Tsuchitaru Ski Area Closed
Official name 土樽スキー場
Niigata
Open 1941–2005
Tsuchitaru Ski Area stood beside Tsuchitaru Station on the JR Joetsu Line in Yuzawa, Niigata. Japanese National Railways opened it in 1941, and Kokudo, the Seibu group company behind Prince Hotels, took it over in 1990. It had a single pair lift and one slope, and even drivers had to pass through the station grounds to reach it. At its peak it drew about 13,000 visitors a season, but in its last winter, 2004-05, it had the fewest visitors of Yuzawa's ski areas, and it was closed in 2005 as unprofitable.
History of Tsuchitaru Ski Area
- Opened
- 1941
- Closed
- 2005
- Operators
- Japanese National Railways (1941-), Kokudo (now Prince Hotels, 1990-2005)
- Why it closed
- Low visitor numbers (2,810 in the final 2004-05 season) left no prospect of profit, so it closed without operating in 2005-06. The land had been lent free of charge by the town.