Drift Trip to Japan in March 2027: What Opens, What Waits

March 2027 is the last cheap month and the month the season wakes up. Ebisu Circuit (Fukushima) keeps its ¥5,500 winter drift day until 31 March, Bihoku Highland Circuit (Okayama) runs free-run at ¥5,000, and Okuibuki Motor Park (Shiga) opens its season booking on 1 March while staying closed until early April. No D1 or Formula Drift Japan round is set for March, and every date and price here was checked on the official pages on 22 October 2026.

Our February planner covers the Osaka show and real snow. March has no big show and no snow, but it has the best value on Honshu before prices rise. Fixed dates go on our event calendar as each circuit publishes them.

Which circuits are open in March 2027, and what do they cost?

Here is where each venue stood on 22 October 2026.

Ebisu is the headline. Its winter tariff runs from 1 December to 31 March. On 1 April the same drift area (Course 4) goes to ¥8,500 a day or ¥5,000 a half day, and Course 5, which adds the West course, costs ¥10,000. If your dates can move, the last two weeks of March give you spring daylight at the winter price. The price page also says there are no refunds for weather or a broken car. Drivers get in free, but a friend who only watches pays ¥1,700. More detail is in our Ebisu guide.

Bihoku is the opposite. Its January and February discount ends, so in March the A course is back to ¥5,000 instead of ¥4,000, and the B course to ¥6,500 instead of ¥5,500.

How busy is Meihan in March?

Meihan Sportsland (Nara) does not sell open drift days the way Ebisu does. Each drift day belongs to an organiser, a club or shop that has hired a course. The March 2027 sheet is not out, so use March 2026 as your guide.

The March 2026 sheet marked drift (“do” on the sheet) on 11 days: 8, 16, 17, 18, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26 and 28 March. Four of those fell at a weekend: Sunday 8, Saturday 21, Sunday 22 and Saturday 28. Thursday is the regular closing day. We checked the year by the weekdays on the sheet, since the page does not print it. Our Kansai guide explains how organiser days there work.

Is Okuibuki open in March, and when can you book it?

Okuibuki Motor Park (Shiga) is part of a ski resort, Gransnow Okuibuki. In winter it is snow, so the drift areas open from early April to late November only. March is closed for driving, but March matters, because the whole season goes on sale in one go.

Can you still drift on snow in March?

Not on a planned snow course. Hokkaido’s snow venues close the season before March.

So March in Hokkaido is a tarmac trip, and early in the summer season. If sliding on snow is the point, our Hokkaido guide covers the February options.

Is there a D1 or Formula Drift Japan round in March 2027?

Not a confirmed one. As of 22 October 2026, neither D1 nor Formula Drift Japan had published a 2027 calendar. The 2026 pattern points to April for the national openers:

If a March 2027 round appears, it will be on the series pages first. Until then, treat any March date on a third-party site as a guess.

What has to be booked in Japanese, and when?

Bihoku is where planning early pays off. The official price page says course hire is booked by telephone and FAX. The deadline is three days ahead on a weekday and one week ahead at weekends for the A course, and one week for the B course. It also says next year’s hire bookings open from around October. That means March 2027 dates can be asked for now, but only by a call or a FAX in Japanese, during Japanese office hours.

March is a quiet month with clear deadlines. Lock the circuit first, then let the late-February calendars set the exact days.