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Zao Now: Friday 31st December 2021

  • Dec 31, 2021
  • 2 min read

Independent snow and weather reporting from the Zao region of Yamagata


New snowfall at base 12cm
Snowfall at base this season 198cm

Posted on Friday 31st December 2021 This is an archived report. The latest Zao Now report can be found here.


Quite a bit more snow than expected fell last night and today is not that much different from yesterday (poor visibility) although it feels fairly warm.


It is likely to get colder throughout the day with winds picking up. Plenty snow forecasted overnight to welcome in the New Year (stay up/get up late - choices choices!).


In the meantime, it looks like the Omori area is the best in terms of visibility.


Official snow depth


Summit: 65cm

Paradise: 90cm

Chuo: 90cm

Utopia: 140cm

Uwanodai: 80cm


The majority of lifts and areas and runs are now scheduled to be open.



Zao Now 2021-2022 season

Data as of Friday 31st December 2021 Total snowfall at base 198cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 17 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 30cm (on 27th and 28th December) November 2021 snowfall 38cm observed on 3 days December 2021 snowfall 160cm observed on 14 days




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.


SnowJapan is an entirely independent operation. Our daily reports are not posted on behalf of ski areas or any other business or organisation. Since first going online in 1999, the integrity of this website has always been our top priority, and it is something we are not prepared to compromise. All content is carefully created and written by humans who share a passion for the subject and what SnowJapan stands for.



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