Niseko Now: Friday 6th March 2026
- Mar 6
- 3 min read
Independent snow and weather reporting from the Niseko region of Hokkaido
New snowfall at base 1cm
Snowfall at base this season 840cm
Good morning from Niseko.
Kind of a dusting thing going on early this morning, enough for me to award 1cm to this report.
Right now, though, the sun is shining through the clouds in some places. Still a lot of cloud around.
And still there is some snow there on forecasts over the next few days. I will be interesting to see how this develops. Anything meaningful? We'll see soon enough!
It is surely some kind of typo, but this morning Niseko Annupuri (on the Niseko United site) the top snow depth has increased by 55cm since yesterday. (With 10cm of fresh snow being reported).
I love the sound of that, but... if only!!!!
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Niseko Avalanche Report
Moiwa base 6am: 0℃, trace new snow. Moiwa 800m: -3.4℃, NNW2.8m/s. Annupuri 1100m: -5.5℃, NNW3.0m/s. Village 1000m: -4.3℃, NNW4.6m/s. Hirafu Hanazono 1000m: -4.8℃, N4.9m/s. Hanazono 800m: -2.8℃, N0.5m/s. Coastal data: Benkei Cape NNE8m/s, Kamui Cape E2m/s, 1022hPa, wave n/a.
The atmospheric pressure gradient is shallow, the sea and mountains are calm and there has been no significant snowfall. The 25cm of low-pressure snowfall caused an extensive avalanche along the east ridge yesterday. Watch for similar conditions today. Wet snow avalanches, like those caused by low-pressure snowfall, are heavy and spread broadly through the forest.On open, steep slopes around 700m, positive temperatures are beginning to melt the snowpack, increasing the possibility of full-depth avalanches. Be careful in Moiwa Bowl, Kozan no Sawa(Back Bowl) and Annupuri Osawa. Full-depth avalanches are dangerous, but they will not cause accidents if there are no people around. Gate opening times have not yet been decided. Decisions on whether gates are open are made based on morning observations, snowfall and temperature data collected at various mountain locations, Japan Coast Guard data and from ski resort patrol and groomer operator reports. Outside the gates is not part of the ski resort. Gates are opened and closed to prevent accidents off-course. Please understand the Niseko rules.
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Niseko HANAZONO Resort
Official 24 hours snowfall (reported by the ski area):
Peak: 4cm
Base: 1cm
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
Peak: 290cm (+18cm change since yesterday) (!)
Base: 173cm (-15cm 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: 0cm
Base: 0cm
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
Peak: 360cm (no change since yesterday)
Base: 105cm (no 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: 245cm (no change since yesterday)
Base: 150cm (no change since yesterday)
Planned lift operations:
8 of 8 lifts
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: 325cm (+55cm change since yesterday) (!!!!)
Base: 140cm (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 Friday 6th March 2026 Total snowfall at base so far 840cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 81 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 451cm reported on 28 days February 2026 snowfall 154cm reported on 19 days March 2026 snowfall 17cm reported on 4 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.