Planning a ski trip for the first time? Not sure exactly what you need? Let us take you through what exactly you need to pay for a ski trip!
There are six main expenses for a ski trip in Japan: transportation , equipment , ski passes , accommodation , food, and courses . Here, we use the Echigo-Yuzawa area to estimate the cost. You can go according to the ski area you are going to. Estimated cost~
*The following Japanese yen exchange rate is calculated based on 0.21. All prices refer to the pricing of each store during the 2324 snow season.
1. Transportation
There are three main transportation items: air tickets, transportation to and from the airport and hotels, and transportation to and from the ski resort.
- Round-trip ticket
Air tickets from Taoyuan Airport<->Narita Airport may cost around $10,000~$15,000 depending on the time of purchase and the different airlines.
- Transportation from the airport to the accommodation
Narita Airport <-> Echigo-Yuzawa Station, round trip is about $2,940~$3,780 (¥14,000~¥18,000)
- Transportation from accommodation to ski resort
The ski resorts near Echigo-Yuzawa provide free shuttle buses, so there is no charge here. Of course, if you want to call a taxi somewhere else, it is a personal expense!
2. Equipment
- Winter life clothes
The temperature in Echigo-Yuzawa in late December and January and February is usually between plus 4 degrees and minus 5 degrees, and in March it is between 10 degrees and 0 degrees, so daily warm clothing during non-skiing periods can be based on You can also prepare and purchase items according to your personal cold tolerance level. Bring warm clothes in winter , so the cost here will vary depending on personal needs~
*But in recent years, we occasionally encounter weather abnormalities. For example, February last year was hotter than March, or we may encounter a mild winter, so you should pay attention to the weather forecast before setting off~
- Ski equipment
The equipment you need to prepare when skiing is roughly divided into five categories: [underwear] , [warm clothing] , [safety equipment] , [snow suit] and [ski equipment] . Among them, you need to prepare underwear and some safety equipment by yourself, and others are You can rent a set of ski clothing, a set of ski equipment, a helmet and a pair of snow goggles. Depending on the store, the price of renting the equipment for a day is about $1,260~$2,520 (¥6,000~ ¥12,000) , and there are usually discounted prices for multi-day rentals.
In addition, snow goggles, snow socks, fur hats, and ski gloves are all For personal hygiene ski equipment, it is recommended to buy it first. For example, Decathlon snow goggles start at about $3,499 , snow socks start at about $300 , wool hats start at about $200 , and ski gloves start at about $499 . Of course, different qualities will have different prices, so it is recommended before purchasing. Do some research first~
How exactly To prepare ski equipment, please refer to the following articles
[Skiing Equipment] It’s your first time skiing, don’t know what you need to bring? Teach you how to prepare!
3. Snow pass
Skiing at a ski resort requires a snow pass. Snow passes are divided into one-day passes , multi-day passes and multiple-trip passes . Some ski resorts have independent snow passes for the magic carpet area for beginners. Usually novices who ski for the first time can take the cable car as many times as they want. There will be too many, so it’s usually more cost-effective to purchase multiple tickets .
In addition, there are early bird discounts for single-day tickets, ranging from 50% to 20% off. They are usually sold from September to before the snow season. However, it may not be cost-effective for novices to buy early bird discounts, because as mentioned above, novices I don’t ride that many times, so it might be more cost-effective to buy multiple tickets.
- One-day ticket : approximately $1,155~$1,365 depending on the ski resort ( ¥5,500- ¥ 6,5 00) .
- Multiple-time tickets : Most ski resorts have them, and the single ticket is about $105~$252 ( ¥500- ¥ 1,200) .
- Early bird tickets: Usually only single-day tickets are sold, sold before the snow season, at about 50% to 20% off.
4. Accommodation
There are usually options such as hot spring hotels, restaurants, backpackers, youth hostels, and B&Bs near the ski resort. Depending on the level and different reservation content, the price per person per night can range from $1,260 to more than $6,300 (¥6,000 to more than ¥30,000) . Just choose according to your personal budget~
Travel is divided into off-season and peak season, and of course there is skiing. If you go skiing in different months, the cost of accommodation will vary greatly. For example , the second half of December to the first half of February is the peak season, and the price will be relatively high . After February Spring begins in mid-March and April. Prices will also drop after spring, and the closer to the end of the season (early May) the cheaper the prices are .
If you want to know the advantages and disadvantages of skiing in different months, you can refer to the following article
【Under preparation】
Advice on choosing accommodation
When choosing accommodation, you should pay attention to surrounding functions and transportation convenience. Take the Echigo-Yuzawa area as an example. Because the living facilities near Yuzawa Station are relatively good, and most of the ski resorts have at the carpark Shuttle bus service is provided , so it is recommended to choose accommodation near the station; if you don’t want to have a hard time traveling, you can also choose a ski in ski out hotel. Every day you go out to the ski resort, and after skiing, you are right at the hotel. Convenience comes first.
5. Food
You need to find food at the ski resort for lunch. Food in the ski resort usually costs $210 per meal. Starting price (starting at ¥1,000) . If you want to save money, you can also bring your own sandwiches or rice balls from convenience stores, but be aware that some ski resorts do not have indoor lounges where you can eat outside.
For dinner, most of them are izakayas near the ski resort, and the price starts at about $420~$630 (starts at ¥2,000~¥3,000) . If it is a restaurant type, it also costs about $315 (starts at ¥1,500) , and you have to pay attention. Restaurants in popular ski areas are hard to find, so it is recommended to make a reservation in advance or queue up early~
【course】
For novices who are skiing for the first time, it is recommended to arrange skiing lessons within three days. You can take classes every day, or you can take classes in the first few days and practice on your own later. However, it is recommended to take skiing lessons on the first day and let the instructor Let me get you started and teach you some things you must know to increase your safety.
The cost of ski lessons, taking our school’s courses as an example
| 3 hours course | 5 hours course | |
| Japanese Yen fee | ¥55,000 | ¥75,000 |
| Taiwan dollar conversion | $11,550 | $15,750 |
| Break time | none | There is also an hour's lunch break |
【Summarize】
Okay, here we have listed most of the costs for a ski trip. You can refer to the table above and make an estimate based on the ski resort you want to go to. In addition, there will be price differences if you go in different months. You can calculate the difference in the cost of traveling at different times!
You can use the table below to calculate it~
- Transportation: round-trip air tickets + round-trip transportation to airport accommodation + transportation to accommodation and ski resort x number of days
- Equipment: purchase of winter cold-proof clothing + rental of ski equipment + purchase of ski equipment
- Snow pass : Snow pass x number of days
- Accommodation : Accommodation x number of days
- Food: Estimated food expenses for a single day x number of days
- Course: Class fee x number of days
example:
Four people traveled to Echigo Yuzawa for a 5-day, 4-night trip and three days of skiing.
Fee details are as follows:
| cost | Cost ratio | |
| transportation | $18,780 | 38.2% |
| equipment | $8,280 | 16.8% |
| Snow pass | $3,150 | 6.4% |
| stay | $3,780 | 7.7% |
| food | $3,375 | 6.9% |
| course | $11,812 | 24.0% |
| sum | $49,177 |
- Transportation: air ticket $15,000 + airport accommodation transportation $3,780 + ski resort transportation $0
- Equipment: Winter clothing $0 + rental $1,260 x 3 days + purchase $4,500
- Snow pass : multi-time ticket $105 x 5 times + one-day ticket $1,365 x 2 days
- Accommodation : B&B $1,260 x 4 days
- Food: (Breakfast $150 + Lunch $210 + Dinner $315) x 5 days
- Course: $15,750 x 3 days ÷ 4 people
A must-read series of articles for novice skiers
- [Expenses] How much does it cost to arrange a ski trip? Experts will tell you!
