Overview
Stay directly beside the slopes at Palcall Tsumagoi Resort Ski & Hotel, a highland resort in Tsumagoi, Gunma. Set at an elevation of around 1,500 metres, the hotel gives you ski-in, ski-out access and places the gondola station, equipment rentals, restaurants, and hot spring bath within the same resort complex.
The Tsumagoi Gondola runs for 3,193 metres, making it the longest gondola in the Kanto region. It carries you from the hotel area to an elevation of around 2,100 metres, where you can begin a long descent through mountain scenery.
The resort has 22 ski courses spread across the Tsumagoi and Baragi areas. Long, gentle slopes suit beginners and intermediate skiers, while wide courses, terrain parks, and early-morning gondola sessions add more choice when you want a different challenge.
During the green season, the focus changes to mountain biking, trekking, highland scenery, and gondola rides. This makes Palcall Tsumagoi more than a winter base, with outdoor experiences available across several seasons.
Accommodation
Choose from six room categories, including Western twin and double rooms, a two-storey maisonette, a spacious Japanese room, and a newly renovated Premium Deluxe Twin.
The Standard Twin provides 25 square metres of space, two single beds, storage, and a private unit bathroom with a toilet. This straightforward layout works well when you plan to spend most of your day on the mountain.
The Deluxe Twin gives you 35 square metres, two fixed beds, and enough room for an additional bed. The bathroom and toilet are separate, giving you more space to change and prepare after skiing or bathing.
The 35-square-metre Double Room includes one double bed and a dedicated work area. A monitor, keyboard, reclining chair, private Wi-Fi connection, USB ports, and power outlets make this room a practical choice when you need to combine your stay with remote work.
The Maisonette Room sits on the top floor and covers 52 square metres across two levels. A spiral staircase connects the floors, while four fixed beds allow you to stay together as a family or group. The bathroom, toilet, and washbasin are all separate.
For a Japanese-style stay, choose a room measuring around 20 to 25 tatami mats. You sleep on futons, which you prepare yourself, and have a private bathroom and toilet. A kotatsu is added during winter, giving you a warm place to sit after returning from the slopes.
The Premium Deluxe Twin is a renovated 35-square-metre room with two twin beds, a sofa bed, a private bathroom, and a 50-inch smart television. Its updated layout suits couples, friends, and smaller families who want more space and a fresher interior.
Dining
Breakfast and dinner are served at Tsumagoi Dining in the Center House. The buffet combines Japanese, Western, and Chinese dishes with highland vegetables and ingredients from Tsumagoi and the wider Gunma region.
At dinner, you can choose from local dishes, daily chef selections, salads, sashimi, chilled seafood, hot Japanese and Western food, Chinese dishes, and desserts. A live cooking station adds freshly prepared food to the buffet.
Soft drinks are included with dinner. Alcoholic drinks, including beer, highballs, and sours, are available separately.
Breakfast includes Nagano-grown Koshihikari rice, daily Gunma dishes, scrambled eggs, and four changing types of bread. The combination of Japanese and Western food lets you choose a light breakfast or a more filling meal before heading outside.
Breakfast normally runs from 07:00 to 09:00, with the final dishes served at 08:45. Dinner normally runs from 18:00 to 21:00, with the final dishes served at 20:30.
Allergen information is displayed for seven specified ingredients. Depending on the number of people staying, buffet meals may change to a set menu or course-style meal.
Onsen and Wellness
Azumaya-san Onsen sits on the third floor of the Center House. The bathing area includes separate indoor baths and saunas for men and women, allowing you to warm up after skiing, snowboarding, mountain biking, or trekking.
The water comes from Tsumagoi Baragi Onsen. It is a clear, colourless, tasteless, and almost odourless weakly alkaline simple spring. The water feels gentle against the skin and is known for its smooth bathing texture.
Traditional bathing indications include fatigue, neuralgia, muscle pain, joint discomfort, frozen shoulder, bruises, and sensitivity to cold.
The bathing area also includes showers, lockers for valuables, drinking water, skincare products, hair dryers, and a baby bed inside the changing room. Shampoo, conditioner, and body soap are provided.
The baths normally open from 06:00 to 10:00 and again from 12:00 to 23:00. Operating times may change with the hotel season or Center House schedule.
There is no outdoor bath or reservable private onsen. The hot spring experience takes place in the shared indoor bathing areas.
Guests with Tattoos
You can use Azumaya-san Onsen when you have tattoos. This includes the shared indoor bath and sauna, provided you follow normal Japanese bathing etiquette and behave considerately inside the bathing area.
Because there is no private onsen, all natural hot spring bathing takes place in the communal facilities.
Facilities
The lounge and bar overlook the highland scenery from an elevation of around 1,500 metres. Complimentary coffee is available in the morning and from mid-afternoon until the evening. Later in the day, the same space becomes a relaxed bar where you can sit with a drink after dinner or bathing.
The activity corner includes table tennis and billiards, while the training room gives you space for indoor exercise. These facilities normally open from morning until late evening and are available without an additional charge.
The Book Room stays open throughout the day and night. You can browse manga, magazines, and books whenever you want a quieter break from outdoor activities.
The Center House brings together the ski information desk, lift-ticket services, equipment-rental shop, changing rooms, lockers, and direct access to the gondola and slopes. You can rent skis, snowboards, boots, and outerwear, although goggles, gloves, and hats are not included.
A children’s room and nursing space provide an indoor place for younger children and parents. During the green season, the Center House also supports mountain-bike rentals and other outdoor programs.
Free parking is available within the resort grounds. A complimentary shuttle also operates for hotel stays on a reservation basis, with connections that may include Manza-Kazawaguchi Station and Karuizawa according to the seasonal timetable.
Activities
Winter gives you access to 22 courses across two connected ski areas. The Tsumagoi side begins beside the hotel and gondola station, with long beginner and intermediate runs that continue for several kilometres from the upper mountain.
The Baragi area has broad slopes with gentle gradients, making it particularly suitable when you are learning, skiing with children, or building confidence. From this side of the resort, you can see Mount Asama and the heart-shaped Lake Baragi.
The 3,193-metre Tsumagoi Gondola takes you directly to the upper mountain. On selected mornings, the Sunrise Gondola starts before the normal operating schedule, allowing you to reach the slopes as the sun rises. Dates and departure times change each season and depend on weather and snow conditions.
Terrain parks provide jumps, rails, and other features for freestyle skiing and snowboarding. Ski and snowboard lessons are also available in group and private formats, with programs designed for different ages and ability levels.
In warmer months, you can explore mountain-bike routes, trekking courses, and highland walking trails. The gondola also operates on selected green-season dates, giving you access to elevated views without needing to ski.
Additional Features
Check-in begins at 15:00, and check-out is by 10:00. The front desk, restaurant, onsen, and resort services follow seasonal operating schedules, so some facilities may have different hours outside the main winter period.
When you arrive by car in winter, use the route from National Route 144 toward Baragi Kogen. Both the north and south sections of the Panorama Line close during winter. Snow tyres or chains are required from early December through the end of March because the final road to the resort can freeze.
The reservation-only shuttle must be arranged in advance, and seats are limited. The journey from Manza-Kazawaguchi Station usually takes around 20 minutes, while the trip from Karuizawa normally takes between 60 and 90 minutes depending on road and weather conditions.
Palcall Tsumagoi works especially well when skiing is the main purpose of your stay. You can sleep beside the slopes, walk directly to the gondola, rent equipment within the Center House, enjoy buffet meals, and finish the day in the natural hot spring bath and sauna.
