Heavens Sonohara Snow World is a ski area located in Achi Village in the southwestern region of Nagano Prefecture.
This ski area has a 2549m gondola lift that is somewhat confusingly known as a 'ropeway'. The gondola goes up to the ski runs and ski lifts. There is no downhill course back to the car parks, so you must take the gondola back to the base.
Until 2024, Heavens Sonohara was a skiers-only resort, meaning snowboarders were not allowed on the slopes. That all changes for the 2024-2025 season - as snowboarding is now allowed! For the 2025-2026 season, snowboarding is allowed on all slopes.
The 2023-2024 winter season ended prematurely in late January due to a problem with the gondola lift.
Heavens Sonohara Snow World has been open since 1996.
Mountain
statistics
Top/peak (m)
1600
Vertical (m)
225
Bottom/base (m)
1375
Beginner runs (%)
50
Intermediate runs (%)
25
Advanced runs (%)
25
Longest course (m)
2000
Steepest slope (°)
30
Number of courses
5
Ski lifts
4
Ropeway cable car
0
Gondola
1
Quad lift (4-person)
1
Triple lift (3-person)
0
Pair lift (2-person)
2
Single lift (1-person)
0
Surface lift
0
Information
Normal season dates
Heavens Sonohara Snow World usually plans to be open from mid- to late December until late March. See below for the actual opening and closing dates in recent seasons.
Normal opening times
Heavens Sonohara Snow World is normally open from 8:30am until 4:30pm.
Night skiing
There is no night skiing.
Snowshoe
There are two official snowshoe courses and tours are available. Gear rental is also available.
Families & children
The Kids World area has sledding and snow tubing. The entry charge is 500 yen.
Lessons
Ski lessons are available at Heavens Sonohara Snow World.
Rental
Equipment and wear rental is available.
Lift ticket prices
2025-2026 season
Information for the upcoming 2026-2027 season will be added by December 2026
1 day
Adult: 5,000 yen
Child: 3,000 yen
Senior: 3,300 yen
PM
Adult: 4,500 yen
Child: 2,500 yen
Gondola return
Adult: 2,900 yen
Child: 1,400 yen
1 lift coupon
Adult: 300 yen
11 lift coupons
Adult: 300 yen
Season ticket
Adult: 40,000 yen
Child: 22,000 yen
Senior: 27,000 yen
The afternoon ticket is valid from 12:00 noon until closing.
The 1 Day ticket includes use of gondola and ski lifts.
Pre-school children can ride the lifts for free.
Historical snow depth data
The following ski season and official snow depth data have been independently compiled by SnowJapan for publication on this website. Where available, the data is updated annually after each ski season.
First and last dates of recent seasons
2025-2026 season: 20th December - 22nd March (93 days)
2024-2025 season: 24th December - 23rd March (90 days)
2023-2024 season: 23rd December - 26th January (35 days)
2022-2023 season: 23rd December - 24th March (92 days)
2021-2022 season: 24th December - 27th March (94 days)
Deepest recorded snow depth
2025-2026 season: 110cm on 9th-22nd February
2024-2025 season: 160cm on 22nd-23rd March
2023-2024 season: 60cm on 26th January - 19th March
2022-2023 season: 90cm on 11th-19th February
2021-2022 season: 200cm on 16th February - 2nd March
2020-2021 season: 100cm on 18th February - 5th March
2019-2020 season: 105cm on 10th March
2018-2019 season: 105cm on 2nd-3rd February
2017-2018 season: 120cm on 13th February - 6th March
2016-2017 season: 150cm on 22nd-26th March
2015-2016 season: 120cm on 26th January
2014-2015 season: 170cm on 18th-19th and 21st February
Resources
Weather & snowfall (Japan Meteorological Agency) [open in new window]
Introduction to the region
Nagano Prefecture is located in the Chubu region of the main island of Honshu. It is one of only eight landlocked prefectures in Japan, bordered by Niigata, Gunma, Saitama, Yamanashi, Shizuoka, Aichi, Gifu, and Toyama.
Nagano Prefecture is sometimes referred to as 'the roof of Japan' because of the steep, rugged terrain of the many 2,000-3,000m mountains that comprise the Japan Alps. The Northern Alps are located along the northwestern region bordering Gifu and Toyama. The Central Alps are in the southwestern region, and the Southern Alps are along the southeastern border.
After Hokkaido, Nagano Prefecture is home to the second-largest number of ski areas in Japan. It has multiple world-class winter sports resorts within its boundaries, and some were venues for the main events of the 1998 Nagano Winter Olympics. There are ski areas throughout the mountains of Nagano Prefecture, but the majority are in the northern and central regions.
Heavens Sonohara Snow World is one of 2 ski areas currently operating in Achi Village. The other is Jibuzaka Kogen.
About the information on this page
SnowJapan independently researches, checks and updates the information on this page at least once each year, in the lead-up to every ski season. We also update it whenever we become aware of other changes. The information published on SnowJapan is based on independent research using official Japanese-language sources and is not supplied by ski areas. If you are planning to visit a ski area, we recommend checking the official ski area website for the latest operational information. We take great care to keep the information on SnowJapan accurate and up to date. However, SnowJapan accepts no responsibility for decisions made based on information published on this website.
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