Niseko Now: Monday 19th January 2026
- Jan 19
- 4 min read
Independent snow and weather reporting from the Niseko region of Hokkaido
New snowfall at base 3cm
Snowfall at base this season 494cm
Good morning to you from Niseko.
Several cm of new snowfall this morning with cloudy skies but a kind of subdued sun trying to break through in places (not very successfully). But it's fairly bright. Kind of. I'm having one of those mornings when the right words aren't appearing in my head easily...
The coming days is surely going to be bringing some significant snowfall but perhaps also some strong winds. I'm looking at you, tomorrow, in particular. It's going to be cold and potentially very stormy, so be prepared.
Just having an extra piece of toast in the morning will not be enough!
May I bring to your attention a few comments made by the Myoko Now reporter (from Niigata Prefecture) yesterday here. I have a few similarly themed comments brewing, but need a bit more time to put that together.
Anyway, see you tomorrow.
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Niseko Avalanche Report
Moiwa base 6am: -8℃, trace new snow. Moiwa 800m: -8.0℃, trace new snow. Annupuri 1100m: -10.0℃, light easterly winds. Village 1000m: -8.7℃, SE2.7m/s. Hirafu Hanazono 1000m: -9.4℃, light northerly winds. Hanazono 800m: -7.4℃, SSW2.9m/s. Coastal data: Benkei Cape WNW9m/s, Kamui Cape S7m/s, 1017hPa, 0.6m wave.
There is little atmospheric pressure gradient, the sea and the mountains are calm. From observations and various data, the general avalanche risk is low. All peak gates are expected to be open. Please use the gates to go out of bounds. An increasing number of people are ignoring or disregarding the Rules and skiing in strictly off limits areas. For people new to the area -> the Forestry Agency and the Hokkaido Forestry Department do not officially allow off-piste skiing from ski resorts. They merely tolerate it. After many accidents, rather than completely banning out of bounds skiing in Niseko, the local government established Niseko Rules and the strictly off limits areas, to allow climbing and skiing from the peak. If users continue to disregard, criticize or violate the Rules, the areas where skiing is permitted will be further restricted, as in the case of the recent ban on entering Anbetsu. If you don’t want your ability to ski freely to be restricted, please follow the Rules. Beware of sudden changes in weather. There is no safety in the winter mountains. Today’s snow is amazing. Is your beacon on?
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Niseko HANAZONO Resort
Official 24 hours snowfall (reported by the ski area):
Peak: 3cm
Base: 3cm
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
Peak: 230cm (-5cm change since yesterday)
Base: 155cm (-5cm 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: 10cm
Base: 10cm
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
Peak: 310cm (-10cm change since yesterday)
Base: 110cm (-20cm 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: 220cm (no change since yesterday)
Base: 130cm (no 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: 5cm
Base: 5cm
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
Peak: 220cm (+20cm change since yesterday)
Base: 140cm (+10cm 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 19th January 2026 Total snowfall at base so far 494cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 48 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 276cm reported on 18 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.