10 Activities to do outside the ski resorts - MountainWatch Travel
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10 Activities to do outside the ski resorts

Japan is such an amazing country. Yes, we all already know the powder is great, but did you know there’s a whole world of adventure waiting beyond the slopes?

Whether you’re looking for thrills, culture, or relaxation, let’s explore some other activities other than skiing and snowboarding. Here are ten exciting ways to make the most of your time off the mountain:

1. Go Snowmobiling

Snowmobile

2. Take a class in making soba noodles.

Soba Master Rakuichi Soba

3. Visit the cheeky Snow Monkeys

Snow monkeys

4. Stop by Matsumoto Castle

5. See the magnificent Zenkoji Temple

Zenkoji Nagano

6. Learn to wear a Kimono

7. Relax on an Onsen tour

Matsunoi Outdoor Onsen

8. Check out the giant indoor skate park in Hakuba.

True Players Indoor Skate Park Hakuba

9. Say ‘Kanpai’ at a traditional Izakaya restaurant

izakaya Hie Min

10. Visit The Olympic Museum in Hakuba

Hakuba Ski Jumping Stadium hosted the 1998 Winter Olympics.

You can try any of these activities if you’re staying at the ski resorts Hakuba, Nozawa Onsen, Shiga Kogen, Myoko Kogen or Madarao. Most people take at least one day off from skiing or snowboarding on their trip.

Mountainwatch Travel is always able to help you fill your day with other exciting activities. If you haven’t already booked your Japan Snow Package you can still take advantage of some Early Bird Sales!

If you have specific requirements, save time and request a quote directly by clicking the button below. We would love to hear from you!

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Kate McRobie

Marketing and Brand Manager

Kate McRobie is a digital marketing specialist with over ten years' experience across New Zealand, Amsterdam and Japan in the sports and snow industries, including campaigns for Netflix, Under Armour, Giant Bicycles and Vans. She spent two back-to-back seasons based in Niseko, Japan, heading up marketing for HTM across some of the region's largest hotels, ski schools, rental operations and restaurants.

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nicky sullivan
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Lizzie was so helpful, gave us some options and advice to help us pinpoint where we wanted to go. And once we had booked provided some really helpful travel advice and answering questions we had. Easy to deal with, everything was smooth and we had a great time.
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Shelly Drewitz
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Calum was awesome at helping us every step of the way with our trip. We got a great deal on the accommodation and ski lift, and we will definitely come back to Mountainwatch next time based on his excellent service.
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Mark K Grant
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I booked my Japan ski holiday through Mountainwatch. Very professional and when we arrived in Japan all was laid out for us. The accommodation was even nicer than expected. KIrsty was very good to work with and made things very easy!!!! will book again next season.
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Jess
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Great experience booking through this company, our contact Anna was brilliant, and organised a fantastic ski trip for us. The travel was all clearly laid out, the accommodation was lovely, the ski field was fantastic, great range of local dining options and bars.
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Brett A
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Mountain Watch are great, well organised and excellent advice on locations and accommodation. Highly recommended!
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darren martin
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Thanks Kirsty for helping arrange our family trip to Myoko for Xmas 2025, we had an amazing time
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Jan Kelly
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Thanks Kirsty, once again your arrangements for us in Japan worked very well. We’ll have no hesitation about touching base with you before we make another booking….. not sure if we’ll be organised by June, but we’ll see. Have a great season yourself and keep up the good work at MountainWatch. Regards Jan and Tom
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Samantha Farr
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Our trip to Hakuba and Tokyo was so smooth and easy thanks to the help of Justine. Hotel was great and in a perfect location and it was very smooth having all our extras like lessons and rentals booked and sorted before we arrived. Would 100% book through Mountainwatch Travel again!
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John Durham
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This is the second year that Kristy has organized travel arrangements for a skiing holiday to Furano in Japan, for us. It is the second time that those arrangements have been fulfilled seamlessly. No hassles, as planned and on time. Perfect, and will use Mountainwatchj Travel again. John Durham
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Simone B
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We booked through Anna O’Malley for our stay in Nozawa onsen Village in Japan. Seamless service, prompt, and pricing reasonable. The Shimataya View Hotel, was a lovely stay. Room size was large, great views, and Amazing service from Staff. Momoi and Eloisa couldn’t help enough- from dinner reservations to organising luggage to Tokyo. Property is older, though clean, well maintained. 10 min walk to slopes, 5 min walk to village centre. I recommend Mountain Watch, and this property. Photos are the view from our room.
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