Learning for 3-6 year olds is made easy with a dedicated children’s ski area, an indoor children’s center and easy lift access to excellent terrain. Enchanted forests to explore, adventures to pursue and games to play create a fun learning environment, leaving your child with a real love of skiing.
Mini Mountaineers Group Ski
Features
Available for Mini Mountaineers.
Specialist children’s instructors with each group.
Maximum 5 children per instructor.
Lunch provided in our dedicated 3-6 y/o Kids Center.
1 rest day available for 5 day+ programs.
Child dietary requirements can be catered for.
Book 5 days and get the 5th day free.
A Day in the Life
Our caring instructors meet the 3-6 year old children inside in our Kids Centre in the morning where they get to know each other and meet the other children.
Most of the day is spent skiing out on the slopes, however the day is also centered on having fun so the groups will make snowmen and play in the snow just outside our ski school centre, and have breaks inside with hot chocolate as the children need them.
We ensure our instructors make sure all children go to the toilet at each break and lunch breaks before they continue outside.
We have specilaised children’s instructors to make their experience as fantastic as it can be, which ensure most children have no problems having fun sliding around on skis in our beginner snow playground or exploring the adventure trails up the local chairlifts.
If you’re unsure about your little one’s readiness for a full day, our Mini Mountaineers Program provides a tailored solution for children aged 3-4. They can participate in the Mini Mountaineers program in the morning and seamlessly transition to our childcare centre in the afternoon. Our childcare centre provides a wonderful environment for them to relax after an active morning of skiing. See pricing below for more details.
Ability Levels
| LEVEL | ABILITY | SKI |
| 1 | First Time (Usagi) | I am a first time skier, or I am still learning to snowplough stop on my skis |
| 2 | Beginner (Saru) | I can snowplough stop on my skis |
| 3 | Low Intermediate (Tanuki) | I can make snowplough turns on beginner terrain |
| 4 | High intermediate (Kuma) | I start my turns in a snowplough and end them in parallel, on all beginner terrain and some easy intermediate terrain |
| 5 | Advanced (Kamoshika) | I can make full parallel turns on intermediate terrain and exploring advanced terrain |
Times & Prices
14-Dec-2024 to 23-Mar-2025| MEET | START SKIING | LUNCH | SKIING | FINISH | |
| Morning | 9:30am | 10:00am | 12:30pm | - | 1:15pm |
| Full Day | 9:30am | 10:00am | 12:30pm | 1:30pm | 4:00pm |
| DAYS | MORNING LESSON | FULL-DAY LESSON |
| 1 | ¥13,000 | ¥16,000 |
| 2 | ¥26,000 | ¥32,000 |
| 3 | ¥39,000 | ¥48,000 |
| 4 | ¥52,000 | ¥64,000 |
| 5 | ¥52,000(free lesson) | ¥64,000 (free lesson) |
| 6 | ¥65,000 | ¥80,000 |
| 7 | ¥78,000 | ¥96,000 |
| 8 | ¥91,000 | ¥112,000 |
| 9 | ¥104,000 | ¥128,000 |
| 10 | ¥104,000(free lesson) | ¥128,000 (free lesson) |
| 11 | ¥117,000 | ¥144,000 |
| 12 | ¥130,000 | ¥160,000 |
| DAYS | AFTERNOON CHILDCARE ADD-ON |
| 1 | ¥3,000 per day |
Note: In case of opting for the afternoon childcare add-on, children will be escorted from the Mini Mountaineers lunch room to the childcare room.
Note: All children must be toilet trained to participate in the Mini Mountaineers program. Child care is available for any children not yet toilet trained.
* Prices include 10% consumption tax.
* All lessons are subject to availability. Advanced reservations are highly recommended.
Info For You
What time and where does Mini Mountaineers meet?
Mini Mountaineers meet from 9:30 am, until 9:55 am, at the Children’s Centre inside the Ibis restaurant (second floor of Akakura Snowsports), near the base of the Champion #1 chairlift in the Akakura Resort.
What will the program include each day?
Your child will be placed in a suitable group by the instructors at the start of the session. This ensures they ski with others at their skill level and gives everyone the best chance to progress. Groups will aim to be outside at 10:00am for morning skiing. Lunch is provided in the Children’s Centre from 12:30 pm to 1:30 pm. Full-day children will then return outside to continue skiing for the remainder of the day. If you have any special requests please let your child’s instructor know and they will be glad to accommodate.
The priority of our children’s group lessons is “SAFETY, FUN and LEARNING!” in that order.
Does my child need to be toilet trained?
Yes. All children must be toilet trained to participate in the Mini Mountaineers program. For any children not yet toilet trained, child care is available or we may be able to accommodate a private lesson for your child. Please come chat to our team for more details.
Will my child have the same instructor each day?
We try to offer as much consistency as possible by keeping the same instructor with the same group each day. Occasional changes may occur due to our weekly roster change-over or if your child progresses at a rate different to the rest of the group.
Where does the Mini Mountaineers program run?
Mini Mountaineers is run throughout the combined Akakura Kanko and Akakura Onsen resort areas, according to their ability level.
Does my child need a lift ticket and is one included in the cost of the lessons?
A valid Akakura Resort lift ticket is required for all participants, available for free for children not yet in primary school. You are welcome to collect your child’s free lift ticket from any Myoko Snowsports sales desk or resort ticket office before dropping them off with us. Otherwise, our Mini Mountaineers check-in team will have some on hand to give to your child.
How are groups organised?
Our team of instructors will welcome children inside our Children’s Centre and check their general skiing ability level. They will then join children into the most appropriate group to join from Level 1 (first time) to Level 5 (advanced). If children seem to be in an incorrect group, our instructing team will communicate with each other to ensure they are in a group most suitable to allow them to progress. Mini Mountaineers has a maximum group size of 5 children per instructor.
My children are slightly different levels, but can they be together in the same group?
For the best experience, we recommend all children go into the appropriate level group, even if this means being apart from their friends or siblings. They will all have lunch together in the Children’s Centre and will make friends with their classmates. However, if two children would like to stay together in the same group may do so. In this case, they will be placed into a group of the ability level of the lower child. The stronger level child may find the group a little slow but their instructor will give them more challenging things to try to continue having fun and improving.
Can my 6 year old child go in Alpine Explorers?
For the best learning experience, 6-year-old children should generally go in the 3-to-6-year-old Mini Mountaineers program. The reason for the age group separations is that older children have more muscle and cognitive development and skiing speed is different to younger children.
Can my child have a rest-day during their program?
Program bookings of 5 days or more may include one rest day of your choosing if you would like. This can be done when you make your reservation online or by speaking to a Front Desk team member. Please make sure to talk to someone in the office as we want to ensure that we have sufficient space for rearranging your child’s lessons.
How are allergies/dietary requirements accommodated during lunch and what should I do if my child requires an Epi-Pen.
Almost all dietary requirements can be catered for. Please advise the Mini Mountaineers check-in team of the details at the morning 9:30 am meeting time and provide any relevant information to them. Epi-Pens should be labelled with your child’s name and placed in a zipped pocket on your child for the duration of the program. To make things simpler for nut allergies, our facility is a NUT-FREE zone!
Do you recommend group or private lessons?
Both group and private lessons can be great depending on your goals and budget.
Group programs are a great way to meet other skiers of a similar ability level during your programs and are at a lower price but lesson goals must consider all participants’ goals.
Private lessons are the best for the quickest skill improvement and for meeting your personal goals but are at a higher price. Please see the Private Lessons page of our website for additional information.
Do your instructors speak English?
Yes. All our instructors are either native or fluent in English and all lessons are run in English. We have a large number of instructors from around the world, as well as from Japan.
If you have a request for a lesson in another language (Korean, Dutch, Spanish, French, Danish, Czech) please check with us for availability for private lessons.
If you are interested in lesson programs run in Japanese please let our reservations team know and they can recommend another local Japanese snowsports school to you.
Should I book in advance?
We recommend booking well before your arrival to ensure availability, particularly from the 20th of December to mid-February. Please contact our team at akakura@myokosnowsports.com if you have any questions.
Where can I watch the lesson from?
We understand that leaving your child in a new environment can be nerve-wracking but to help our instructors establish a bond of trust with your child we kindly request that all friends and family members promptly leave the area after check-in.
You are welcome to observe from within the Ibis restaurant but we ask you remain clear of the learning area to ensure minimal disruption to the lesson.
Can I leave them a snack?
Hot chocolate is provided by the kitchen on cold days with water jugs taken to the group outside when the weather is hot. Feel free to leave them a snack in their pocket, just please ensure that it is nut free.
What does my child need for Mini Mountaineers?
Available for rent through Myoko Snowsports:
Skis
Poles (if your child is level 5)
Ski boots (you can walk in normal boots then our team will get them changed in our Children’s Centre)
Helmet (compulsory for all children attending Myoko Snowsports lessons)
Waterproof jacket and pants
Available to purchase through Myoko Snowsports or before you arrive to Japan:
Googles (we recommend not sunglasses to ensure safety in all conditions)
Gloves or mittens
Heckwarmer or balaclava
Ski socks
Others:
A valid lift ticket (available from Myoko Snowsports or the resort ticket offices)
A snack (nut-free only)
My child has extra learning requirements, can they join in Mini Mountaineers?
We understand that you may wish for them to join in with the group environment. However, to ensure they have the best opportunity to learn and progress, we recommend having a private instructor for your child. We have a number of specially-trained instructors to best cater to their needs and requirements.
They can then join in the group lesson environment during the day, but for any time extra assistance is required, the private instructor is ready to help. Please see our Private Lessons page for more details or contact our reservations team at akakura@myokosnowsports.com for more information.
