The Alpine Route is shut until April, and the 2027 dates are not out
Seasonclosed until April 2027
Reviewed on 2026-10-18. This information expires: confirm it close to your travel dates.
The six linked transports that cross the Japan Alps — funicular, mountain bus, electric bus through a tunnel, a 1.7 km ropeway without a single tower, underground funicular and another bus — do not run in winter. The route closes on 30 November and reopens in spring, once the snowploughs have finished clearing the Murodo road. It is one of four destinations in the Japlan.es catalogue that vanish from the map for part of the year, not one that merely has less open.
The 2027 dates have not been announced. Checked on the official site in October 2026: it publishes the 30 November closure and nothing about next year. What does exist is a fairly firm pattern — the full opening fell on 15 April in both 2024 and 2026 — and a habit: the timed tickets, the 予約WEBきっぷ, go on sale for all sections in mid-March, and from then the operator publishes a weekly snow-clearing report with the depth at Murodo. If you are travelling in April, that report beats any forecast.
The Murodo snow corridor, the Yuki no Otani, is why half the world comes in spring: the ploughs open a 500-metre passage between walls that measured 12 metres when the route opened in 2026, with a record near 20. And here is the first misunderstanding: the corridor can only be walked within set hours, 9:30 to 15:00, and only until roughly the end of June. Outside that window the snow is still there, but the road belongs to the buses and you do not walk on it.
The second misunderstanding is money. The full traverse from Tateyama station to Ogizawa costs ¥10,940 per adult one way (fares current as of 27 February 2026), and the Ogizawa round trip to Murodo ¥12,300. The JR Pass covers absolutely none of the route: not the funicular, not the buses, not the ropeway. It is probably the most expensive single day of a normal trip around Japan.
The third is the one that actually ruins plans. The high-altitude bus between Bijodaira and Murodo is all-seated, so you need a reserved seat before departure. Anyone who decides to hop off along the way — at the Midagahara wetland, say, which is well worth it — has to reserve the next departure again, on the spot, and on a busy day that can mean waiting. Stopping is not forbidden; it just cannot be improvised.
It is also worth remembering what this is geographically: a traverse, not a day trip. You go in from Toyama and come out in Nagano, or the other way round, with nearly 2,000 metres of ascent and 37 km in between, and there is no going back for your suitcase. That is why luggage goes ahead by takkyubin or into a locker: hauling a big case up to 2,450 metres is a mistake you make once.
What this means for your trip
If the trip is between December and March, this does not go in the route. It is not weak in winter: it does not operate. Putting it in a January itinerary is putting in a stop that does not exist — exactly the mistake the planner avoids once you give it your travel month.
If the trip is in April or May, it is one of the few things worth booking ahead. The snow corridor packs much of the year's visitors into six weeks, and timed tickets exist precisely for that. Checking the weekly snow report before fixing the day is free and changes the photograph.
And put the real cost in the budget. Nearly ¥11,000 per person one way, with nothing covered by the pass, is more than a shinkansen from Tokyo to Kyoto. It is worth it, but it is not just another transfer.
Questions
When does the Alpine Route open in 2027?
It has not been announced. As of October 2026 the official site had not published 2027 dates. The pattern of recent years is a full opening on 15 April and closure on 30 November, with timed tickets going on sale in mid-March.
Does the JR Pass cover it?
No, none of it. Not the Tateyama funicular, the high-altitude bus, the ropeway or the Kanden tunnel bus. The pass gets you to Tateyama station or Shinano-Omachi, and from there you pay separately: ¥10,940 for the full adult traverse one way.
How long is the snow wall there?
The corridor can be walked from the opening until roughly the end of June, and only from 9:30 to 15:00. After that the snow may still be over ten metres deep, but the road reverts to the buses and is not open to walkers.
Can I get off at Midagahara or Murodo and carry on later?
Yes, but you have to reserve again. The high-altitude bus is all-seated: you book a seat before departure and, if you get off at an intermediate stop, you reserve the next departure there. On a busy day that can mean a wait.
Can I do it as a round trip instead of crossing?
Yes, and for many people it works out better: the Ogizawa round trip to Murodo costs ¥12,300 and leaves you where you started, with no luggage problem. Crossing the whole thing makes sense when the route continues on the other side — Toyama to Nagano or the reverse.
What is still unclear
The 2027 dates are not published. 15 April is the pattern of recent years, not a promise: the opening depends on how much snow has to be cleared, and the weekly March report is what finally settles it. Anyone giving you an exact 2027 date today is making it up.
The fares are those current as of 27 February 2026 and the site itself warns they may change. They have risen several times in recent years, so for a spring 2027 trip it is worth re-checking rather than budgeting on these.
The end of the snow corridor is not a fixed date. It is walkable "until approximately the end of June", and that "approximately" depends on the year's thaw. In a low-snow year it is shorter.
And the weather decides. Murodo sits at 2,450 metres and runs 12 to 15 degrees colder than the lowlands; in autumn, with snow or ice on the road, buses are delayed or cancelled. The operator publishes conditions at Murodo and the dam twice a day and runs live cameras: that is what to check the night before, not the Toyama forecast.
Build your route with this already factored in
The planner accounts for these changes where they matter: the JR Pass comparison uses current prices, and the cost summary includes the taxes you will actually run into.
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