Zao Now: Thursday 26th April 2018
- Apr 26, 2018
- 3 min read
Updated: Oct 6, 2025
Independent snow and weather reporting from the Zao region of Yamagata
New snowfall at base 0cm
Snowfall at base this season 765cm
Posted on Thursday 26th April 2018 This is an archived report. The latest Zao Now report can be found here.
Lots of cloud (and fog) and a bit of rain this morning, and no real news to report at the moment regarding lift operations and course opening.
Fine weather forecast for the upcoming weekend.
'Golden Week' is approaching. But what exactly is it?
Golden Week is a period from the end of April through early May containing a number of national holidays. Those holidays are as follows:
- 29th April is 'Showa Day' (Showa-no-hi), the birthday of former Emperor Showa
- 3rd May is 'Constitution Day' (Kenpo-kinenbi)
- 4th May is 'Greenery Day' (Midori-no-hi)
- 5th May is 'Children's Day' (Kodomo-no-hi)
What this means for 2018 is that most people will enjoy two long weekends - 3 days this upcoming weekend and then 4 days off the weekend after:
Long Weekend #1: Saturday 28th April - Monday 30th April
Long Weekend #2: Thursday 3rd - Sunday 6th May
Some people may even be lucky enough to have/take Tuesday and Thursday off next week, giving them a long 9 day holiday!
The weather is often really good over the Golden Week period and of course the end of Golden Week is also the end of ski lift operations here in Niseko.
Course areas open
- Chuo
- Utopia
- Top course (* part)
Lifts that are still operating
- Utopia Number 2 pair: open daily until 6th May
- Chuo Number 1 pair: open daily until 6th May
- Chuo Number 2 pair: open 28th, 29th, 30th April & 3rd-6th May
- Zao Ropeway: open daily
- Zao Chuo Ropeway: open daily
- Sky Cable: open daily
* The Ropeways operate throughout the year for sightseeing
* Earlier than planned closing might be possible - will depend on snow conditions
Official snow depths:
- Summit area: 35cm
- Paradise area: 50cm
- Chuo area: 50cm
- Utopia area: 65cm
- Uwanodai area: 0cm
- Oomori area: 0cm
Zao Now 2017-2018 season |
Data as of Thursday 26th April 2018 Total snowfall at base 765cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 66 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 42cm (on 12th February) November 2017 snowfall 66cm observed on 5 days December 2017 snowfall 193cm observed on 19 days January 2018 snowfall 275cm observed on 21 days February 2018 snowfall 195cm observed on 15 days March 2018 snowfall 24cm observed on 5 days April 2018 snowfall 12cm observed on 1 day |
All snowfall data presented on this page is the snowfall measured and observed at base/town level by our reporter based in Zao Onsen. 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.