing Japanese hospitality at different resorts and nothing touches this property. The food is off the charts with primarily local products which will blow your mind.

And the skiing. Our timing was perfect this season with the most amazing powder we have experienced in a long time. We truly had chest deep on this trip with no competition at all.

The food hall is amazing as you will be the only westerners amongst a throng of Japanese enthusiasts.

Make sure you get on the gondolas with the locals as they will engage with you if you are open to the experience. See our video here

We had 9 nights in Appi between 18/01 to 27/01 staying at the Appi Grand. If this website was called Corduroy Hounds then Appi would be Number 1. The resort extensively grooms its beautiful dry squeaky powder in a relentless, cynical fashion bordering on eco vandalism. Which is a pity because the snow quality was outstanding compared to that of Nagano a few days later.

The lift system is amongst the best I've seen in 4 trips, no tiresome catwalks or inconvenient flat sections and the runs long. If they only retired half their snow grooming fleet.
 
The Appi Grand was fantastic, ski in ski out, great buffet, staff very attentive, great pool, large rooms with more than enough storage space and free wifi. The Appi Resort centre has an excellent Indian restaurant providing an alternative to the Hotel Buffet Dinner.

Midweek was deserted and if only it had have snowed more it could have been epic. See our video here

Awesome place. Only white faces on the mountain. They had snow a few days early but no-one had chopped up the powder off piste so it was left to 6 powder crazy kiwis to do the honours. Cheap place to stay and ski.

Amazing hospitality at our lodging at Pension Mutti and ate like kings.

Definitely put this on your must do list. See our video here

Before we arrived at Appi we’d heard and surmised that Appi Kogen was Crappi Appi. We knew that the hotel and facilities were going to be fantastic, but we expected that this resort would just be about skiing or riding on the groomers. How wrong were we?!!! The powder and skiing at Appi far exceeded our expectations.

It had been puking with snow at Appi which was delightful. We couldn’t get over the quality and quantity of the powder on the piste runs (e.g. Second Sailer & Yamagara), although because it was a weekend, the fresh powder didn’t last too long. However hidden in amongst the trees there was some AMAZING deep powder to be had in the off-piste and slackcountry areas. Hopefully some of the photos of the powder skiing will give you a bit of an idea of what’s on offer.

After the excitement of the unremitting face shots, we had trouble sleeping for a few days. It took a lot for us to come down from the high of snorting powder at Appi!

Appi has so much going for it: high quality accommodation; comprehensive facilities; and the fabulous family friendliness. The level of service and support for English speaking visitors is also very impressive. Get to Appi Kogen before anyone else discovers it!!

For more detailed ratings of Appi Kogen and to see how it compares to other ski resorts around the world, see our powderhounds resort ratings. See our video here