Niseko Now: Friday 26th December 2025
- Dec 26, 2025
- 6 min read
Independent snow and weather reporting from the Niseko region of Hokkaido
New snowfall at base 4cm
Snowfall at base this season 178cm
Good morning from Niseko.
My report yesterday appeared very late in the day and so lots of you might not have seen it. I recommend checking it out, especially as it has a sort of continuation today (see below).
Report from 25th December 2025.
I am very happy to report fresh snow this morning.
It is snowing nicely as I am writing this, and there's more incoming. There's really not much on the ground yet, I measured just under 4cm, and some of it has been blowing about, but hopefully it will be building up today and tomorrow.
Wind and visibility looks to be an issue today. At least some lifts are going to be affected at the start of the day, according to the official site (but I have to post before 8:30am today so cannot confirm actual openings).
If you do venture out, let's extra care. We need much more snow for a reset and conditions to be how we like them.
The forecast seems to look pretty normal for snow - ie. good - next week too. Yey!
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Perhaps in response to the data that I posted in my report yesterday, someone contacted me via SnowJapan, confused by a 'reputable website' (their words) that apparently is claiming that snowfall in Japan is currently plentiful and consistent, and that Japanese ski areas are enjoying excellent conditions and receiving regular refreshes.
Huh?!
It's important to note that I do not know which website they were referring to. I don't even know if it is Japan based or not. And, honestly, I really do not want to know. It is my policy to use only official ski area websites and local weather sources for my own information (outside of my personal observations, of course). I purposefully avoid everything else.
Is that information source referring to the same destinations that we love, but versions of those places on Earth 2.0 or some other parallel universe? That might be it, as I increasingly feel like many humans are living on a different planet than I am!
As far as I can tell, the low and lethargic snowfall this month (up until this point) is affecting almost every region of Japan. The only possible exception I am aware of was a period when central/eastern Hokkaido enjoyed a good spell of snow a couple of weeks ago - but not so much since then. Here in Niseko, we had a decent spell around the second week of December. Still, it was hardly spectacular, and I have only been able to report 4cm of snowfall across the last seven days before today and since 19th December.
Just check out all the other Now reports and what they have been saying over the last week or two.
Take a look at the snow depth data of ski areas throughout Japan; way down on a normal year.
All variations of the same story.
At the time of writing this (25th December), many ski areas across Japan had not yet been able to open at all. Many dearly want to open, but cannot because there is not enough snow. In some cases, there is no snow. In addition, there are more than a few ski areas that were partially open but have had to close again due to a lack of snow in recent days. Including in Hokkaido.
To sum up, I think it is very clear that ski areas throughout Japan have been really struggling for snow this early season so far.
Obviously, it is a situation that we all hope will improve quickly.
Anyway, mind reset, let me get back to looking outside at the snow falling and out current fresh snow reset! :)
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Niseko Avalanche Report
Moiwa base: -2℃, NE winds, blizzard, poor visibility. Mowia 800m: -6.2℃, NNE8.7m/s, gusts to 15m/s, major cornice and snowdrift development. Mikaeri 800m: -6℃, NNW2.3m/s, snow storm. Annupuri 1100m: -8℃, strong NNW winds.Hirafu Hanazono 1000m: -8℃, N10.2m/s, major cornice and snowdrift development. Hanazono 800m: -5.9℃, NNE7m/s. Sea of Japan Benkei Cape NNE13m/s(16m/s@4am), Kamui Cape E4m/s, 1001hPa, 2.0m waves.
Heavy blizzard conditions and a little snow into the early hours brought some minor snowdrift development to the base of the mountain. Observations and data indicate a strong northerly wind with rapid cornice and snowdrift development higher on the mountain . Blizzard strength is fluctuating and slab development is not uniform. Tests indicate this wind slab is prone to fracture on weak layers from impact. The avalanche risk today is HIGH. Surface avalanches are likely to occur on steep slopes beside the trails where snowdrifts exceed 80cm. Do not thoughtlessly duck ropes beside the trails in search of fresh snow. The sudden drop in temperature and lack of snow have left the slopes in poor condition. There are many trees, rocks, bushes, and people. Be careful of collisions. Off-trail skiing from the ski resort is not yet possible. We are also having trouble, so please be patient for a while. If the wind shifts to the west, expect increased snowfall. Keep an eye on the snowfall trends. There is no 100% safety in this sport. Be careful of frostbite and slipping on the road. Have a nice day.
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The below snow depth and snowfall numbers are manually checked each morning from official sources.
The 'change since yesterday' data is manually calculated each morning by me.
Lift information is the planned operations for the day at the time of writing.
** ONLY THE SNOW DATA HAS BEEN UPDATED THIS MORNING ***
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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: 115cm (+5cm change since yesterday)
Base: 50cm (+10cm change since yesterday)
Planned lift operations:
4 of 4 lifts
Gondola until 7:00pm
Planned open courses:
All main runs apart from Setsuzoku, Legend of Shinya (and Hanazono Park)
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Niseko Tokyu Grand Hirafu
Official 24 hours snowfall (reported by the ski area):
Peak: 5cm
Base: 5cm
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
Peak: 175cm (+5cm change since yesterday)
Base: 20cm (-5cm change since yesterday)
Planned lift operations:
7 of 9 lifts
Ace Gondola
Ace Family quad (until 7:00pm)
Ace Number 3 pair
King Gondola
King Holiday pair
King Number 3 six
Swinging Monkey
Planned open courses:
Family
Sennoki
Alpen
Super
Beginners access
Green
Shirakaba
Center
Kogen
Dai-ni no kabe
Kokutai
Holiday
Rinkan
Jumbo
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Niseko Village Ski Resort
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
Peak: 95cm (no change since yesterday)
Base: 25cm (no change since yesterday)
Planned lift operations:
6 of 8 lifts
Niseko Gondola
Upper Village Gondola (until 7:00pm)
Village Express (until 7:00pm)
Community Chair
Banzai Chair (until 7:00pm)
Morino Chair
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Niseko Annupuri Kokusai
Official 24 hours snowfall (reported by the ski area):
Peak: 0cm
Base: 0cm
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
Peak: 90cm (no change since yesterday)
Base: 45cm (no change since yesterday)
Planned lift operations:
5 of 6 lifts
Annupuri gondola
Dream Number 1 quad (until 7:00pm)
Jumbo Number 1 quad
Jumbo Number 2 pair
Jumbo Number 3 pair
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Niseko Moiwa Ski Resort
Planned lift operations:
3 of 3 lifts
Niseko Now2025-2026 season |
Data as of Friday 26th December 2025 Total snowfall at base so far 178cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 25 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 24cm (on 12th December) November 2025 snowfall 29cm reported on 7 days December 2025 snowfall 149cm 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.