Costume-clad Skiers, Snowboarders Enjoy Gliding Down as 1st Ski Resort of the Season Opens in Shizuoka Pref. in Japan

The Yomiuri Shimbun

17:34 JST, October 22, 2023

SUSONO, Shizuoka — Skiers and snowboarders glided down a slope dressed in dinosaur and anime character costumes as a ski slope in Susono, Shizuoka Prefecture, opened for the winter season on Friday.

Yeti, a ski resort located at the second station of Mt. Fuji, has been the first outdoor ski slope to open for the winter season for the last 25 years, according to the operator. About 500 people visited the slope since admission was free for costume-clad visitors on the day.

“I came here because I heard it would be the first to open nationwide this winter season. I’m excited,” said Sonoka Ueda, a 26-year-old company employee from Kamiichi, Toyama Prefecture.

Artificial snow machines began operation on Oct. 9 to create a 10-meter-wide, one-kilometer-long ski slope. The resort said it has received many inquiries about its winter plans for overseas tourists.