We wanted to get an early start and maximize Day #4 of our JR Nagano Niigata Pass. So we got up at 7:30 am. We got dressed in our snow gear, ate the breakfast we had ordered and paid for the night before and were out the door by 8:00 am.
The first orange line shuttle bus left Echigo Yuzawa Station’s East Gate at 8:20 am. It took us about five minutes to walk over and there was already a line forming. We got in line and waited for a couple minutes until the bus came. The bus arrived at the Gala Yuzawa Snow Resort about 15 minutes later. We walked up a couple flights of stairs until we reached the main level. The stairs were wide and not very steep, which must have been to accommodate guests with ski/snowboard boots on. The resort featured a number of these thoughtful details that made our experience even better.
Gala Yuzawa Ski Resort
Upon reaching the main floor, we headed to the ticketing counter. The area was very well organized and orderly. There were staff members strategically located to answer any of our questions. The ticketing area reminded us of an airline baggage check in line with the way it was designed. The line was a bit long, but they had numerous counters open and we flew through the line. We showed the staff member our JR Nagano Niigata Pass and were able to get a nice discount on our lift tickets.
Gala Yuzawa Ski Rentals
Next, we headed over to the equipment rental area. There were forms where we filled out our basic information and what kind of equipment we wanted to rent. There were English translations, so filling out the form was very straight forward. We then took it to the equipment rental line, which once again ran really smoothly since they had numerous stations open. Once we got to the front of the line, two people confirmed what we wanted and helped us get the right boots and skis. The experience was memorable for its efficiency and how smooth it went.
Gala Yuzawa Locker Rooms
We picked up our boots and skis and headed over to the locker rooms to store our shoes and other belongings. The lockers closest to the rental area were a bit pricy. They did provide multiple entry, but that was not something we were going to use. We learned after the fact that there were significantly cheaper lockers upstairs that only allowed single access.
Gala Yuzawa Gondola
After putting our stuff away in the locker, we headed with our gear to the gondola. It was nice in that all the counters were on the same floor. The line for the gondola wasn’t too long and it was constantly moving. An attendant helped put our skis in the holders as we hopped on the gondola. The ride was pretty smooth and gave us nice views of the snow covered landscape.
At the top of the gondola, we got off and went into one of the lodges for a quick bathroom break. While inside we saw this art display that featured Gala’s marketing materials. You could tell that marketing was very important for Gala since they contracted with a famous artist to do their marketing pieces. We had seen the piece on the right numerous times throughout our trip.
Regarding ski pole rentals, one unique thing that Gala Yuzawa Snow Resort did was that they did not give them to us with our boots and skis. Instead, they had numerous self serve racks just outside the upper gondola exit. The poles were color coded based on their size. Likewise, at the end of the day, there were stands where the poles could be returned at the end of the day.
It was snowing pretty hard as we made our way to the beginners lift. We did a couple of runs before heading over to the adjacent lift which led to the intermediate runs. One thing that differs between ski lifts in the US and ski lifts in Japan is that the ones in Japan are housed in actual buildings. Most ski lifts that we’ve been on in the US are open air.
Niigata Shokudo
Like before, we decided to break for an early lunch. We went back to the lodge and decided to try Niigata Shokudo. They had an extensive menu of Niigata specialties that we were eager to try. The prices were a little on the high end, but were to be expected at a ski resort.
We ended up going with the set meal of Niigata local specialties and one of the three great ramen of Niigata. The set meal included some locally produced soba, mini sauce katsudon, mini grilled ginger pork don and a bowl of miso soup.
The soba had a very springy texture and tasted great with the green onions, wasabi, and soy dipping sauce. The highlights for us were the sauce katsudon and the grilled ginger pork don. The sauce katsudon was fried to perfection and the sauce had the ideal balance of both salty and sweet flavors. The ginger pork was super tender and had a savory garlic flavor. We would have taken either of the two in a full portion.
The three great ramen of Niigata were the Nagaoka shoyu ramen, the Niigata miso ramen, and the Tsubamesanjo backfat ramen. The ramen we ended up getting was the Niigata miso ramen. The miso had a very rich flavor. The noodles, meat, and vegetables had absorbed the broth nicely. We would definitely get it again. If the other two of Niigata’s famous ramen are as good as the miso ramen, then we can’t wait to try them.
Blue Seal Ice Cream
After lunch we headed over to the Blue Seal ice cream shop. Blue Seal was a famous ice cream shop from Okinawa. They had an impressive amount of flavors, sundaes, and float options.
We ended up going with Niigata Sasa Dumpling x Okinawan salt cookie sundae with salty milk & beni-imo soft serve. The soft serve sundae was really good. The mix of salty milk and sweet potato blended really well. The slightly salty cookie and mochi provided a nice variety of textures.
The Bell of Love Observation Deck
After dessert we headed back out to the slopes. It was a little past prime lunch time and the runs were largely empty. We got a few intermediate runs in before stopping at this observation deck. Visibility was poor, but the view did give us a birds eye view of the area below. We wrapped up with a few more runs before calling it a day.
Afterwards, we headed back to the lodge where we had to stop for a celebratory ice cream at Blue Seal. We tried the mango tango and the Okinawan salt cookie flavors. We really liked the soft serve version of the Okinawan salt cookie, so we thought we’d try the ice cream version. The ice cream did not disappoint. The salty and sweet combination was perfect. The mango tango was good as well. It definitely filled the mango void we’ve had since coming to Japan. After a brief rest, we headed back to the gondola. We returned our poles to the return racks and got in line. The line moved quickly and we were getting on before we knew it.
At the bottom we went to the locker room to change out of our ski boots. We then took our gear back to the rental counter. There were a ton of counters open to receive our gear. It looked like they pulled staff members from other areas to meet the demand of returning guests.
After dropping off our gear we decided to look around a little at the souvenir shops, rest area, and indoor onsen. We then headed downstairs and took the bus back to Echigo Yuzawa Station. We were getting a little hungry when we got back to the station.
Koshino-muro Sake Tasting
Before getting dinner we decided to stop by Koshino-muro Sake Tasting. For the record, neither Amy or I are particular fans of sake, however this shop came highly recommended. The shop was sort of like a giant sake vending machine. Special tokens could be purchased at the reception counter in increments of five for ¥500.
The tokens could then be placed into one of the over hundred sake vending machines along the wall. We first put our cup down, entered the special token, and a shot glass of sake was dispensed into our cup. This shop was great if you wanted to try a bunch of different sake all produced in the local area.
If you felt yourself being a little overwhelmed like we did, there was a recommendations board on the wall with descriptions in English.
We got dinner afterwards at Uonuma no Hatake which was located along the restaurant street inside the station. We had a delicious oyakudon (chicken, egg, and onion over rice) and sakeikuradon (salmon, salmon eggs, and egg over rice).
After dinner, we headed back to Sansan Yuzawa Backpackers. We took a nice hot shower, packed up a little, and called it a night.
Final Thoughts
Our experience at Gala Yuzawa Snow Resort was fantastic. The staff at the resort really went out of their way to make the whole process easy and convenient for their guests. They provided everything that we needed for a successful day on the slopes. We were looking at about ¥10,000 ($87 at the time) per person for the lift ticket and rental equipment. Which was pretty reasonable by our estimates. With its convenient location and reasonable prices, we definitely want to come back.
More to Come…