There are three options to purchase ski lift passes for the Nozawa Onsen Ski Resort:

1. Purchase ski passes at one of the three Nozawa Onsen Ski Resort ticket counters (Karasawa - closest to Nozawa Peaks or Nagasaka gondola or Hikage gondola areas) 
2. Purchase ski passes online in advance (credit card only).
3. Ask your hotel if they can purchase ski passes for you. 

More information on the three options to purchase Nozawa Onsen Ski Resort lift passes:

1. By purchasing lift tickets when you arrive to Nozawa Onsen, you have the most flexibility. Ski Lift tickets are non-refundable. If you have a travel delay, bad weather/lift closures, you will lose out. Some hotels/travel agents offer non consecutive passes (up to 10 days). This is a nice option if all goes to plan, although we have noticed guests trying to sell their unused ticket to others, obviously a change of plans had occurred and they were out of pocket.

2. Purchasing Nozawa Onsen lift passes online in advance: This option only saves you a little bit of hassle. Either way you need to go to the the ticket counter at the ski resort. Once purchased online, just show the QR code to staff instead of pulling out your wallet navigating ski gloves to purchase ticket at the ticket counter window.

3. Asking your hotel to purchase for you. Hotels can offer slightly discounted lift tickets to guests. This is a cash only option and is non-refundable. A hotel staff member will need to head down to the tourist info centre and purchase the tickets for you in cash. This is a good option, however you need to weigh up the convenience/cost factor; the time taken going the ATM + ATM fees vs just heading up to the ticket counter yourself and paying by credit card.

Hot tip: There is a non-consecutive 6-day pass available with this option, only available through your hotel. This option is unavailable at the ski resort ticket counter or online.

More information:

Once you have your ticket(s) there is no requirement to go back to the ticket counter in the future. You can simply add extra ski days to your ticket by purchasing them online.

Hot tip: If starting your day at the Nagasaka gondola, you can also buy your ticket at the "Skiosk" by credit card to access the slopes faster. There is usually less waiting time at the "Skiosk" compared to the regular ticket counter. People are paying by cash or do not know about the "Skiosk" so are lining up at the regular ticket counter. This is only really an issue on weekends and public holidays when the line to the ticket counter can be longer. The "Skiosk" is inside the Nagasaka centre house on the same floor as the regular ticket counters. 

Purchase ski lift tickets online in advance (credit card only). Please note that sales usually start in December each year. 

The only way to receive a discount on normal Nozawa Onsen ski passes is to purchase through your hotel. A staff member from the hotel is required to purchase and pick up your lift tickets from the tourist information centre with their membership card (guests cannot purchase these discounted lift tickets). The discounted options available are 1-3 day consecutive ski pass, or a non-consecutive 6-day ski pass. 

Nozawa Onsen offer a discounted season pass if purchased between October 1-29 

There are two ways to purchase this early bird season pass:

1. At the ticket office in Nozawa Onsen between 9am-3pm (cash only)
2. Mail order/bank transfer (domestic shipping within Japan only)

The website is in Japanese only, it is fair to say that this season pass is aimed at Japanese residents, however there is nothing stopping non-Japanese from purchasing it. If you would like a friend to pick up your season pass for you, you will need to provide an ID of the person who will receive your season pass. 

The discount is ¥12,000 for an adult, ¥8,000 for a child and ¥10,000 for a senior (prices as of 2024). Please see the Nozawa Onsen ski resort website for more information.  

There is a great option to purchase a multi-mountain ski pass called the "NAGANO Powder Dream Season Pass". This pass includes:

1. Nozawa Onsen Ski Resort
2. Shiga Kogen Mountain Resort
3. Togakushi Ski Resort
4. Ryuoo Ski Park
5. Madarao Kogen Ski Resort
6. Tangram Madarao Resort

The total price is ¥120,000 for an adult, or ¥90,000 for a child (prices as of 2023/24).

This ticket is available from the Nozawa Onsen ski resort ticket office, or by mail order (from November 25th). 

There is a direct ski bus between Nozawa Onsen and Madarao for day trips (which also stops at Togari ski resort). The other ski resorts really require a car for a day trip. If you decide to stay at another one of these ski resorts, all are accessible through public transport.