Kaida Kogen Mia Closed This Season; Kiso Town Lodging Aid

Kaida Kogen Mia (Shinshu Kaida Kogen Mia Ski Area) in Kiso Town, Nagano Prefecture, will not operate in the 2026-27 season. Reports say the announcement was posted on the ski area's website on October 1. The season is still some way off, but the closure may affect some skiers' plans, so here is what the reports have confirmed so far.

Why the ski area is not opening

According to the reports, the ski area's owner, Gifu-based Toyomi Seiko (豊実精工), told the town that unpaid wages had arisen at Mia Resort (マイア・リゾート) in Tokyo, the company it had contracted to run the ski area. This made it difficult to secure staff and maintain the lifts. Toyomi Seiko's president and others visited the town office on September 29 to say the ski area would not open.

No specific direction has been given for the seasons after this one. When the town transferred the ski area to the owner free of charge in 2022, it attached conditions including that the site operate as a ski area for 10 years, and it has covered part of the renovation costs. An official in the town's responsible section said the town will keep asking for operations to resume and continue.

Kiso Town approves emergency lodging subsidy

To limit the impact on nearby accommodation businesses, the town is setting up an emergency subsidy program. At the town council's October session on October 6, a supplementary budget of 3 million yen was approved.

Eligible: about 20 lodgings in the Kaida Kogen and Mitake districts
Benefit: lodging vouchers worth 4,000 yen per person per night, issued by the Kiso Ontake Tourism Bureau (木曽おんたけ観光局)
Quantity: up to about 700 vouchers
Period of use: December to the end of next March (planned)
How to apply: apply to the tourism bureau in advance and receive the vouchers, by post or similar, before the stay

For the detailed procedure, check the guidance from the Kiso Ontake Tourism Bureau and the town.

This morning's data: no snowfall nationwide yet

In this morning's observations on our site (October 13, 6:30), the Japan Meteorological Agency's AMeDAS network recorded no 24-hour snowfall anywhere in Japan. No ski area meets the powder threshold (5 cm or more of snowfall in 24 hours), and ski area-reported snow depth is also zero nationwide. The number of ski areas open this season stands at 0 for now. No snow is currently falling on any slope we track.

The first snow news of the season came on October 2, when the Japan Meteorological Agency recorded this season's first snow-capped peak (hatsu-kanbori) in Japan at Mt. Asahidake in the Daisetsuzan range. That is not yet a stage that translates into snowfall or snow depth at ski areas.

For readers

The reports we reviewed do not say how the ski area will handle advance lift tickets or lodging bookings that have already been bought. Please check with where you purchased them and with the ski area's own notices. In the Kiso area, the reports say there are hopes that visitors will go to nearby ski areas such as Kiso Fukushima and Ontake Ski Area. Opening information for each ski area is updated every morning on our opening information page.

Kaida Kogen Mia is listed on its resort page. We will report again if there is a new announcement.

Sources

Prepared with AI assistance from public sources. Always check each resort's official website for the latest information.