Where is Alts Bandai?

The Alts Bandai Ski Resort sits on the southeast flank of Mount Bandai and north of Lake Inawashiro in the Aizu Region in the Fukushima Prefecture of Tohoku (ie northern Honshu).

Alts Snow Park and Resort is:

• 9km from the little town of Bandai
• 12km from the town of Inawashiro
• 290km north of Tokyo
• 49km northwest of the Koriyama train station 

Aizu Guided Tours

For many advanced to expert riders, it makes sense to do a guided multi-day tour of the region which includes transport and makes trip logistics completely fuss free. Having a guide also helps you to get the most out of the ski resorts to find the best powder stashes. See Aizu guided tours here.

Driving to Alts Bandai

If you’re not on a tour, you’ll want to have a car because there are no shuttle systems to enable you to sample multiple Aizu ski areas without a car (with the exception of the shuttle between Alts and Nekoma).

The telephone number for GPS navigation is 0242 745000. The resort can be accessed off the Banetsu Expressway or it’s 44km from the Koriyama Interchange on the Tohoku Expressway.

The Center parking lot attracts a fee on weekends, whilst the other parking areas are free on all days.

Train and Bus to Alts Snow Park

Considering the ease of access, lots of Tokyo-ites do day trips to Alts Bandai.

From Tokyo you can catch the Tohoku Shinkansen to Koriyama Station (about 1:20 to 1:45 hours), and then resort shuttle buses cover the 49km (approximately 80 minutes) to Alts Bandai (2 schedules in each direction).

Or you can catch a train to the Bandai-machi station then a free bus from the east exit, which takes about 20 minutes. There are a few buses each day. Another alternative is to take a train then bus from Aizu Wakamatsu Station.

Other Ski Resorts Nearby

Several other Aizu ski resorts sit on the slopes of Mount Bandai or nearby:

• Inawashiro Resort (formerly Grand Sunpia Inawashiro) is just to the east and 7km by road, although the resort hasn’t been operational of late
• Inawashiro Ski Resort is further to the east and 13.5km away by road
• Listel Ski Fantasia is 16km to the east but there’s nothing much to fantasise about with respect to this little low elevation ski area
• Grandeco is to the northeast of Mt Bandai and 32km away
• Nekoma (also owned by Hoshino Resorts) is 32km by road to the north, or just a short walk between the tops of Alts Bandai and Nekoma. There are also shuttles (reservation required) run by Hoshino Resorts that connect the two ski area bases
• Minowa Ski Resort is 32km to the northeast