Snow in Hokuriku北陸の雪

First snow: late November to early December, but it rarely settles before December (November averages 12 cm of snowfall and 5 cm at the deepest). Reliable cover: late December to late February, still deep into early March. The average deepest cover is 84 cm in December, 148 cm in January, 173 cm in February and 125 cm in March. Melt: through March, mostly gone from the valley by mid-April. Daily lows run from −2 °C in December to −5 °C in February, and highs stay between 3 °C and 6 °C.

What you will see: thatched gasshō roofs under a metre or more of snow, and the village from the Shiroyama viewpoint. It is also the greyest place on this page: an average January has only 41 hours of sunshine and February 62, so blue sky is a bonus. The record is 297 cm (9 February 2006); 282 cm was reached on 20 February 2025. Best weeks: the last week of January to the third week of February, with the light-up on 11, 17, 24 and 31 January 2027 (reservation only). From Nagoya, see Nagoya to Shirakawa-go.

Gokayama has no weather station in these averages, so I use Shirakawa-go's: the two sets of villages sit in the same mountains and follow the same pattern, with snow from late December to late February, deepest in February. Expect a quieter village than Shirakawa-go, with Ainokura's farmhouses under snow and rooms that book out months ahead.

Best weeks: the light-ups, at Suganuma on Tuesday 26 January and 6–7 February, and at Ainokura on 20–21 February 2027. The Kanazawa to Shirakawa-go bus does not stop in Gokayama from December to March; the World Heritage Bus runs daily in winter, and a car needs 4WD with winter tyres. See Gokayama and a farmhouse stay.

First snow: late November to mid December. Snow days: mostly January and February, as wet, heavy snow that usually turns to slush within a day or two. The average deepest cover is only 11 cm in December, 27 cm in January, 22 cm in February and 7 cm in March, and rain and sleet are as common as snow (December is the wettest month, 301 mm). Melt: done by mid-March. Lows sit around 1 °C and highs at 7–8 °C in January and February; sunshine is 62 hours in January.

What you will see: the yukitsuri rope cones at Kenrokuen go up on 1 November and come down in mid-March, and the pines look best after a fall. The garden is lit on 6–10, 13, 20 and 27 February 2027. Best weeks: the morning after a snowfall in late January or February, at opening. Keep a museum plan for the grey days (rainy-day ideas).

First snow: the normal date is 3 December (it came on 3 December in 2025, 8 December in 2024 and 17 December in 2023). Snow days: January and February, with an average deepest cover of 40 cm and 39 cm (23 cm in December, 10 cm in March). Melt: by mid-March, with lows around 0 °C and highs of 6–7 °C in midwinter. January has about 68 hours of sunshine.

What you will see: the real winter sight is the 3,000 m Tateyama range, white across Toyama Bay, from the Amaharashi coast on a clear cold morning from December to February. Best weeks: the clear mornings after a cold front, in January and February, which you only know a day ahead. For the city itself see Toyama city.

Winter: closed. Murodō (2,450 m) normally gets its first snow in mid-October, and the Alpine Route closes on 30 November 2026. It opened on 15 April in 2025 and 2026; 2027 is not announced. So there is no way to see Murodō under snow from December to mid-April, and no weather-station figures for it here. It is roughly 15 °C colder than the plain.

What you will see when it opens: the Yuki-no-Ōtani walls beside the road, 12 m in 2026, 16 m in 2025, 14 m in 2024 and 13 m in 2023, on a walk that ran 15 April to 25 June in 2026 (9:30–15:00). Best weeks: late April outside Golden Week. Details in the snow wall guide and the Alpine Route guide.

First snow: late November to December (November averages 2 cm of snowfall). Snow days: January and February, with an average deepest cover of 44 cm and 45 cm (21 cm in December, 18 cm in March). Melt: through March, gone by April. It is cold, with lows near −5 °C and highs of 3–5 °C in midwinter, but it has more than twice the sun of Shirakawa-go: 93 hours in January and 116 in February.

What you will see: Sanmachi and the Jinya gate under snow that settles overnight and slushes by afternoon. The Miyagawa morning market opens at 8:00 from December to March. Best weeks: mid January to mid February, the morning after a fall. Buses run with chains and can be delayed or cancelled in heavy snow, so keep slack. See Takayama.

Nagano city's own numbers (26 cm deepest in January, 23 cm in February) understate the valley, which sits in the mountains. The nearest station in this table, Nozawa Onsen, has 171 cm in January and 199 cm in February. Best: December to March, with snow-capped faces in January and February.

Entry is ¥1,000 from 1 December 2026 (¥800 until 30 November), 9:00–16:00 in winter, along a trail of about 2 km. Wear micro-spikes, and arrive early: the monkeys usually come down between 9:00 and 10:00. Best weeks: late January to mid February. Stay in Shibu for the baths: see Yudanaka and Shibu.