If you’re looking for a cheap and chill day out with the family, consider taking them to Snow Town Yeti, where they can ski and snowboard to their hearts’ content, while enjoying up-close views of Mt Fuji.
What is Snow Town Yeti, exactly?
We admit that Snow Town Yeti sounds like a questionable monster or a questionable movie about said monster, but we assure you, it’s legit. Also known as Fujiyama Snow Resort Yeti, it’s a ski resort on Mt. Fuji in Shizuoka Prefecture, and, though small, it’s fully kitted out for families.
There are two very gentle slopes for beginners (and two far less gentle options for more intermediate snowsters), an area featuring bits of snow made to look like sweets (specially for the kids), a snowboarding park, and a small snow stadium that offers tubing, sledding and whatnot. You can let your little ones go wild. Sort of. This is still Japan.
Opening in late October every year, the resort, situated at the second station of Mt. Fuji, is one of the earliest to kick off the ski season—naturally available snow or no. It can be a good place to practice your moves before you head to Hakuba or one of the other larger resorts later in winter.
Ticket prices
At Snow Town Yeti, you can zoom downhill all day for a relatively modest outlay of ¥4,000 on weekends and ¥3,500 Monday to Friday, while kids and seniors can do the same for between ¥500 and ¥1,000 less. There are also special discounts available as part of the resort’s spring campaign in late March and early April 2020.
Night skiing
Snow Town Yeti also offers all-night skiing, if heading downhill in the dark is your thing. Tickets for that are sold from 3:30 pm daily, and they’re a bit cheaper, coming in at ¥2,500. This is usually only available on Saturdays and some holidays—so check before you go.
How to get to Snow Town Yeti
The ski resort is a two-hour train ride from Tokyo. But we recommend looking for an all-inclusive bus package—it’s an easier and more economical way of making the trip happen.
Recommended Snow Town Yeti tour packages
A number of day trip packages are available, providing transportation to and from Shinjuku, lift passes and basic gear. Booking platforms like Voyagin and Klook both have reasonable deals for ¥9,375–¥10,500, so we suggest having a look at those when planning your trip.
Looking for other ideas for winter day trips and snowboarding escapes? Our guide to ski spots near Tokyo has you covered.
While we do our best to ensure it’s correct, information is subject to change. Post first published in December 2015. Last updated January 2020.
