Niseko Now: Monday 12th January 2026
- Jan 12
- 4 min read
Independent snow and weather reporting from the Niseko region of Hokkaido
New snowfall at base 36cm
Snowfall at base this season 403cm
Good morning from Niseko.
The rain and lack of snow to report yesterday was, happily, just a blip!
In hindsight, that is acceptable.
This morning I have an impressive 36cm of fresh snowfall to report. Brilliant. I note my total for January 2026 is now up to a healthy looking 185cm.
Hirafu is reporting a cool 50cm of fresh snowfall this morning (base and top), though after their 15cm declaration yesterday morning I'm looking at that base number with a handful of salt. I can certainly believe the top measurement. Annupuri is reporting 30-40cm. (And Village is reporting 0cm).
Wherever you are, a lot of snow and with more on the way.
The images today (below) were all taken just before 8:30am. As you can see, it looks fairly clear over at Hanazono at the moment, but there's some moderate snowfall and limited visibility at Village and Annupuri.
Conditions (meaning pesky wind) mean that a lot of lifts are on hold leaving just generally lower ones opening as planned.
That is, apart from Hanazono, where all 4 lifts appear to be gambatte-ing.
Still, that may be the price we must pay for our ongoing snow delivery.
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Niseko Avalanche Report
Mountain base -6℃, 40cm snowfall, hardcore snow clearing. Moiwa 800m: -10.6℃, NW9.2m/s, cornice and snowdrifts developments. Annupuri 1100m: -12.8℃, WNW6.5m/s. Niseko Village 1000m: -11.6℃, W2.0m/s. Hirafu Hanazono 1000m: -12.3℃, ESE5.4m/s. Hanazono 800m: -4.8℃, NNE3.4m/s. Sea of Japan Benkei cape NW18m/s, Kamui cape NW13m/s, 1001hPa, 3.9m waves.
The wind peaked between 2:00am and 3:00am at NW 22m/s with wave heights rising around 4m. Morning observations show that cornices and snowdrifts have grown significantly and are still developing. Above 800m, the avalanche risk is extremely high. There is a potential for slab avalanches with a fracture line depth of 50–80cm on cornice slopes, valley sidewalls, and knolls. The speed of wind-slab growth has outpaced any compaction, making it prone to deep-layer fracturing from even the slightest trigger. The sliding surface would be yesterday’s warm layer, but it’s not that the avalanche occurs because that layer is freezing. The cause for the slide is the internal collapse (shear failure within the new snowpack) of the slab, which has rapidly and drastically gained weight. Steep slopes below tree-line are also dangerous. If the trail-breaking exceeds waist-deep, you should be on high alert for avalanches. Even if the lifts are running, it is better not to leave the groomed runs today. The snow is “madly deep”. Watch out for falls and collisions. Do you have your beacon? Today, it is not an ornament. Have a good day. Gate opening is TBD.
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Niseko HANAZONO Resort
Official 24 hours snowfall (reported by the ski area):
Peak: 40cm
Base: 35cm
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
Peak: 240cm (+35cm change since yesterday)
Base: 150cm (+40cm change since yesterday)
Planned lift operations:
4 of 4 lifts
Gondola until 7:00pm
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Niseko Tokyu Grand Hirafu
Official 24 hours snowfall (reported by the ski area):
Peak: 50cm
Base: 50cm
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
Peak: 300cm (+30cm change since yesterday)
Base: 120cm (+35cm change since yesterday)
Planned lift operations:
9 of 9 lifts
Ace Gondola, Ace Family quad, King Gondola and King Holiday pair until 7:00pm
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Niseko Village Ski Resort
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
Peak: 200cm (+9cm change since yesterday)
Base: 110cm (+2cm change since yesterday)
Planned lift operations:
7 of 8 lifts (not Country Road)
Upper Village Gondola, Village Express and Banzai Chair until 7:00pm
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Niseko Annupuri Kokusai
Official 24 hours snowfall (reported by the ski area):
Peak: 7cm
Base: 7cm
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
Peak: 160cm (no change since yesterday)
Base: 130cm (no change since yesterday)
Planned lift operations:
6 of 6 lifts
Jumbo Number 1 quad until 7:30pm
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Niseko Moiwa Ski Resort
Planned lift operations:
3 of 3 lifts
Niseko Now2025-2026 season |
Data as of Monday 12th January 2026 Total snowfall at base so far 403cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 41 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 36cm (on 12th January) November 2025 snowfall 29cm reported on 7 days December 2025 snowfall 189cm reported on 23 days January 2026 snowfall 185cm reported on 11 days |
All snowfall data presented on this page is the snowfall measured and observed at base/town level by our reporter based in Kutchan/Niseko. The 'new snowfall' number represents the amount of snow measured since the previous report. All opinions are those of the individual reporters. Information regarding ski area operations is manually checked every morning and is believed to be correct at the time of the report.