What other travelers are saying about Sapporo Teine
Beautiful and awesome view of Sapporo with a European snow alps kind of setting. Awesome place to see people skiing or snowboarding. Or to do it oneself and hire the gear from them. The surprise was how tasty and the food options you had here. The gandola that shuttles you between the two sections was nice. But can’t believe how soft and fluffy the snow ❄️ is here.
The ski season at Sapporo Teine runs from December to May. The best time to visit would be from mid-December to January when the slopes are freshly covered in snow and the weather is still relatively mild.
Yes, the minimum age requirement is four years old. However, there are particular areas and activities for younger children, such as the Dinosaur Kids' Park in the Olympia Zone.
While skiing is the main attraction at Sapporo Teine, other winter activities include snowshoeing and sledding. The resort also has a hot spring facility where visitors can relax and warm up after a day on the slopes.
You can bring your skiing equipment, but Sapporo Teine also offers rental options. The rentals include skis, boots, poles, and helmets.
It is possible to visit Sapporo Teine for just the day. However, staying overnight would be recommended if you want to experience night skiing or explore other nearby attractions. Various accommodation options are available in the area, including hotels and traditional Japanese ryokans.
We visited on a Wednesday half way through December. The conditions were great with powder snow, though the grooming machines had been very efficient! There are some amazing views of Sapporo and the sea of Japan which could only occasionally be glanced on the day of our visit due to snow clouds.
Many pistes and lifts were not yet open so the only official the return to the ski centre involved traveling a green piste that was too flat for snowboarders. I hope the resort opens the red and black pistes that complete the descent from top station soon.
We travelled to Teine Station on a JR pass and took the JR bus (¥1,000) to the Teine Highland Ski Centre.
Mt. Teine is relatively close to Sapporo, and can be easily reached by train and then bus. Note that the transit fare has increased. The train to Teine station from Sapporo is 360 yen, and the bus from Teine station to the ski resort is 1,000 yen. You can use IC card (e.g. physical SUICA / Apple Pay SUICA) to pay for both.
The mountain is split up into two areas: Highland and Olympia. They are connected by a gondola, which is also included in your lift ticket. I would recommend taking the bus all the way up to Highland first, as it is less busy there. If you purchase your lift ticket online, it is cheaper. I did this on the bus, and scanned the email QR code to collect my RFID lift pass. As for rentals, it is much quieter up in Highland, because all the tourists will be getting their gear in Olympia. I only waited about 5 minutes to get geared up. They also have large sizes for their boot rentals, and I managed to get a pair of US 12 / JP 30CM boots.
The mountain isn't too big, and I felt that a half day was enough. I ended up doing about six beginner (green) runs and three intermediate (red) runs. I did not dare to try the difficult (black) runs, as they were very steep and used during the Sapporo Winter Olympics. I would recommend going early in the morning, as it gets really busy around 11:00 AM.
Except for the travel related challenges, this resort offers everything that skiers/skaters need. The storage is always a concern due to the crowd that comes in weekends. Restaurant is quite good. Ski rentals and lift tickets costs are bit on the higher side but they offer more than the cost.
Excellent day of skiing here. Passes were reasonably priced and cheaper when bought in advance online.
Slopes were in good condition with lots of different options for different levels. Lifts were smooth and with almost no queues.
Ski patrol also very helpful when my friend had an accident.
Super easy to get to from Sapporo.
