Omachi Ski Area Closed
Official name 大町スキー場 · Formerly 中山スキー場
Nagano
Open 1927–2008
Omachi Ski Area sat on the Nakayama plateau in northern Omachi, Nagano, and dated back to 1927, when it opened as Nakayama Ski Area. It was a modest family hill with about 120 m of vertical: a steeper top section above long, wide, gentle slopes, served by pair chairlifts, a single lift and a twelve-person sled-like carrier called the Troika. Falling visitor numbers and snow-poor warm winters left it running at a loss, and it closed in 2008 after some eighty years. The open slopes are now Nakayama Kogen, known for rapeseed blossoms in spring and buckwheat flowers in late summer, with an off-road vehicle course on part of the old lift area. The local bus stop still carries the ski area's name.
History of Omachi Ski Area
- Opened
- 1927
- Closed
- 2008
- Formerly
- 中山スキー場
- Operators
- Omachi Resort Co., Ltd. (lift operator, until 2008), Omachi City (land owner; listed as operator by Snow Japan History)
- Why it closed
- Fewer skiers and snow shortages in warm winters meant losses in its last few years; it did not open in winter 2008 and closed.
- The site today
- Now Nakayama Kogen, known for rapeseed and buckwheat flower fields and views of the Northern Alps. All lifts have been removed; part of the site is the Shinshu Omachi Challenge Field off-road vehicle course. The bus stop is still named Omachi Ski Area.