Kawaba
川場スキー場36°46′ N 139°06′ E580 m vertical12 runs10.3 kmSeasonal
Kawaba suits park riders and powder chasers who drive from Tokyo, because its slopes start high and its tree areas open by permit, and it is hard to reach by train since the station shuttles ended.
Photo Yashiro_Hino · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 4.0 and others, credited in the gallery
- Beginner3.3 km
- Intermediate3.2 km
- Advanced2.5 km
OpenStreetMap maps 12 named runs and 6 lifts at Kawaba, and the guide measures each one against the elevation model.
Open the 3D map ↓Fly the mountain in 3D立体地図
Ride every run at Kawabaコース
| Avg | Faces | Map | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crystal courseクリスタルコースNotes | 1,938 m | 357 m | 18.8° | 10.4° | SE | ||
| Sakuragawa course桜川コース | 1,199 m | 200 m | 14.4° | 9.4° | W | ||
| first step gelaendeファーストステップゲレンデ | – | – | – | – | – | ||
| Shamin downhillシャミンダウンヒル | 1,414 m | 289 m | 20.6° | 11.5° | NW | ||
| Takate downhill高手ダウンヒル | 1,268 m | 194 m | 21.9° | 10.4° | E | ||
| Shiratori downhill白鳥ダウンヒル | 565 m | 137 m | 19.1° | 13.7° | SW | ||
| Takate skyline高手スカイラインNotes | 1,231 m | 388 m | 27.1° | 17.5° | S | ||
| Mumeihou downhill無名峰ダウンヒル | 511 m | 200 m | 25.6° | 21.4° | SW | ||
| Mumeihou trial無名峰トライアルNotes | 443 m | 176 m | 28.7° | 21.7° | SW | ||
| Nishimine downhill西峰ダウンヒルNotes | 266 m | 100 m | 29.2° | 20.7° | SE | ||
| FLUX PARKPark | 826 m | 120 m | 11.9° | 8.3° | SW | ||
| THE FREERIDE PARKPark | 495 m | 87 m | 12° | 9.9° | SW |
Lengths, vertical, pitch and aspect are measured from OpenStreetMap run lines and the elevation model. Steepest is the hardest 60 m pitch. Read them as a guide and follow the signs on the hill.
Out of five
How it rides
- Powder
- 4 out of 5
- Trees
- 4 out of 5
- Steeps
- 3 out of 5
- Park
- 5 out of 5
- Beginners
- 3 out of 5
- Quiet
- 2 out of 5
- Value
- 3 out of 5
- Après
- 2 out of 5
- Family
- 3 out of 5
- Sidecountry
- 3 out of 5
Know the zones before you goエリア
OFF THE PISTEオフザピステ
tree areaAdvanced
Seven permit-only areas run between the courses for 2026/27, from wide gentle trees beside Shiratori Downhill to tight steep ground by Nishimine.
Good for trees, powder
Beyond the ropes · Through gates
Kawaba opens ungroomed powder and tree areas inside the resort through its OFF THE PISTE system, which grows to seven areas for 2026/27 under the FWT Japan label ZONE FWT. Entry needs a training video, a signed agreement, an armband and a rented COCOHELI locator.
- Watch the resort's training video before you arrive, then sign the agreement at the 7F climbing counter
- Rent a COCOHELI search transmitter for ¥1,100, or show a COCOHELI membership card, and wear the armband the counter issues
- Enter only through the marked gates; anyone found ducking the red ropes loses their lift ticket and certificate
- Accidents and injuries in these areas are the rider's own responsibility, and rescue there is charged separately
- If you get lost and have signal, call 110 first and then the COCOHELI search desk
6 lifts on the map
Know the liftsリフト
Season 2026/27
Buy the right ticket
- Adult day
- ¥7,900, about CAD 71 or USD 50 (October 2026 rates)
- Early and late season
- ¥7,600, about CAD 68 or USD 48 (October 2026 rates)
- Bought online
- ¥5,800, about CAD 52 or USD 37 (October 2026 rates)
Kawaba's 2026/27 regular prices are ¥7,600 on weekdays, ¥7,900 at weekends and ¥8,400 on set peak days (30 December, 2, 9 and 10 January and the February Saturdays). Children pay ¥5,000 to ¥5,800, seniors ¥7,100 to ¥7,900 and preschoolers ¥2,500. A day ticket bought on the web ahead of time costs ¥7,500, and the TEN FIVE ticket from 10:00 to 16:00 costs ¥7,000. Every IC ticket needs a ¥500 deposit, refunded when you return the card. Kawaba, Marunuma Kogen, Hodaigi, Oze Iwakura and Oguna Hotaka share the POWDER5 Gunma hour tickets: ¥16,500 for 10 hours and ¥30,000 for 20 from December 2026, or ¥13,500 and ¥25,000 as early-bird web tickets until 30 November 2026.
Get thereアクセス
From Tokyo Station
- Drive
- The resort calls itself the closest ski area to the Numata IC on the Kan-etsu Expressway.
- Bus
- Day-trip bus tours run from central Tokyo stations in the morning.
- Train
- Joetsu Shinkansen from Tokyo to Jomo-Kogen, then about an hour by shuttle. Kawaba has ended its own shuttles from Numata and Jomo-Kogen, so the Jomo-Kogen bus now comes only with a Big Holiday train-and-lift package.
In 2025/26 the Big Holiday package bus ran until 22 March 2026, plus 28 and 29 March.
The nearest station is Jomo-Kogen, 60 minutes from the first lift. Joetsu Shinkansen; the shuttle runs only with a package booking.
Outdoor car parks 2 to 5 connect to the base by shuttle bus, and weekend parking costs ¥1,500 in the multi-storey or ¥1,000 in outdoor car park 1.
Kawaba sits on the slopes of Mt. Hotaka above Kawaba village, close to the Numata interchange on the Kan-etsu Expressway. The base sits at 1,290 m, and five chairlifts climb to 1,870 m. The Crystal course runs 2,000 m from the summit and joins the lower slopes for a 3,300 m descent. A multi-storey car park keeps your car clear of snow at the base.
For 2026/27 Kawaba expands its OFF THE PISTE system to seven tree and powder areas and runs them as ZONE FWT under the Freeride World Tour's Japan arm. You watch a safety video, sign in at the counter and rent a COCOHELI locator, and then you can enter through the marked gates. One of the two new areas is spaced widely for riders new to trees.
The park side gets a new 1,500 m terrain line designed by the snowboarder Reira Iwabuchi. Takate Skyline turns ungroomed from its midpoint at up to 29 degrees, and Mumeiho Trial keeps a permanent mogul course at 34 degrees. Weekend day tickets cost ¥7,900 for 2026/27.
Worth knowing
- Buy the ¥5,800 early-bird web day ticket before 30 November 2026.
- Watch the OFF THE PISTE training video before you arrive, because the counter will not issue an armband without it.
- Nishimine Downhill sits near the summit and holds the best steep powder the morning after a storm.
- Drivers can park free at Michi-no-eki Kawaba Denen Plaza and take the free shuttle up.
Quick answers about Kawabaよくある質問
Is Kawaba open all year?
Kawaba opens for part of the year. Kawaba ran 135 days in 2025/26 and closed on 19 April 2026. Its site was being rebuilt for 2026/27 in October 2026, and some pages still showed 2025/26 details.
How big is Kawaba?
Kawaba has 12 runs and 5 lifts over 580 m of vertical, from 1,290 m at the base to 1,870 m at the top. OpenStreetMap maps 10.3 km of piste there.
How steep is Kawaba?
The steepest mapped pitch at Kawaba is about 29.2° over 60 m. We measure it from OpenStreetMap's run lines and the elevation model. Its advanced and expert runs add up to 2.5 km of the mapped total.
Can you ride off-piste at Kawaba?
Kawaba opens ungroomed powder and tree areas inside the resort through its OFF THE PISTE system, which grows to seven areas for 2026/27 under the FWT Japan label ZONE FWT. Entry needs a training video, a signed agreement, an armband and a rented COCOHELI locator.
How much is a lift ticket at Kawaba?
An adult day ticket at Kawaba costs ¥7,900, about CAD 71 or USD 50 (October 2026 rates) in the 2026/27 main season and ¥7,600, about CAD 68 or USD 48 (October 2026 rates) early or late in the season.
How do you get to Kawaba from Tokyo Station?
Kawaba is the resort calls itself the closest ski area to the Numata IC on the Kan-etsu Expressway by car from Tokyo Station. By bus: Day-trip bus tours run from central Tokyo stations in the morning.
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