Zao Onsen

The praise is for the sheer volume of dry snow and for the juhyo, the ice-encrusted firs known as snow monsters that pull in even non-skiers. Reviewers like that the village of ryokan and open-air onsen sits right among the runs, and that Uwanodai and Yokokura stay lit until nine in the evening. Against Niseko it is called cheap and easy to reach from Tokyo, and on weekdays people report almost no queues at all.

The lift layout draws the sharpest criticism: it is described as badly planned, with a lot of skating and poling between sectors and a majority of slow old double chairs. At weekends the gondolas fill up with walking sightseers heading for the snow monsters. The trees are said to be packed too tightly for comfortable riding, the terrain is judged intermediate at heart, and mid-winter weather is often grim - storm, freezing rain and wind, with clear days a rarity.