Gala Yuzawa or Echigo Yuzawa

Hi

My husband and I are bringing our 7 year-old daughter to Tokyo for the first time and we will be staying near Shinjuku station.

We've read that Gala Yuzawa / Echigo Yuzawa is nearest from Tokyo.

1) We will be in Tokyo from 12/12/09 - 16/12/09. Are the resorts opened yet?

2) Where can we buy "Gala One Day Trip Ticket"? Any idea how much it costs?

3) Does Echigo Yuzawa have any "One Day Trip Ticket"? If so, any idea how much?

4) How do we get to Echigo Yuzawa Resort from Shinjuku Station?

5) Are there any activities in the resort besides skiing?

6) Are there any activites suitable for children?

7) Are there any ski-course at Echigo Yuzawa? If yes, any idea how much they costs?

8) Would you recommend Gala Yuzawa or Echigo Yuzawa if we do not ski?

Thank you.
Cole

We've read that Gala Yuzawa / Echigo Yuzawa is nearest from Tokyo.

If you mean one of the nearest places to see snow, then yes, Yuzawa is one of the closest and easiest places to see snow from Tokyo. Its only about 90 minutes away by shinkansen.

1) We will be in Tokyo from 12/12/09 - 16/12/09. Are the resorts opened yet?

Yes, most of the resorts in Yuzawa should be open or opening around then.

2) Where can we buy "Gala One Day Trip Ticket"? Any idea how much it costs?

You can buy it at the JR Stations and travel agents.

3) Does Echigo Yuzawa have any "One Day Trip Ticket"? If so, any idea how much?

Echigo Yuzawa is a Shinkansen Station, that unlike Gala Yuzawa Station is not directly connected to a ski resort. I am unaware if there are any specials associated with this station, but you should check with a travel agent as there may be some packages availble with nearby resorts.

4) How do we get to Echigo Yuzawa Resort from Shinjuku Station?

Take either a Toki or Tanigawa shinkansen from Tokyo to Echigo Yuzawa station. From the station there are free shuttle buses to the various resorts in the area.

5) Are there any activities in the resort besides skiing?

Yes, some of the resorts have childrens play zones as well as sledding, snow tubing, snow mobiling, snowshoeing, etc.

6) Are there any activites suitable for children?

With the exception of snow mobiling, the extra activities offered are suitable for children.

7) Are there any ski-course at Echigo Yuzawa? If yes, any idea how much they costs?

Echigo Yuzawa is a ski resort town. See this page:

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e7690.html

8) Would you recommend Gala Yuzawa or Echigo Yuzawa if we do not ski?

I would probably recommend Echigo Yuzawa as there are many resorts to choose from while Gala is just one resort.

If you don't intend to ski and only want to take your kid out to the snow for some sledding it is probably better to go to Echigo Yuzawa.

Just outside of Echigo Yuzawa stations is main street which has many hotels and restaurant.
If you walk further down there is Yuzawa Kogen I believe which is a ski resort. You could probably take your kid there and borrow a sled and take them sledding without having to pay any entry/lift fees.

Dependant on snow level of course.
At Gala Yuzawa the actual slope is accessed via a Gondala, So if you didnt intend on skiing you would still have to buy a gondala pass to get up there, but there is a higher chance of snow since it is at a higher altitude and there is a kids area for sledding/toboganning etc.

2) Where can we buy "Gala One Day Trip Ticket"? Any idea how much it costs?

According to the View Plaza (JR travel centre) brochures, it's 7900 yen until around Dec 24th. That includes shinkansen there and back, and all ay lift ticket. For Gala Yuzawa, you can all catch the gondola up the the resort upper mountain base complex. This is great value as the round trip Shinkansen is normally 12,580 yen.

Do those packages have to be used in a day trip.
Can you use it over a few days.
ie. use it to get there snowboard for 3 days then use the return ticket on the 4th day?

The day trips are suppose to be completed on the same day.
Now, I'm not sure as I've never tried it, but I've gone quite a few times on non-reserved seat there(because the guy organising it didn't book until too late for reserved seats), reserved seat back.

However, I was wondering myself, if you booked reserved seat there, and non reserved back, as to whether you could just use the non reserved the next day!!!!!

Even non-reserved tickets are only valid on the day designated on the ticket, just like a Yamanote line ticket.

Thank you everyone for your valuable information and tips!

After reading, we have decided to go to one of the resorts at Echigo Yuzawa instead.

I've read abt the combined 3 resort ticket, is this only useful for skiers? Is this ticket useful if we do not ski?

If we decided not to ski, do we still have to purchase a half day/full day ticket?

Tks
Cole