Two nights in Tokyo, five at a Nagano resort, two in Kyoto: day-by-day plan, train times, Nagano to Kyoto routes and how to ship your skis.
The easiest 10-day plan that covers skiing, Tokyo and Kyoto is two nights in Tokyo, five nights at a Nagano resort such as Hakuba or Nozawa Onsen, and two nights in Kyoto, flying into Tokyo and home from Kansai Airport. The Hokuriku Shinkansen gets you from Tokyo to Nagano in 80 to 100 minutes, Nagano to Kyoto takes about 3 hours 45 minutes by train, and the Haruka express runs from Kyoto to Kansai Airport in about 75 minutes. Ship your ski bag by courier so you never carry it through Tokyo or Kyoto.
| Day | Plan | Travel |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Land at Narita or Haneda, send the ski bag to your resort, check in to Tokyo | Airport to city |
| 2 | Tokyo | None |
| 3 | Train to Nagano, then on to the resort; ski in the afternoon if you arrive early | 80 to 100 min shinkansen, then about 1 hour bus to Hakuba |
| 4 to 7 | Four full ski days | None |
| 7 (evening) | Send the ski bag to Kansai Airport | None |
| 8 | Resort to Kyoto | About 3 h 45 min from Nagano Station |
| 9 | Kyoto | None |
| 10 | Haruka express to Kansai Airport | About 75 min |
This gives you four and a half days on snow. If skiing is the main reason for the trip, take a night from Tokyo and add a fifth full day. If you would rather fly home from Tokyo, the Nozomi shinkansen from Kyoto to Tokyo takes about 2 hours 15 minutes, so you can still leave from Narita or Haneda on Day 10. Book the flights as an open jaw (into Tokyo, out of Osaka) to avoid backtracking.
Nagano is on the shinkansen network. Hakuba47 puts Tokyo to Nagano at about 88 minutes, and buses from Nagano Station reach Hakuba in about an hour (see our Hakuba access guide). For Nozawa Onsen, you take the shinkansen to Iiyama and a local bus for the last 25 minutes.
Hokkaido means flying. From New Chitose Airport, Niseko is about 2.5 hours by direct bus (¥6,000) or about 3 hours by train and local bus (Niseko Promotion Board). Add a flight from Tokyo and another from Sapporo to Osaka for the Kyoto leg, and the transfers take up most of two days. If you want Niseko, drop Kyoto and split the trip between Tokyo and Grand Hirafu instead.
For a comparison of the Nagano options, see Nagano ski resorts compared.
Use a courier (takkyubin). Courier companies such as Yamato have counters in the arrivals areas at Narita and Haneda, and our airport courier guide shows where they are. Domestic delivery is usually next day, but guides for Niseko advise allowing two to three days to resorts, and ski bags are excluded from Yamato's same-day service (Yamato, Nov 2025). The usual size limit is 160 cm total and 25 kg.
On the way out, send the bag from your hotel front desk at least two days before your flight. Bags sent to the airport wait at the courier counter, so you collect them before check-in.
If you do take luggage on the train, the Tokaido Shinkansen (Tokyo, Nagoya, Kyoto) requires a reservation for any bag whose length, width and height add up to more than 160 cm. Without one, JR Central charges ¥1,000. Sports equipment is exempt from the rule, but you still need to book the oversized baggage area if you want to put it there (JR Central). More on this in skis on trains.
There is no direct train. The two common routes take about the same time (Snow Monkey Resorts):
| Route | Changes | Total time |
|---|---|---|
| Hokuriku Shinkansen to Tsuruga, then Thunderbird express to Kyoto | 1 | About 3 h 45 min |
| Shinano express to Nagoya, then Tokaido Shinkansen to Kyoto | 1 | Similar; Nagoya to Kyoto is 35 to 55 min |
| Hokuriku Shinkansen to Tokyo, then Tokaido Shinkansen to Kyoto | 1 | Longer; Tokyo to Kyoto alone is 135 to 160 min |
From Hakuba, add the bus or train to Nagano or Matsumoto. Leave the resort in the morning and you reach Kyoto by late afternoon.
Probably not. A 7-day ordinary pass costs ¥50,000 bought online (JR Pass), and a 10-day trip that stays put for five days uses only a few long rides. Tokyo to Nagano is about ¥8,000 one way (japan-guide). Add up your actual fares before you buy. Note that pass holders need an extra ticket to ride the Nozomi on the Tokaido Shinkansen. Our guide to booking shinkansen online covers single tickets.
Yes, but with only two or three ski days. Cut Tokyo to one night and Kyoto to one night, and ship your bag straight from the airport to the resort.
For powder, mid-January to late February; the village of Nozawa Onsen averages 366 cm of snowfall in January. March has a deeper base and lower prices. Details are in our best time to ski in Japan guide, and resort opening and closing dates are in the Japan ski season dates by resort.