Inawashiro
猪苗代町37°33′ N 140°06′ ETownPop. 13,403Tohoku
Inawashiro suits families and skiers who want a lakeside town with a JR station between NEKOMA Mountain's two areas and Lake Inawashiro. The trade-off is that the Bandai Gold Line closes in winter, so drivers from Aizu-Wakamatsu go the long way round.
Photo くろふね · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0 and others, credited in the gallery
Who should base here
Stay in Inawashiro if you want to ski both halves of NEKOMA and Grandeco from one base, with a lake to walk beside on a rest day.
Things to do in Inawashiro
Inawashiro sits between Mt. Bandai to the north and Lake Inawashiro to the south, the fourth-largest lake in Japan. The town counts three active volcanoes within its borders, Bandai, Adatara and Azuma, and so many hot springs that the tourism association calls it a town that never runs short of them. Swans winter on the lake and are the town bird, and the bacteriologist Noguchi Hideyo was born here in 1876.
NEKOMA Mountain fills the slopes above town. Hoshino Resorts joins the old Alts Bandai, now the South Area in neighbouring Bandai, with the old Nekoma ski area, now the North Area on the Urabandai side. For 2026/27 NEKOMA adds two tree-run zones in Black Valley and White Valley, opens the Umaya area for hiking to ski, and plans a ski shuttle to Zao Onsen. EN RESORT Grandeco lies farther round on the Urabandai side.
Worth knowing
- NEKOMA plans free buses from the main Urabandai hotels to the North Area, so ask your hotel for the timetable once it is published.
- From Aizu-Wakamatsu by car, follow the NEKOMA site's routes, since the Bandai Gold Line is closed through the winter.
Quick answers about Inawashiroよくある質問
How do you get to Inawashiro from Tokyo?
Take the Tohoku Shinkansen to Koriyama and change to the JR Ban-etsu West Line. The fastest morning trip on 16 October 2026 took 2 hours 18 minutes for ¥9,330.
Is Alts Bandai still open?
Yes, under a new name. Alts Bandai is now the South Area of Hoshino Resorts NEKOMA Mountain, and the old Nekoma ski area is the North Area.
Is Mt. Bandai an active volcano?
Yes. JMA monitors Bandai-san as an active volcano, and on 11 October 2026 it carried no eruption warning.
Is Inawashiro a good place to stay?
Stay in Inawashiro if you want to ski both halves of NEKOMA and Grandeco from one base, with a lake to walk beside on a rest day.
Within 12 km
Places to stay nearby宿
Within 12 km