Kusatsu Onsen Webcam – See Gunma’s Spa Town and Ski Slopes

The Kusatsu Onsen Webcam looks across the foot of the Tenguyama slope at Kusatsu Onsen Ski Resort, high in the mountains of Gunma Prefecture, and six more cameras run by the town sit in the tabs beside it. On an October afternoon the main view takes in a grassy run, a tall timber tower with a small cabin on top, a red-brown lodge, a few wooden huts and a band of forest, with the edge of a car park on the right. In winter the same ground is a ski run. The other tabs cover Sainokawara Park, the Jizo hot spring plaza, the Onsenmon gate on Route 292, the volcano Kusatsu-Shirane and two car parks, so the page is a quick way to check snow, steam and crowds before driving up.

About Kusatsu Onsen

Kusatsu sits about 1,200 meters (3,900 feet) above sea level in Gunma. The town covers 249.75 square kilometers (96.43 square miles) and had 6,255 residents in September 2020, a small population for a place with 13 public baths. Its centerpiece is the Yubatake, the steaming field of hot water in the middle of town, which has its own camera and is not one of the views on this page.

The town also has one of the longest ski histories in the country. Skiing reached Kusatsu within a few years of its introduction to Japan by the Austro-Hungarian officer Theodor von Lerch in 1911, and the town opened its first ski ground in 1914, the same year it founded what was then Japan’s second ski club. Tenguyama, the slope on the main camera, opened to the public in 1935 as the Rinkan Ski Resort, and in 1948 the first chairlift in Japan was built on it. The Tenguyama course is 450 meters (1,476 feet) long, with an average gradient of 16 degrees and a steepest pitch of 30 degrees, while the wider resort spans about 1,300 to 2,100 meters (4,265 to 6,890 feet).

The newest landmark on these cameras is the Onsenmon, an entrance gate on National Route 292 that opened on October 25, 2023. Its crossing doubles as a footbath area, where three wooden channels 6 meters (19.7 feet) long carry about 600 liters (158 gallons) of spring water a minute. West of town rises Kusatsu-Shirane, an active volcano of 2,160 meters (7,087 feet), with Moto-Shirane at 2,171 meters (7,123 feet) beside it and the acidic crater lake Yugama at about 2,100 meters (6,890 feet).

Weather and Climate in Kusatsu Onsen

At this height winter is long and snowy. January averages -4.1 C (24.6 F), with highs just below freezing at -0.4 C (31.3 F) and nights near -7.8 C (18 F). The 1991 to 2020 normals put snowfall at 112 centimeters (44 inches) in December, 175 centimeters (69 inches) in January, 156 centimeters (61 inches) in February and 149 centimeters (59 inches) in March, roughly 6.4 meters (21 feet) over a season.

Spring comes late. April averages 6.0 C (42.8 F) and still sees about 38 centimeters (15 inches) of snow, while May reaches 11.4 C (52.5 F). Summer is mild for Japan, with August highs of 24.2 C (75.6 F) and nights near 16.2 C (61.2 F), but it is also the wet season: June to September each average more than 210 millimeters (8.3 inches) of rain, peaking at 263.5 millimeters (10.4 inches) in July. Autumn cools fast, from 9.9 C (49.8 F) in October to 4.4 C (39.9 F) in November, and in early October the trees above Sainokawara were already turning orange and yellow on camera.

Things to Do Near Kusatsu Onsen

Sainokawara Park, on its own tab, is a walk along the Yukawa stream past stone-lined pools of hot water. The Jizo plaza in the Ura-Kusatsu quarter has a timber pavilion over a hot-water basin, and the town lists a face bath and a footbath there. The 13 public baths are spread through the streets between these spots, with the Yubatake in the middle of them.

In winter, Tenguyama is the resort’s original slope, and on Saturdays and some other days in the season it stays open for night skiing. Since the 2018 to 2019 season the resort has also turned a stretch of Route 292, closed to cars by winter snow, into the R292 Trail, a gentle 2,000-meter (1.2-mile) run that links with the Aobayama and Onariyama slopes into a 4,300-meter (2.7-mile) descent finishing on Tenguyama. Rail travelers arrive through Naganohara-Kusatsuguchi Station and finish the trip by road.

Similar Webcams You Might Like

For more hot springs, snow and volcanoes in Japan, try these cameras next.

• Yubatake Webcam
• Beppu Webcam
• Kutchan Webcam
• Mount Nakadake Webcam

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Kusatsu Onsen?

Kusatsu Onsen is the hot spring town of Kusatsu in Gunma Prefecture, on Honshu, northwest of Tokyo. It sits at about 1,200 meters (3,900 feet) below the volcano Kusatsu-Shirane, and the nearest railway station is Naganohara-Kusatsuguchi, with the last leg by road.

What can you see on the Kusatsu Onsen Webcam?

The main camera looks across the base of the Tenguyama slope: a grassy or snow-covered run, a tall timber tower, wooden huts, a lodge and a corner of the car park, with forest behind. The tabs add Sainokawara Park and the Yukawa stream, the Jizo hot spring plaza, the Onsenmon gate, a fixed camera on Kusatsu-Shirane, the free car park by Onsenmon, which looks over hotels toward the mountains, and the first car park at Tenguyama.

Does the Kusatsu Onsen Webcam show the Yubatake?

No. None of the seven cameras on this page points at the Yubatake, the hot water field in the center of town. The town streams that view separately, and it has its own Yubatake webcam page on this site.

Is there a Kusatsu Onsen ski resort live cam?

Yes, the main camera is one. It watches the foot of Tenguyama, the resort’s first ski hill and the slope where Japan’s first chairlift went up in 1948. The Tenguyama Parking tab shows the first car park beside it, which gives a sense of how busy the slopes are on a winter weekend.

What is the weather like in Kusatsu Onsen?

Cool for most of the year. Kusatsu averages -4.1 C (24.6 F) in January and 19.6 C (67.3 F) in August, with summer highs around 24 C (75 F). Rain peaks from June to September, and most of the snow falls between December and March.

How much snow does Kusatsu Onsen get?

A lot. The 1991 to 2020 normals add up to about 6.4 meters (21 feet) of snowfall a season, with January the snowiest month at 175 centimeters (69 inches). Snow can start in November and still fall in April, and the main camera is the quickest way to check the current cover before a trip.

Can you see Kusatsu-Shirane on the webcam?

Yes, on the Mt. Shirane tab, a fixed camera the town aims at the volcano. Kusatsu-Shirane rises to 2,160 meters (7,087 feet) west of town, and its Yugama crater holds a highly acidic, emerald-green lake at about 2,100 meters (6,890 feet).

Source: Kusatsu Town Official YouTube Channel