Tangram Ski Circus is a ski resort that is interconnected with Madarao Ski Resort. Firstly you make ask what a “ski circus” is, but like a Tangram puzzle what’s more puzzling is that the Tangram Ski Resort is very slow to let go of its conservative approach to tree skiing relative to the very liberal Madarao, which is a mecca for powder skiing fiends.

Pros and Cons of Tangram Ski Resort

Pros

• Tangram Ski Circus is a great adjunct to Madarao and the two ski resorts combined are a decent size (by Japanese standards).
• The terrain is well suited to low end to mid level intermediate riders.
• The Tangram ski resort is not crowded and it doesn’t get hit incredibly hard on a powder day because it’s mostly frequented by beginner and intermediate skiers and snowboarders.
• Even though it’s not a high elevation ski resort, the Tangram snow quality is generally fantastic thanks to its northerly aspect.
• The ski area affords great views of Mt Myoko and Lake Noriji on fine days.
• Like Madarao, Tangram Ski Resort is close to various other Nagano and Niigata ski resorts, so it can make a good base to explore the area.

Cons

• As a stand-alone ski resort, the terrain is rather small.
• Whilst very family friendly, the ski resort doesn’t cater particularly well to English speaking families.

Pro or Con Depending On Your Perspective

• The patrollers (aka pow police) are super strict and anal about off-piste riding, except in the new gladed tree zones. In the other tree areas, for those who can appear invisible, there are fresh tracks galore.

Tangram Ski and Snowboard Terrain

The ski resort sits on the northwestern flank of Mt Madarao which is not a particularly high mountain, so there’s no big top (nor are there any clowns!) at the Tangram Ski Circus. It’s a fairly small ski resort with 520 vertical metres (800 – 1,320 metres), only 15 trails, and 5 lifts (2 quad chairs, 3 double chairs).

Tangram is inter-connected with the Madarao Ski Resort towards the top of the mountain, and a handful of extra yen will score you a dual resort lift pass.

Tangram Ski Circus has various trails for confident beginners (that are closer to intermediate trails). There are a few short red (intermediate) courses, and a handful of short black runs that won’t entertain advanced riders for very long.

Off-Piste Skiing Tangram

Thanks to some gentle encouragement from Madarao, Tangram has opened up a couple of special tree skiing zones that are either side of the black run on the lookers’ left of the ski area. The trees have been gladed and off-piste skiing is permitted in this area.

Elsewhere around the resort, despite the scarcity of roped off terrain and “do not enter” signs, the ban on off-piste riding definitely exists. Tangram has some very tasty looking off-piste terrain including some widely spaced trees with rocks to launch off, and these treats are there to taunt you because it’s a little difficult to hide in these areas. However there are other areas with tighter trees, and those with the technical skills who can be very very quiet will be rewarded with untracked north-facing powder.

Where is Tangram Japan?

The Tangram Ski Resort is located on the border of the Nagano and Niigata Prefectures, 14km southeast of Akakura Onsen (the main village of the Myoko Kogen ski resorts). Whilst it is possible to travel to Tangram via train and bus, or there are a couple of shuttle bus schedules per day between Haneda and Narita Airport and Tangram with Nagano Snow Shuttle.

Or it's very easy to get there if you have a rental car or are on a tour with a guide to drive you.

Of course it’s also easy to get to Tangram via Madarao. Whilst inter-connected with Madarao via the upper slopes, the two base areas are about 5.5km away via road.

Tangram Accommodation

There is no real village at Tangram, with the base area primarily consisting of the large ski-in ski-out Hotel Tangram. The hotel provides western style hotel rooms, restaurants, an indoor swimming pool, and open air onsen. There are also a few other Tangram hotels near the base of the ski resort.

Tangram Accommodation Listings

Other options are to stay in Myoko Kogen accommodation or “next door” at one of the Madarao hotels or pensions. The towns of Yudanaka and Shibu Onsen near the snow monkeys could also be used as a base to visit Tangram.

Ski Resort Facilities

The base area has a large cafeteria, a lounge, ski and snowboard rentals, a small ski shop selling accessories, and a large souvenir store.

Tangram is very family friendly (for Japanese speaking children) with a kids’ park, child care facilities, and ski school with Japanese speaking instructors only. Tangram also offers snowmobiling for both little kids and big kids.