Eboshi Miyagi

Miyagi Zao Eboshi Ski Resort is the only ski area in the Miyagi Prefecture that has a gondola and it’s also the largest ski resort in Miyagi, however don’t get too excited just yet as it’s not Niseko-sized and it doesn’t get Niseko-sized snow volumes either. If you want to go to a ski resort that the local Japanese folks go to, Eboshi is a good pick. 

Pros and Cons of Eboshi Ski Resort

Pros 

• You can get off the trodden path of ski resorts that most international skiers and snowboarders go to. Eboshi offers a nice local Japanese ski-jo experience.
• Stay in nearby Togatta Onsen and enjoy the culture of staying in a ryokan, soaking in an onsen and eating Japanese cuisine whilst wearing a yukata.
• There are various inexpensive lodging options nearby.
• Eboshi Ski Resort offers nice views and you might even see the ocean on a fine day.

Cons

• Despite it being the largest ski area in Miyagi, it doesn’t offer much terrain variety.
• Like other Miyagi ski resorts, it’s not always blessed with abundant Japow.

Pro or Con Depending On Your Perspective

• The ski area has a conservative approach to tree skiing and hopefully this will continue to change over time as more people push the envelope. For those that can be respectfully discrete, you’ll have negligible competition for fresh lines.
• It’s easy to get there from Sendai, so it gets busy on weekends and there can be queues for tickets, rentals and lifts (it’s busy by Japanese standards but not very busy compared to high profile North American ski resorts.)

Eboshi Ski and Snowboard Terrain

The Miyagi Zao Eboshi Ski Area covers 700 metres of vertical from 1,350 to 650 metres of elevation. It has 10 courses and 6 lifts. It features a 6-person gondola, although this usually equates to the cabins being for 2 to 3 people. The gondola covers the lower mellow two-thirds of the vertical, and there is also a quad and double lift at the base, whilst double chair lifts service the upper portion. There are also condemned lifts, as is common with Japanese ski resorts.

Complete novices can use a magic carpet, although you’ll have to weave around the sledders. Otherwise about half of the trails are rated for beginners and the lower part of the ski area is very mellow. It’s so gentle that beginner snowboarders might get bogged on a powder day. The main challenge for beginners may be the narrow bottleneck when you get off the gondola, but you can choose to ride the chair lifts instead.

Intermediates have a handful of courses to choose from. One commences with an advanced trail, and others start or terminate in a beginner run, so there is limited pure intermediate terrain.

There are a few short black runs that are left to bump up, which includes the “challenge” course that maxes out at 35 degrees. Advanced riders will probably prefer to head into the trees, which provide short but sweet lines. Being an old-school Japanese ski resort, off-course skiing is officially not permitted yet some locals do it discretely with their camo outfits on.

Eboshi Snow

As Eboshi is much closer to the east coast than the west coast, it’s not renowned for big snowfalls and the storms usually peter out by the time they pass over the Zao mountains. On average, the snow base sits at about 1.1 metres, although it’s unknown if this is measured at the base on one of the groomers or at the top in an ungroomed zone.

The quality of the snow that falls is usually good, and with OK elevation considering its latitude and east to northeast orientation, the snow quality is reasonably well retained.

Where is Miyagi Zao Eboshi?

Eboshi Ski Resort sits on the northeastern ridge of Mt Eboshi in the Zao Mountain range in the Miyagi Prefecture. The more famous Zao Onsen Ski Resort sits on the other side of the Zao Mountain range, over in the Yamagata Prefecture.

Miyagi Zao Eboshi Ski Resort is 14km to the northwest of Zao town. It’s officially located in Togatta Onsen, although the main part of the onsen village is 6km to the east. The city of Sendai is 47km to the northeast and the city of Yamagata is 48km to the northwest.

There are free shuttle buses from the Zao Town Hall and Togatta Onsen, as well as lift/bus packages from Sendai. If you have your own wheels, the drive is relatively easy, particularly considering the last part of the road is heated. Parking on the weekends attracts a fee.

Ski Areas Nearby

• Miyagi Zao Eboshi is next door to the Miyagi Zao Sumikawa Ski Resort, although the two ski areas are separated by a big ravine into the Sumi River. By road, Sumikawa is 18km away, a drive that takes about half an hour.
• Miyagi Zao Shiroishi is 17km to the south.
• Miyagi Zao Shichikashuku is 38km to the southwest.
• St Mary Ski Resort is 29km to the north.
• Onikoube in northern Miyagi is 127km to the north.
• Zao Liza World is just over the other side of the Zao mountains from Eboshi, but it’s a long drive in winter.

You can also click on the map icon at the top for a map of the area.

Accommodation

There is no accommodation at the base, but there are a few pensions just a few minutes drive down the road.

The village of Togatta Onsen is close by and is renowned for its ryokan with lovely onsen. There are some very reasonably priced hotels as well as some luxury spots to stay if you want to splurge.

Togatta Onsen Hotel Listings

Facilities

Eboshi Ski Resort has a few restaurants. Kogen Restaurant is incredibly popular whilst the Gondola House restaurant may be quieter. Either way, you won’t be able to escape the standard Japanese ski resort fare of cutlet curry and ramen.

Equipment rentals are somewhat modern, which is not something you take for granted in Japan, and there are two ski schools and one snowboard school. There is no daycare centre, but there is a kids’ play park at the base area.