Hakuba week checklist
Free checklist · Checked for 2026–27, 6 Sep 2026
Five decisions before you book. Print it, save it as a PDF, or keep it open while you plan. Written for Australians doing Hakuba this winter.
Download the 2026–27 PDF (hakuba-week-checklist-2026-27.pdf)
01 · Which mountain
Pick the hill for your group
- Default / first trip: Happo — walk to the gondola and most dinners. Start here unless you have a reason not to. Compare all ten →
- No car: Sleep Happo or Echoland; treat the valley shuttle as a timetable, not a metro. No-car guide → · Resorts →
- Powder: Cortina / Norikura / 47 when the storm hits — often a car day, not your whole-week base. Powder scores →
- Kids: Iwatake or Tsugaike (stay there if Tsugaike is the kids-club hill). With kids → · Family scores →
02 · Getting there
Don’t buy a 7-day JR Pass for Tokyo→Hakuba only
Direct Azusa train or highway bus from Shinjuku, shinkansen to Nagano then Alpico, or a shared airport shuttle. A national 7-day JR Pass is usually a bad buy if Hakuba is the only long rail leg. Pick the airport you actually land at first.
03 · First night eat
Happo or Echoland — book ahead
Night one, stay close: Happo village or Echoland. Peak weeks fill up — book before you land. Filter by diet, kids, or English menu; full menus live on the restaurant (we don’t invent hours). Eating vegan? Read vegan and vegetarian Hakuba before you land.
04 · English ski school
Pick one school lane for the week
Happo, Iimori / Hakuba Snow Sports, Evergreen, and the official Japanese schools are different products. Pick one lane for the week — group vs private, kids club vs adults — before you pay a deposit.
05 · When to book
Sep–Nov is the booking window
Flights and lodges for Aussie school holidays move from September. English ski school and popular dinners often need November at the latest for peak weeks. Leaving it to December is how you get the leftover room and the 09:00 lesson nobody wanted.