Overall, the Myoko Kogen resorts struck us as a great place to ski with youngsters, at least in terms of the trails on offer. There is plenty of wide and easy terrain with a consistent gradient and, aside from on weekends, the runs tend to be quite quiet. In terms of straightforward terrain, Akakura Onsen is probably the best place to start and we saw plenty of youngsters on the slopes here with their parents. The lower sections of Ikenotaira and Suginohara are also ideal for young skiers and we would recommend them without reservation. Our enthusiasm was tempered somewhat by the partly outdated lift infrastructure, including a couple of chairlifts without a safety bar – obviously not ideal for young children.
Some child care options available
Though several of the resorts offer children’s areas, most notably Ikenotaira and Akakura Onsen, these aren’t particularly sizeable by European standards. Nevertheless, the two aforementioned resorts in particular have a family-friendly feel overall. There is a nursery in Akakura village which takes children aged 6 months and over as well as several kids’ ski schools which offer courses in English. Each of the resorts also boasts free children’s playrooms and outside play areas, though these are unsupervised.
Kids ski for free
One attractive offer for families is the pricing structure of the Myoko Kogen resorts. All pre-school children (kids aged 6 or under) ski for free here throughout the season. Myoko Suginohara is operated by the family-friendly Prince Hotel Group and goes one step further – all elementary school aged kids (under 12s) ski for free in this sub-area.