ZAO ONSEN | Japan's best hidden ski resort? 

Today we’re skiing with Snow Monsters in a traditional Japanese hot spring town- Zao Onsen in Yamagata!
The traditional hot spring town of Zao Onsen, is one of northern Japan’s hidden gems. Home to the world famous snow monsters, and one of the largest ski resorts in Japan you must add Zao Onsen in Yamagata to your future Japan itinerary! It’s the perfect Japan winter destination, nestled deep in the idyllic Japanese countryside where you can get a feel of the traditional Japanese bathhouses (seriously straight out of a Ghibli film!) and enjoy skiing and snowboarding on the famous Japow!
Today we’ll show you our time in Zao, packed with skiing, snowboarding and seeing the famous Snow Monsters! We also explore the hot spring town, relax in the onsens and give you a tour of our traditional Japanese ryokan room and dinner! We hope you enjoy the video!
Zao Onsen is known as the “Springs of Beauty”, and is famous across Japan as being one of the oldest and most acidic hot springs. The springs have a PH of nearly 1, making them uniquely acidic. It’s history dates back 110AD when an injured warrior discovered the waters, and supposedly healed after bathing in it. The town is home to many public onsen or bathhouses, which are super cheap at only ¥200! There are also a huge number of day use onsens, often with large outdoor baths- and most hotels and ryokans in the area have private onsens also!
Zao is home to the Snow Monsters, a natural phenomenon that transforms fir trees into towering snowy shapes. The Zao Snow Monster area can be reached via ropeway, and is the beginning of a 10km ski run down to the town below. If you don’t wish to ski or snowboard, there is a viewing area for the snow monsters and make sure to visit during one of the special illumination events! It’s also possible to snowshoe in the snow monster field or ride on a piste basher and experience it that way!
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Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
00:41 Zao Onsen Town - 蔵王温泉
01:46 Snow Monsters - 樹氷
03:39 Skiing in Zao - スキー
05:10 Night Skiing - 夜のスキー
06:54 Hot Springs in Zao Onsen - 温泉
08:58 Ryokan hotel room - 良寛
11:28 Ryokan Dinner - 晩ご飯
12:20 Yamagata & Outro
#japan #lifeinjapan #hotsprings
WHO WE BE:
Hi we’re Theo and Ashley, a British couple who decided to pack up and move to Japan 🇯🇵 We spent a year living in the countryside of the northern prefecture of Hokkaido before moving to Kobe City! We’re documenting our time in Japan by making videos about things we find interesting, without being too serious.
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