Thank you for booking with us! We are delighted to host you during your visit to Tangram. We love spending time at this wonderful house with our family and friends, and we hope you will, too. Please review the following information:
Travel to and from Tangram
Identification Requirements
Preparing for Your Stay
During Your Stay
Shipping Items to Tangram
Local Rental Shops
Lift Tickets
HOUSE RULES
TRAVEL TO AND FROM TANGRAM
The house is located just a 3-minute drive from the Tangram-Madarao Ski Resort in Nagano, Japan, about 2.5 hours north of Tokyo.
House location Google map link.
Transportation from Tokyo takes approximately 2.5 hours.
The Shinkansen from Tokyo Station to Iiyama Station takes about 120 minutes.
The drive from Iiyama Station to Tangram takes about 25 minutes.
We will leave the minivan at Iiyama Station for you to pick up there. It is not possible to pick up or return the minivan anywhere except Iiyama Station.
If you would like to use this car, please let us know at least one week before you arrive.
Drivers of the car must be over 26 years old and have a valid international driver’s license. The car is insured for guests to drive. Please return it with a full tank of gas. Parking is prepaid (the parking card is in the car).
The Toyota Estima Minivan has seats for 7 people. Groups larger than 7 can either rent an additional car (contact us if you would like a referral), or some of your group can take the frequent bus service from Iiyama Station to either Madarao or Tangram lodges to be picked up closer to the house. We can help you make a plan for this, if you would like. When we are at the house with up to 12 people, we still use just one car by quickly running two drop-offs to the mountain.
Here is the 2025 - 2026 bus schedule FROM Iiyama Station and TO Iiyama Station.
If you choose to drive your own car to the house, your car MUST BE 4WD/AWD AND HAVE SNOW TIRES. There are no exceptions to this, and we cannot provide emergency roadside service for your car.
Parking is available in the designated areas in front of the house. As mentioned on our listing, there is not “on-demand” snow shoveling available at the house, so there may be times when you would need to do light shoveling to be able to park or drive your car (this is also the case at Tangram, Madarao, and other resorts when you drive over for the day).
IDENTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS FOR FOREIGN VISITORS TO JAPAN
We would like to share information about the collection of identification for guests staying in lodging in Japan. As per Japanese law under the Private Lodging Business Act, we are required to collect identification information. This includes:
Every guest’s name, nationality, and passport number
We are also required to keep an image of each guest's passport as a record
If you are using the Toyota Estima Minivan, you must also upload a scan of your valid international license.
You can read more about identification requirements on Airbnb or the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare site or the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism site. In brief summary: in Japan, ALL lodging (large and small hotels, inns, Airbnbs, etc) follow the same laws and permitting structure, and so every accommodation is required to collect this information (regardless of size or booking platform used). If you are unwilling to comply with this request, we sincerely apologize that we will not be able to accept your booking. We apologize in advance for any inconvenience.
Please complete this form one week before your check-in date.
IDENTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS FOR RESIDENTS OF JAPAN
As per Japanese law under the Private Lodging Business Act, we are required to collect identification information. This includes every guest’s name and official address in Japan. This request includes both Japanese citizens and foreign residents of Japan who have an official address and residence card. If you are unwilling to comply with this request, we sincerely apologize that we will not be able to accept your booking.
PREPARING FOR YOUR STAY
The house is self-catering, and there are no grocery stores on the mountain. We suggest shopping at the large TSURUYA next to Iiyama station BEFORE you drive to the house.
The house has some light pantry staples, but please purchase anything you might need for cooking, as we cannot guarantee that we will have everything you need.
After you settle in to the house, the nearest grocery store is either this one, or there is a store in Myoko Kogen near Myoko Station.
DAIICHI SUPERMARKET (apple maps)
There are two small stores at the Tangram Lodge for snacks and drinks. Please feel free to message us with any questions.
To help you plan for assigning rooms, there are six bedrooms. Four of the Western-style rooms are similar in size and layout (Tanuki, Raicho, Kiten, Tsugumi), with two twin beds that can be separated or pushed together. One bedroom is Western-style with two twin beds and is a bit larger than the other four (Kitsune). There is one 8-mat tatami room (Kamoshika). There is storage in all six rooms, and under-bed storage in the Western-style rooms. Each of the six rooms has an en suite toilet and sink.
Bedding and towels will be prepared for you. There is a dry room for winter gear and laundry room with a washer and dryer as well.
The house guide will be sent a few days before your stay, and includes information about heating, appliances, and more.
DURING YOUR STAY
The house is a private, self-contained, self-catering rental. We are based locally, though we wish to provide privacy to our guests so that you feel at home in the house.
GARBAGE REMOVAL
You may have heard that bear activity has increased throughout Japan. Therefore, it is essential that we follow local garbage rules.
There is a garbage room just a 1-minute drive from the house, before you reach the main road and the ski resort. Whenever you fill one of the bins, please bring your garbage to the garbage room. Recycling can be left there as well. It is clearly labeled.
It is essential that we DO NOT leave any garbage outside the house, as it will attract dangerous animals: large monkeys, wild boars, and bears. You are welcome to contact us with questions.
SNOW CLEARING AND SNOW SAFETY
We will provide snow clearing after each big snowfall. On heavy snow days, it can sometimes take up to 24 hours to clear the snow. We use the Tokyu Resort snow-clearing service, which is completed by heavy machinery (front-end loader).
In snow country, there are times when you may have to shovel a bit of snow to park the car and clear snow after it’s parked for a while. This is the case at the house and in the Tangram Resort parking areas. Shovels and snow-clearing tools are provided.
If there is snow on the roof, DO NOT stand under the gable, near the eaves of the roof, or anywhere else that snow can fall.
If you hear the sound of snow sliding down the roof, please move away from the house immediately. Snow that accumulates on the roof is heavy and and dangerous.
SHIPPING ITEMS TO TANGRAM
Since the house is a private, self-contained rental, we cannot provide staffing to accept deliveries and shipments before or after your stay.
You are welcome to send your items to the Yamato desk at Tangram Ski Lodge, a 3-minute drive away. They will hold your items, and you can pick them up in the minivan upon arrival. You can also ship your items from Tangram Ski Lodge at the end of your stay.
Please do not arrange any deliveries or pickups by Yamato (or other services) unless you are certain to be at the house.
Please read about Yamato’s excellent and highly recommended “Hands-Free Travel” services at their site.
The address to use for Yamato deliveries to Tangram Lodge is:
TANGRAM HOTEL & RESORTS
3575-8 Furumi, Shinano-machi, Kamiminochi-gun, Nagano 389-1302 Japan
Tel +81-26-258-3511
Please note: Yamato does not guarantee the next-day arrival of shipped items. Please allow for two days for your items to be shipped between locations.
LOCAL RENTAL SHOPS
Kaizoku Collective is a high-quality rental shop with premium gear for skiers and snowboarders located at the bottom of lift six. We recommend it! Feel free to contact them with any gear questions.
There are also rental shops at the base of Tangram and Madarao ski resorts.
LIFT TICKETS
We are happy to provide our guests with discounted lift tickets for the Tangram-Madarao All Mountain Pass. To fully enjoy all that this mountain has to offer, we strongly recommend the All Mountain pass.
Our discounted rate for adults (ages 13 and up) is 7,500 yen. (The regular price is 8,500 yen.)
Our discounted rate for children (ages 6-12) is 4,500 yen. (The regular price is 5,500 yen.)
Detailed public ticket pricing information is here.
If you prefer the discounted ticket, please let us know how many you would like to purchase, and we will send you a Square payment link. We will leave your ticket cards at the house, and you can go straight up to the lift (no exchange needed). Tangram does not offer discounted consecutive-day tickets, so you can choose which days of your trip to redeem your tickets. They can be used any day the mountain is open!
HOUSE RULES
NO PARTIES OR EVENTS
NO ADDITIONAL UNREGISTERED GUESTS
NO SMOKING, PETS, OR FIREWORKS
DO NOT TAKE ITEMS FROM OUR HOUSE (COOKWARE, DISH WARE, LINENS, etc)
THE TOYOTA ESTIMA MINIVAN CAN ONLY BE PICKED UP AND DROPPED OFF AT IIYAMA STATION
ALL CARS ASSOCIATED WITH GUESTS MUST BE 4WD/AWD AND HAVE SNOW TIRES
NO GARBAGE CAN BE LEFT OUTSIDE
SNOW SAFETY RULES MUST BE FOLLOWED
PLEASE TREAT OUR HOME WITH CARE
All questions are welcome!