We visited Hakkaisan on a road trip between Myoko and Tenjindaira. The weather had been warm and it had been raining in Myoko. On the drive to Hakkaisan, there were chicken feathers falling from the sky and there was a decent amount of fresh snow, but we knew that the snowpack was sodden and we weren’t going to be seeing Hakkaisan in all its glory (unlike our previous visit).

The top lift was closed, and we’d heard reports that it had been closed a lot during the 2022/23 season. This was a bit of a shame because it meant we had to return to the base of the ropeway to do laps. Thankfully there was barely anyone about and absolutely no lines for the ropeway. We also didn’t see or hear ski patrol and we had some fun shallow powder turns in the off-piste trees amongst the snaking beginner run. Further afield we had to tiptoe very carefully considering the avalanche risk, with more of a focus on scouting terrain rather than blasting backcountry turns. It was snowing heavily and we saw a significant natural avalanche in the deep gully between the two sides of the ski resort, and then we called it a day.

We’ll be back Hakkaisan!
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Very average resort. Strict ski patrol. They are not keen for people to access side country. Tenjindaira is better for real backcountry skiers
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On a good day might be good. Nice pitch but south facing slope, so gets warm quickly. Limited piste options. Good in the trees. A bit out of the way. For the area options, Kagura has better terrain
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We’ve rated Hakkaisan Ski Resort as one of the best ski areas in Japan for powder hounds. It has amazing strengths such as steep terrain, great fall line, a variety of trees, and some super gnarly terrain. It’s a ski area that’s somewhat topograhically blessed and has a nice ropeway to accompany it. You might have to be a bit patient to hit it just right, when the powder is at its best because the ski area doesn’t have the most favourable aspect.

Like a lot of Honshu ski resorts (and definitely Prince Resorts), off-piste riding is banned but they go one better (actually worse) and ban backcountry riding too. You have to be careful not to get in hot water with the patrollers, but the upside is that there isn’t much competition to ride the fresh powder.

See the Hakkaisan ski resort overview for more on our thoughts on the pros and cons, and see the Japanese ski resorts ratings to see how it compares.
See our video here