Japan vs Europe: Where to Ski in 2025

It’s the same choice every year – why are we all still surprised whenever it comes back around?! 

Europe or Japan, where to go this winter season?

Obviously, our pick is Japan…  but all bias aside, there's a lot of perks to choosing with European or Japanese resorts, appealing to different styles of riders and travellers, so let’s break it down, what’s the best option for winter 2025/26?

Let's Compare The Pairs:

Now, Let's Break It Down. Why Do Crowds Love Shredding in Europe and Japan over The U.S? 

- EU: Steep Alpine RIdgelines

When it comes to skiing or snowboarding in Europe, everyone thinks of the same thing – gnarly ridgeline drops into the steepest possible imaginable. Sometimes, the drops are so radical that if it wasn't for the videos, it would even outside of the realms of your imagination. So when it comes to mountain gradients around the world, Europe definitely stands out as having some of the steepest terrain out there.

- JP: Pow

Sure, North America is packing steep terrain, long runs and extensive terrain parks, but they’re not packin’ the pow. 

'BUT WE HAVE POW IN NORTH AMERICA'

Yeah sure, we're not talkin' about a light dusting. We’re talkin’, waist-deep, constant whiteroom, ‘bring a shovel and snorkel’ pow. The kind of conditions you’ll only find in Japan.

- EU: Longer Runs

As you can imagine, when resorts are steeper, it offers up more options for longer and interconnecting runs, giving riders options to ski for longer without needing to line up for additional char lifts. To put this into perspective, the longest ski run in France is La Vallée Blanche, located in Chamonix, which stands out as one of the longest in the world, offering a 2,8000 m vertical drop and 23-km of off-piste terrain to tear through.

- JP: Cultural Differences

There’s truly something so culturally unique about doing a ski trip in Japan. From sharing sake at a local izakaya to soaking up some traditional relation in an onsen amongst the snow monkeys, a trip to Japan will result in constant ‘pinch-me’ moments for every style of traveller.

- EU: Ski-In, Ski-Out

Due to the isolated high-altitude terrain that European ski resorts offer, many resort villages are built around the terrain and infrastructure, offering even more options for ski-in, ski-out accommodation than travellers will normally find in the U.S.

- EU: Low Cost

If you’ve ever been on holiday to the U.S, you’ll know that everything is just…expensive – and that’s before the tip. 

Historically, when comparing European resorts to Australian or American, traveller's have found that options like Europe and Japan are significantly cheaper than spending their holidays at North American resorts like Whistler, Aspen, Vale and Breckenridge. 

And the savings are across the board, from food and beverages, to lift passes, accommodation, rentals, lessons, potential health care costs and flights.

- JP: Lower Cost

Ok, so while Europe is cheap, if you're REALLY looking for the lowest prices imaginable, Japan’s your best bet. 

Ok, so both options are cheap, What's the overall cost we should expect?

Let's get deep. We removed the legwork for you, finding like options amongst the four resorts to present easy to follow side by side comparisons. Check below to see which resort shapes up the best in terms of budget:

Accommodation:

Sample cost based on 3-star rated accommodation on booking.com, situated within 1km of the resort's main ski lift. Additional parameters include, the booking is a one-week stay between Friday Jan 2 - Friday Jan 9 2025 for 2 adults and 2 children (7, 4). 

Sample data retrieved on the 9th of June, 2025.

Lift Passes:

Sample based on cost of six-day lift pass.

Rentals:

Sample based on cost of six day rental for skis, boots, poles and helmet.

Lessons:

Sample based on cost of one full-day private lesson.

Getting there: Which is easier to Access?

If you’ve ever been on a ski trip abroad you’ll know that it’s not just as simple as stepping off the plane and straight into your set of Burton Step Ons. There’s ALWAYS additional travel time, taking you from the airport, through the snowy landscape, and to the mountain ranges. 

So for this section, we decided to focus on two of the four, Niseko and La Plagne, giving you an insight into the hidden travel times you might expect when venturing over on your ski trip!

Train from New Chitose Airport to Niseko

Duration: 2 Hours

After a long international flight, the last thing you want to do is go through the rigmarole of getting to a different location for your connecting transfer. Save the hassle – the train offers a scenic and reliable option that you can get straight from New Chitose Airport to Kutchan Station, the nearest station in Niseko. 

Pro Tip: If there are no direct trains from the airport to Kutchan, you can get on a train to Otaru, Kutchan’s neighbouring city, and then get a connecting train from there!

Train to La Plagne

Duration 2.5 Hours

Aime is the closest train station to La Plagne. It's about 20km from the centre of the resort, or 45 minutes by bus. High speed (TGV) trains from Paris and the Eurostar Snow train stop here. Although if coming from the airport, overall travel time can be similar to driving or flying, with La Plagne sitting about a two and a half hour drive or bus ride from Geneva airport.

Things To Keep In Mind Before Booking:

Bookings Fill Up Fast

We’re talking about some of the most famous ski resorts around the world – demand is high. And since North America has bombed pretty hard in the snowfall department over the last couple of seasons demand is at an ALL TIME high. 

Get in quick and rest easy knowing your Japow travel plans are locked and loaded. Plus, by booking early, you’ll also score wicked early bird deals on everything from rentals and accom to lesson and guiding experiences.

Time Zones

Jet lag is just part of travel, we all know that, but when you’re only visiting a country for 5-7 days of skiing every day, you want to be feeling as rested as possible. Check online and see what the best time zones are for you and spend your trip shredding to the fullest!

Niseko Has The Gate System

It’s not a common system worldwide, but Niseko actually offers the gate system – allowing riders to access ungroomed backcountry terrain from lift-accessed trails. So when you’re looking at stats of the amount of runs in Niseko United, they won’t accurately represent the amount of terrain on offer, only mountain operated groomed runs. 

Cultural Differences

Do you want to be sippin’ on sake and matcha followed by an onsen, or warming the belly with gluhwein before heading on to some post-aprés champagne? (Both sound pretty epic, to be honest). 

Really, it all comes down to what kind of cultural experience you’re seeking. 

For those of you who didn’t know, après culture actually originated in French resorts like La Plagne, so if you’re chasing the party equally as much as you’re chasing the slopes, as well as villages with a traditional European feeling and hearty cuisine options, we wouldn’t blame you for putting Europe first on your to-do list. 

For those chasing a more relaxed experience? Japan offers the best of both worlds, with quaint, family-run izakaya to swing by for a quiet brew and a feed, to the cultural phenomena of hittin’ the karaoke bar or soaking in an onsen post-shred, Japan offers a cultural experience like no other.

Sold on hitting up Japan this winter? Book now to score a whopping 20% off all rental orders, as well as lessons, guiding and touring experiences with Rhythm Rides!