We had a great time at Appi and were very happy. It has some distinct pros and also some cons that are worth mentioning. Nevertheless, we love the place and will definitely be back because the powder and trees are way too good.

NICHE MARKET
Appi has always been a fancy ski resort, but it’s chosen to cement its position further as a destination for the affluent. Not only does it have upscale accommodation and meals, but it now also has a new model whereby you can pay more to get more fresh powder. This is unique for Japan, and great for those who have the budget.

Whilst marketing itself as a luxury resort, Appi still has some work to do to compete on an international level. Firstly we found that the service levels at the Crowne Plaza Hotel to be lacking. The resort has also done a lot of cost cutting and streamlined its services which may detract from its appeal for some demographics, particularly families. There is no more child care or babysitting, group snowsports lessons are only in January and February (and not always), and kids activities are diminished.

LIFTS
Like a lot of Japanese ski areas, the reliability of the ageing lifts has been problematic, and without really major funds to replace and run them, Appi has reduced the number of lifts in operation. Cost cutting has also seen some lifts only operate at certain times. We were lucky that the Vista Quad was running but it seemed that part way through the season a decision was made to only operate it on weekends.

The Nishimori lift is not coming back anytime soon, but we’ve got over that because the snowcat and/or skinning up has some distinct advantages. Whilst we were there, the snowcat for the Nishimori area was not operating due to maintenance issues.

One day was incredibly windy, and whilst other northern Tohoku had lifts closed, the lifts were still running at Appi and the gondola was relatively sheltered from the prevailing winds.

It’s great to hear that there are plans to replace the Appi gondola in the near future.

THE SKIING
The snow base was 170cm when we visited, which was a little lower than usual for that time of year (early Feb). A few other nearby ski areas were struggling for snow (and prefectures further south were really really struggling) but Appi was fine. We had some fresh snow and it reinforced that Appi often has lovely snow quality. We did a few laps in the Nishimori where the snow was deep and delicious. Wanting to do more lift-serviced skiing, we also explored the off-piste and other sidecountry areas that we hadn’t previously done a lot of. It was impressive and the off-piste was so easy to navigate, and they’ve done a lot of glading so there was much more terrain than we’d remembered from past experiences.

Also remarkable were the fresh tracks. We thought the easy-pickings trees would be tracked out quickly, but barely anyone was in there. Actually the resort in general was not busy. On a Friday there were zero lift lines, and weekend lines were negligible so those with upgraded passes weren’t getting too far ahead of the pack.

ACCOMMODATION
We had two distinct experiences at Appi. First we stayed at the Crowne Plaza and you can see our review here. It was excellent for the slopeside convenience and the views from our room were amazing. Compared to our stay 13 years ago, the hotel no longer offers a luxury stay with rockstar service, but it was priced accordingly.

We also stayed in the Appi village at Apikogen Mori No Hotel. This wasn’t a resortified hotel and was a bit old school, yet it provided a refreshing Japanese experience and great value.

DINING
The dining is incredibly varied from the resort versus the village. We ate at a few of the slopeside hotel restaurants which were good quality but very spendy and the value wasn’t that apparent at the Korean BBQ in particular. The dining options down in the Appi village have shrunk further and were quite limited but very inexpensive. A special shout out to the brewpub Brew 19 for the variety of beers on offer.

The new bakery down in the village, Appi House, had some amazing treats for lunch. We tried to return another day and it was closed for some unknown reason.

OVERALL
You can see more of our thoughts on the pros and cons on the Appi overview page and see how we rate it on various factors on our Honshu ski resort ratings.
See our video here

Appi was once a good destination for skiing but is now disappointingly headed to mediocrity.
We have visited Appi several times previously but this recent trip will be our last due to the lack of open runs / available terrain on weekdays, particularly for intermediate skiers.

The drop in accessible terrain is caused by the current ski field and lift operating and maintenance strategy, where lifts have been gradually decommissioned or only run on peak weekends. (A rough estimate of the impact is a 50% reduction in available terrain on weekdays). Adding insult to injury is that the Nishimori chair was not run at all the whole week we were there despite some excellent conditions

Overall it feels like there is a real disconnect between the "Best Ski Resort in Japan" marketing campaign and what actually happens on the mountain.
See our video here

Feb 2023 was our family's first visit to Appi, and we were very pleasantly surprised by the terrain on offer, especially if you are prepared to wander a little off the obvious runs.
Firstly, we stayed at ANA Crowne Plaza which offers expensive but perfectly located ski in/out accommodation at the base of the resort. There is no town or particularly Japanese vibe about Appi, so you won't get any sort of specifically Japanese feel aside from the plentiful powder snow - but that was the main reason we came - and we weren't disappointed!
Appi really does over a wide range of terrain option that will suit all ability levels. I am an expert level snowboarder and my step-son is not far behind, my 2 youngest kids are intermediate skiers, while my wife would be a beginner snowboarder having just taken up the sport at age 45.
The wide and beautifully groomed beginner runs were great for my wife to find her confidence and progress, while my kids would fly down these runs having the time of their lives as they attempted to out do and out race each other. Even following along behind with the GoPro in hand was great fun and there are plenty of trees and side stashes to smash through on the greens.
But it's Appi's tree and ungroomed runs that we found to be the best part of our week, and there are plenty of lift lines and treed areas that offered fresh snow for days, especially mid-week when the locals were back and work and the runs felt almost deserted (at least by Australian standards).
There are tree run options both skiers left and right of the main gondola and in our 6 days on the snow we were still discovering new lines at 4pm on our final day. A highlight was seeing my kids progress from groomers to confidently doing and loving the tree runs as our week at Appi progressed.
There are various gullies and treed areas that offered up untouched lines throughout the week, it just took a little studying of the map and a sense of adventure and the rewards were sensational!
The groomed runs are also reasonably long, although aside from the very top of the mountain the angle mellows out considerably, but this was not a problem for our family and the wife and kids gained so much confidence at Appi that they are super keen on heading back in 2024. After skiing both Rusutsu and Niseko earlier in our trip, Appi was the clear favourite.
Some things that were a bit disappointing were that some of the key lift on the skiers right of the resort were only open on the weekend, which made a reasonable dent in the available terrain, and the resort as a whole does feel a little tired and in need of an aesthetic update - especially considering the cost of accommodation.
All in all, Appi offers an off the obvious track experience with plenty of groomed and off-piste options, with the highlight for us being the many tree skiing options that we continued to discover throughout our week there.
There is easy access from Tokyo via the Shinkansen to Morioka (2.15hrs) then either direct bus to the resort or local train to AppiKogen station, where the hotel staff will meet you and drive you the 5 minutes to the resort.
They say 'don't worry, be Appi', and Appi is definitely a resort that will put a big smile on your face no matter your ability level.
See our video here

Appi Kogen used to be such a fancy ski resort by Japanese ski resort standards, but it’s shortened its name to just “Appi” and it seems that it’s shortened some of its offerings too. Appi is now starting to look like a typical bubble era ski area where negligible money is spent on upkeep. The Appi Grand Hotel was once very grand looking, yet the façade was an old dirty lemon colour and the inside looked tired, and the sad old onsen hotel looked really crappy Appi. The resort hasn’t made any recent upgrades to the lifts, and the old clunkers were still just as slow. The lift towers and lift buildings were all rusted and looked like they needed a good lick of paint as a starting point. A couple of the chair lifts only run on weekends and the Sailor Gondola was rested for 19-20 and it’s unclear as to whether it’s been retired for good. A lot of activity shuttles have ceased, and they’ve stopped running group ski lessons for kids in English. What has happened to the previously swanky Appi ski resort?

Good news however was that Appi have started to shed their conservative approach to off-piste skiing and have undertaken some glading to form designated tree runs. Bad news was that 4 of the 6 runs were officially closed and lord knows why, so it seemed that they’ve got a long way to go to actually become progressive.

The whole vibe at the Appi Resort hotels had changed and the place was full of Chinese tour groups so there was very little Japanese culture remaining. The tariffs for the resort hotels and their restaurants had gone up substantially which may be partly due to the change of demographics (although it seems that 2021 prices have been Covidised). Conversely the pension village had a nice atmosphere. A couple of cute little bars had popped up as well as a few very affordable eateries, and the accommodation was inexpensive.

The pros about the Appi snow and off-piste terrain remained. The snow was a couple of days off being fresh, yet it was still delightful. It was almost advantageous that the tree runs were officially closed because there were still plenty of virgin lines on offer, and by the second day we could just push a bit wider and exit lower to still get freshies. One weekend it was really busy with decent queues for the gondola (but barely anyone was riding off-piste), whilst a couple of days later the place was deserted.

The onsen was also deserted and it was beautiful to sit outside watching the snow falling whilst soaking in the various pools.

Another major pro of Appi is that it’s located within easy driving distance of various ski resorts that are good for powder hounds, so it’s worth including on a road trip or tour of the area.

Appi is fantastic for a day trip or two, whilst for those looking for a destination resort, there are now probably better options in Japan. If you do stay at Appi, unless you need the convenience of ski-in ski-out lodging and have a very healthy budget, we’d suggest staying down in the pension village. See more on our thoughts on the pros and cons on the Appi Kogen overview page.
See our video here

Appi Kogen is a large ski resort by Japaneses standards built in bubble era so it is a little light on charm and nightlife. The area is served by a decent lift system and has long runs for a Japanese resort. The clientele is primarily moderate to low ability so the competition for fresh turns is pretty low and off piste skiing is allowed and there are gladed areas as well. Snow quality is excellent due Appi's northern location in Tohoku. Lodging is a choice of one of the resort properties or one of the locally run lodges. I would highly recommend the slope side Shirakaba No Mori or the Pension Alice in the village. Dining is very limited, most visitors will eat dinner where they are staying. Appi Kogen is easy to get to by train from Tokyo in less than three hours via the Tohoku Shinkansen followed by he local IGR line or Shuttle bus from Morioko station.
See our video here

As a single I usually have no complaints about lifts but this place sucks!They really have no idea what they’re doing . Slowest old doubles and triples ever and on top of that the operators don double up anyone . If a person can’t ride the lift with someone else they shouldn’t be above the beginner hill period. I paid to shred not stand in a lift line . I spent three days at Shizukuishi, old and past it’s prime but they knew how to move people up hill. I have another month in Japan but this place is of the list , hell I’d rather go back to Niseko and deal with drunk Aussies than slow chairs!
See our video here

We can’t help but be a little disappointed when we receive reviews that there are no “black runs” or challenging slopes at Appi, or there are only groomed runs. It’s a shame that some people don’t read our website before visiting Appi! Sure the black pistes are not very steep (as is the case at most Japanese ski resorts) and Appi excels at its grooming and its family friendliness, but behind the façade of this non-challenging resort lies some fun for powder hounds. OK Appi is very conservative and off-piste skiing is not permitted, but where’s your sense of adventure?! If you can be Shhhh and be vewy vewy quiet, you can go hunting white wabbits (the white rabbit is the winter logo of Appi Kogen)! OK enough of Elmer Fudd, if you can be very discrete, there is enough off-piste and sidecountry terrain to keep adventurous advanced/expert riders entertained for 2-3 days, so long as the snow is nice, which it often is. There are also other ski resorts in the area that are excellent for powder chasers.

On our last visit to Appi we scored amazingly deep powder so we had pretty high expectations for this visit. And Appi didn’t disappoint! We had some amazing runs in the off-piste and sidecountry and the quality of the snow was exceptional.

Since our last visit, the number of alternate activities has reduced but the resort has a good program of events on offer instead to mix things up a bit (and to make sure you don’t get cabin fever if staying at the resort). And the addition of group ski and snowboard lessons in English is a huge bonus for international travellers.

See the Appi Kogen overview for more on the pros and cons, and also see our Japan ski resort ratings to see how Appi compares to other Japanese ski resorts.
See our video here

I was somewhat disappointed by the lack of challenging (read "steep") runs at Appi, but still had a great time. The black runs were all blue by Ozzie standards. The one mogulled area was the only area that got a sweat up. The snow cover was very good across the resort, with only 2 runs not open due to thin cover at the top. A couple of 5 -10 cm days of fresh powered were most welcome. Without deep powder these slopes are a little ho hum.

Recommend a day trip to nearby Shimokura, where an Appi ticket can be used. Small field, but with a nice variety.

Stayed at the Appi Grand, which was great for ski in, ski out. Meals at the in house restaurants cost and an arm and a leg.

Nice resort, but not enough variety to bring me back again. Learners and intermediates will have a ball with the long, wide, uncrowded slopes. Even the "busy" weekend presented no lift queues greater than 20 people. Great gondolas.
See our video here

Built in the 80's this place has some serious infrastructure.

We stayed at Pension Mutti and the Mamma San who operates this place is unbelievable. A true local who speaks english and has spent seasons in europe truly understands westerners and their needs. I have spent many years experiencing Japanese hospitality at different resorts and nothing touches this property. The food is off the charts with primarily local products which will blow your mind.

And the skiing. Our timing was perfect this season with the most amazing powder we have experienced in a long time. We truly had chest deep on this trip with no competition at all.

The food hall is amazing as you will be the only westerners amongst a throng of Japanese enthusiasts.

Make sure you get on the gondolas with the locals as they will engage with you if you are open to the experience.
See our video here

We had 9 nights in Appi between 18/01 to 27/01 staying at the Appi Grand. If this website was called Corduroy Hounds then Appi would be Number 1. The resort extensively grooms its beautiful dry squeaky powder in a relentless, cynical fashion bordering on eco vandalism. Which is a pity because the snow quality was outstanding compared to that of Nagano a few days later.

The lift system is amongst the best I've seen in 4 trips, no tiresome catwalks or inconvenient flat sections and the runs long. If they only retired half their snow grooming fleet.
 
The Appi Grand was fantastic, ski in ski out, great buffet, staff very attentive, great pool, large rooms with more than enough storage space and free wifi. The Appi Resort centre has an excellent Indian restaurant providing an alternative to the Hotel Buffet Dinner.

Midweek was deserted and if only it had have snowed more it could have been epic.
See our video here