Rising over 3000 meters above sea level, Mt Tate is one of Japan’s highest mountains. One of several peaks in the North Japan Alps that reaches that height, the dramatic alpine landscape is subject to heavy snow through winter. Often referred to as the ‘Roof of Japan’, the region is inaccessible from mid-November until April at which time humans venture back and with great effort and ingenuity, re-carve the road from Bijodaira to Murodo Station.

— Where is the Tateyama-Kurobe Alpine Route?

— How to Get to the Snow Walls

— The Best Time to See the Snow Walls and What to Wear

— How the Snow Walls are Made

— Past Records for the Height of the Snow Walls

— 25 Things to do Around the Tateyama-Kurobe Alpine Route

— Tours and Charters to the Snow Walls and the Alpine Route

In doing so, the grand Snow Walls of Tateyama-Kurobe are carved anew. Towering up to 20 meters in height, the vast walls dwarf not only people but also the large coaches that transport them to and from Murodo Station. Although the Snow Walls are only visible for a matter of months, they are without a doubt the most famous attraction of the Tateyama-Kurobe Alpine Route and one of Japan’s most iconic sights.

WHERE IS THE TATEYAMA-KUROBE ALPINE ROUTE?

Open to the public from mid-April until mid-November, the Tateyama-Kurobe Alpine Route combines a series of transports to ascend Japan’s highest mountain range and finally arrive at Murodo Station. At 2450 meters above sea level, Murodo lies just over 500 meters below the summit of Mount Tate – known in Japan as ‘Tateyama’ – one of Japan’s three most sacred peaks. The Alpine Route straddles the prefectures of Nagano and Toyama, allowing visitors to start on either side and cross into the other prefecture or return the way that they came. Whichever way you choose to do it, you need to allow at least 6 to 7-hours from start to finish – basically, it’s an all-day activity.

HOW TO GET TO THE SNOW WALLS

For visitors coming from Tokyo, starting from the Nagano-side of the Alpine Route at Ogizawa Station will be the fastest option while visitors coming from Kyoto, Tokyo or Kanazawa will find starting on the Toyama-side of the route at Tateyama Station is the most convenient option – however it’s also worth noting that the efficiency of Japan’s network allows you to get to either starting point from Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka or beyond with a minimum of fuss. Ogizawa Station is located around 270KM /4-hours to the north-west of Tokyo and around 60KM / 70-minutes to the west of Nagano City, making Nagano Station the nearest major transport hub on the east side of the route, while Tateyama Station is located around 30KM / 50-minutes from Toyama Station on the west side of the route.

1 Day Tour

[Spring Only] 1-Day Tour from Nagano: Snow Walls of Tateyama-Kurobe Alpine Route
Period	April to June
Time	07:50/08:15 – 18:00-19:00
Meeting Place	Hotel Kokusai 21 Nagano Station
Adult Rate	¥30,000
Child Rate	¥23,800

Alternatively, you could reserve our private charter services or take part in a group tour to visit the Snow Walls. Leave the logistics and memorization of complicated timetables to us, and spend more time focusing on what brought you here in the first place – enjoying the amazing Alpine Scenery that Japan has to offer! For more information, please see this section below.

THE BEST TIME TO SEE THE SNOW WALLS AND WHAT TO WEAR

Inaccessible in winter, the Tateyama-Kurobe Alpine Route opens in mid-April and remains open until mid-November. Always popular, visitor numbers are at their highest at the route’s opening in April when the famous Snow Walls are also at their highest. Walking through these snow corridors is a dream come true for many who have spent years seeing pictures in books or on the internet.

Through spring, and especially during the Golden Week holidays in Late April – Early May, the Snow Walls draw large crowds of both Japanese and international visitors. Starting at height of 16 to 20 meters on average, the walls dwarf the buses and people below – a truly surreal sight. Gradually reducing as the snow melts, the walls will still be over 10 meters in height come June. Visitor numbers are lower by mid-June, making it a great time to visit if you don’t like crowds and are fine with seeing shorter walls.

Visitors who come during the April-June period when the walls are at their best should expect the following average daytime temperatures: April: -3 to 6°C / May: 3 to 10°C / June: 7 to 14°C. As you can see, it is quite wintery even in May and June, and a good jacket and warm pants and shoes will be necessary most days.

The Murodo and Midagahara areas will be snow-covered during this time; therefore, visitors wanting to explore and walk across the plains should wear waterproof shoes or boots. Ensure you have warm clothing that can be taken-off as the daytime temperature rises. The glare from the sun reflecting on the snow can also be intense on sunny days, so it is recommended for visitors to bring sunglasses and sun cream.

HOW THE SNOW WALLS ARE MADE

The Snow Corridor found at the Tateyama-Kurobe Alpine Route is of course not a natural feature. The unbelievable amount of snow which falls on the mountains of Central Japan each year is itself natural, and the height of the walls is in no way modified by humans. However, without people to carve out the snow walls and reveal the road underneath, there would be nothing but meters upon meters of snow blanketing the mountainside as far as the eye can see. So, how exactly do people excavate these corridors and in doing so create one of Japan’s most iconic sights?

The answer is, as you may expect, lots of heavy machinery! But before the tractors and snow removal vehicles are brought out, the road must first be located underneath the snow. This is done using GPS to map its exact location, after which a bulldozer is used to scrape off the top few layers of snow. Next, the red and yellow giants you see pictured above are brought out of the garage to do the heavy work of churning through the snow and spitting it out into the sky, slowly carving down the layers until the road underneath is unveiled. All this is a lot of work, but without it there would be no snow walls to speak of!

PAST RECORDS FOR THE HEIGHT OF THE SNOW WALLS

As is expected of a natural phenomenon, the Snow Walls are not the same size every year. The difference between the record high and the record low is over 10 meters, although the usual variance is around 2 or so meters from the average in any given year. The average for the past 10 years is, incidentally, around 16.5 meters and so you should generally expect to see between 14.5 – 18.5 meters of snow at the start of the season. Looking back, lets take a look at some specific examples from prior years in order to make an educated guess on how the 2025 snow wall season will look.

1981: 23 Meters (This is the all-time height record)

2020: 15 Meters

2021: 16 Meters

2022: 18 Meters

2023: 13 Meters

2024: 14 Meters

Clearly, the last couple seasons have been below average, but 2022 shows up as an outlier with a whopping 18 meters of snow. For 2025, it is impossible to predict exactly how much snow will accumulate, but with forecasts predicting more snow than average along the Sea of Japan coast, it is possible that 2025 will see a return to a normal 16 meters or even surpass that and reach the level of 2022. Regardless of the final height, the walls be impressively large – even a bad year at 13 meters is around the height of a 4-story building!

25 THINGS TO DO AROUND THE ALPINE ROUTE & WHERE TO STAY

One of the most rewarding experiences in Japan, the Tateyama-Kurobe Alpine Route utilizes a series of transports to ascend Japan’s highest mountain range. Crossing from Nagano to Tateyama, the route connects multiple destinations and opens-up an otherwise remote and dramatic landscape. Our ’25 Things To Do Around The Tateyama-Kurobe Alpine Route & Where To Stay’ page explains just how it works, what’s on offer and where to stay.

TOURS AND CHARTERS TO THE SNOW WALLS AND THE ALPINE ROUTE

We offer three tours on the Tateyama-Kurobe Alpine Route – which is open from April until November -with the option of arranging a private tour or charter to one of Japan’s most iconic landscapes. Two of them start in Nagano and head up the eastern side from Ogizawa Station to Murodo. The third starts from Kanazawa or Toyama and heads up the western side of the Alpine Route to Murodo. Check out our tours below with a full itinerary so you know exactly what you can look forward to when you want to book one!

1 Day Tour

[Spring Only] 1-Day Tour from Nagano: Snow Walls of Tateyama-Kurobe Alpine Route
Period	April to June
Time	07:50/08:15 – 18:00-19:00
Meeting Place	Hotel Kokusai 21 Nagano Station
Adult Rate	¥30,000
Child Rate	¥23,800

Operating from April until June each year, our 1-Day Snow Walls of Tateyama-Kurobe Alpine Route transports takes the hassle out of planning your visit to the stunning alpine region. With two pickup points in Nagano City, this tour takes you to the ‘Roof of Japan’ and the fabled Snow Walls of the Tateyama-Kurobe Alpine Route. Situated in the dramatic alpine landscape of the Chubu Sangaku National Park, this is one of Japan’s most iconic and unique sights, accessible only in spring and early summer and via a series of different mountain transports.

Starting from Ogisawa Station, you will ride a series of mountain transports to Murodo Station – which at 2450 meters above sea level is the highest station in Japan – and the fabled Snow Walls of Tateyama-Kurobe. Rising up to 20 meters above, the stunning snow corridor is one of Japan’s most iconic sights dwarfing people and tours buses alike! Your guide will allow you between 1.5-2 hours to stroll the area (depending on the pace of your), including time to explore the museum and surrounding area. You are free to explore by yourself or should you wish your guide to show you around, including walking across the snow plateau surrounding Murodo, they will be happy to do so.

Once done, your guide will have guests board the trolley bus to begin the journey back down to Ogisawa, before boarding the tour bus and returning to Nagano between 118:00 to 19:00. Led by an English-speaking guide, you will be accompanied on every leg of your journey to the ‘Roof of Japan’ and back down again – the perfect way to experience one of Japan’s more remote and stunning landscapes.

1 Day Tour

[Summer/Autumn only] Tateyama-Kurobe Tour: Walking on the ‘Roof of Japan’
Period	July to October
Time	07:50/08:15 – 18:00-19:00
Meeting Place	Hotel Kokusai 21 Nagano Station
Adult Rate	¥30,000
Child Rate	¥23,800

As the snow melts in late-spring, the walls slowly recede and a stunning alpine landscape opens-up to be explored on-foot. If you still want to visit but weren’t able to make it in time for the above tour, do not worry; even in summer and autumn our 1-Day Tateyama-Kurobe: Walking on the Roof of Japan Tour takes you high into Japan’s tallest mountain range and into the shadow of one of Japan’s three sacred mountains, Mount Tate. Using the mountain transports of the Tateyama-Kurobe Alpine Route, you will ascend to the ‘Roof of Japan’ – the point accessible by transport in Japan at just under 2500 metres above sea level – where your guide will accompany you on a leisurely walk through the dramatic and beautiful alpine landscape as you discover the sacred landscape of Mount Tateyama.

The tour follows the same schedule as above transporting to Murodo Station via Ogizawa Station on the Nagano-side of the mountains. Once at Murodo, your guide will guide you on a leisurely walk following a trail of around 1 hours duration – suitable for anyone of reasonable fitness. As you walk your guide will introduce to the importance of the surrounding landscape and its place within Japan’s tradition of mountain worship. Of course, should you prefer to spend the time exploring by yourself you are also free to and then meetup with your guide at the appointed time.

Visitors making the journey in September and October are likely to be treated to some of Japan’s most striking autumn colors, as the grasses and shrubs of the alpine meadows burn visit red, orange and brown while the forests below can be enjoyed from the ropeway on both your ascent and descent from Murodo Station. Between 15:00 and 15:30 your guide will collect you and begin the journey back down, descending back to Ogizawa where the tour bus will be waiting. Boarding the bus and returning to Nagano between 18:00 and 19:00.

1 Day Tour

1 Day Tour from Kanazawa & Toyama: Snow Wall and Mysterious Valley
Period	April to June
Time	08:00 – 19:00
Meeting Place	Kanazawa Station / Toyama Station
Adult Rate	¥30,000
Child Rate	¥23,800

The tour also starts from the end of April and runs until early June to cover the Snow Wall season perfectly and take the stress out of planning a sometimes long and complicated journey. Starting from either Kanazawa or Toyama, this tour is perfect for someone who wants to enjoy the cultural and other amenities of those cities while still being able to visit this magnificent natural wonderland. Much of the spiritual history of the mountain actually came from this side of the mountain. The main shrine on the top of Mt. Tateyama has smaller versions down the mountain that people used to and still do sometimes visit during their ascent. On this tour you will be able to feel the history of the mountain before ascending to the top and seeing the stunning views you came here for.

As the tour gets closer to the Alpine Route itself, there will first be a stop in Ashikuraji. This small village is often seen as a necessary stop before climbing the mountain. Many local people to this day stop and pray at the shrine here before going up for work. Also, as mentioned before, Mt. Tateyama is seen as a place of Heaven and Hell and you can experience that for yourself here. We will stop by Emma-do, which is a temple to the god who decides who goes to to heaven…and hell. The bridge above is supposedly the bridge that spans the worlds of the living and the dead. This area is a great place to feel the traditions and history of Mt. Tateyama before heading up to the main areas.

The afternoon will be spent at the summit of the route, Murodo. There are many things for you to do here, but the most famous is the Snow Walls, pictured above. You will between 1.5 and 2 hours to visit those Snow Walls and then explore the Murodo plateau even more. Many of the pictures you have seen here that are covered in snow are from this time period. Make sure to have appropriate clothing as it can feel quite cold even as your bask in the of a brilliant sun. After finishing seeing the stunning landscapes the tour will head back down the mountain and then back to either Kanazawa of Toyama by around 19:00. A full and exciting day!

For guests wanting to access these destinations in the comfort of their own transport, we can arrange a private tour or charter customised to fit your needs, starting and ending at any destination in the region, including Ogizawa or Tateyama Station. Our drivers and vehicles are fully certified, allowing us to transport you to and from your preferred destinations in combination with any activity that suits your schedule. We can arrange both private tours with an English-speaking guide or a private charter, including a private vehicle and driver but without a guide. We’d love to be part of your adventure in Central Japan and help you discover even more! For more information on how to book, please see here.