Sugadaira Kogen

Staying on the plateau gives you the easiest ski days. The rugby crowds mean there is a huge supply of pensions, minshuku and lodges here, many with drying rooms and big home-style dinners included. Sugadaira Prince Hotel is the most polished option, close to the Davos slopes and set up for families who want a resort hotel feel. Elsewhere, smaller family-run lodges near each base let you walk to the lifts, and they tend to be cheaper the further you get from the main road.

If you want more food choices and an easier train connection, stay in Ueda and commute up. Ueda Tokyu REI Hotel is right next to the station, and the bus or drive up to the plateau takes 40 to 50 minutes. It is a good option if you are combining a few ski days with sightseeing at Ueda Castle or onward trips to other Nagano resorts.

For an onsen-centred trip, look at Hanaya Hotel in Bessho Onsen, one of Nagano's oldest hot-spring towns, about 30 minutes from Ueda. It adds a longer commute, but the reward is a historic ryokan, beautiful baths and a slower pace in the evenings. Read our onsen etiquette guide before your first soak.

Sugadaira's strength is cold, light snow that holds quality for days, not deep dumps, so the best powder days come right after a cold front when a modest fall stays dry and fast on the plateau. On a fresh morning, head for the higher lifts on the Davos side, including the Oku-Davos chairs and the Nekodake Downhill course off the top, then work the edges of the wide pistes where soft snow sits untouched because most people stay in the middle. The Taro area is the best bet for steeper groomers (the upper Taro and Ura-Taro Challenge and Seehail runs are rated advanced), and the Pine Beak side, with its Omatsu and Tsubakuro hills, has SAJ-certified race runs that ski beautifully when freshly groomed. Wind is the main enemy: the plateau is open and exposed, so a storm can scour ridges to hardpack while sheltered runs between the trees stay soft. If you want untracked terrain, the snowcat operation on the Davos side heads up toward Nekodake on suitable days, the one real freeride outlet here. Otherwise, out of bounds is not allowed and there is no gate system, so treat Sugadaira as an in-bounds mountain and save backcountry missions for elsewhere.

From Tokyo, the Hokuriku Shinkansen reaches Ueda in about 85 to 90 minutes. From Ueda Station, local buses run to the Sugadaira plateau in about 50 minutes, stopping at the main base areas, or a taxi will get you there a little faster. The whole journey from central Tokyo is doable in about 2.5 hours, which makes it one of the easier day trips from the capital. For other options within reach of a weekend, see our list of ski resorts near Tokyo.

By car, take the Joshinetsu Expressway to the Ueda Sugadaira IC, then climb about 30 minutes up the winding road to the plateau. From Nagano City it is roughly an hour. The road is well maintained, but it gains a lot of height quickly, and the last section can be icy and drifted when the wind picks up.

Snow tyres are essential and chains are smart in a 2WD hire car. Some car parks, including the one at Ura-Taro, now charge a fee. If you want to switch between areas during the day, shuttle buses link Davos and Taro with the Pine Beak side.

Beginners and families get a lot out of Sugadaira. There are dozens of wide, gentle runs, plenty of ski schools, and weather that makes learning pleasant rather than miserable. Kids of primary school age and younger ski free on the third Sunday of each month, and the sheer number of slopes means beginner areas rarely feel crowded. For other hills in this mould, see our list of the best ski resorts in Japan for beginners.

Intermediates and anyone working on technique will love it. The grooming is excellent, the runs vary in pitch, and race training is part of daily life, so you will see some very good skiers to learn from. You can spend a week here exploring different hills and not repeat yourself much, as long as you are happy on corduroy.

Who should look elsewhere? Powder hounds and tree skiers. The vertical is short, the trees are limited, and the snowfall does not match the Japan Sea side resorts. Treat Sugadaira as a cold, sunny, technical day out rather than the place to chase deep snow.

On-mountain food is classic Japanese ski cafeteria fare: curry rice, ramen, katsu, udon and hot drinks, spread across several base lodges. It is cheap and quick but rarely memorable. On weekends, school groups and clubs take over the main restaurants between noon and 1 pm, so eat early or late.

Ueda is where the better food is. The town's signature dish is yakitori with a sharp garlic and soy dipping sauce, and there are good soba shops thanks to the buckwheat grown in the surrounding valleys. If you are staying on the plateau, dinner will usually be at your lodge, often a big set meal with rice, soup and grilled fish or meat, which is exactly what you need after a cold day.

Après is quiet. Most people ski, soak and eat dinner at their lodge. If you want more evening action, the Hinode slope in the Taro area runs night skiing, which is about as lively as Sugadaira gets after dark.

• Lift hours: most lifts run from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm in high season, finishing at 3:30 pm early and late in the season. On weekends and holidays, the Ura-Taro Family slope opens 30 minutes earlier at 8 am.
• Tickets: the Davos and Taro areas share one ticket, while Pine Beak sells its own, and neither can be used on the other. Check which area your lodge is closest to before you buy.
• Night skiing: available on the Hinode slope in the Taro area, run by a separate operator, so check dates and prices locally.
• Backcountry reality: there is no gate system, and out of bounds is not allowed. The snowcat tour on the Davos side is the only legitimate way to ski off-piste.
• Weather: cold, sunny and windy. Expect hard, fast snow on exposed slopes after wind events and softer turns between the trees.
• Nearby resorts: Palcall Tsumagoi is about 45 minutes away over the pass into Gunma. Shiga Kogen and Nozawa Onsen offer more terrain and deeper snow for longer day trips, and Myoko Kogen and Madarao are worth the drive when a storm is hitting northern Nagano.