Japan - Niseko Skiing
Last February we flew into Sapporo enroute to Niseko, rated as one of Japan's top 5 ski resorts for it's diverse terrain and abundance of fine powder snow. Two weeks later and we were wishing we could stay. Our time skiing there was fantastic and truly some of the best powder snow I have had the chance to play in.
My husband and I are avid snowboarders and Niseko was the perfect place for me to build up my confidence on wide, open slopes with hardly anyone around to bother me. You see the Japanese are not fond of going off piste which meant that there was kilometres of untracked powder snow just waiting to be shredded. Through trees, down steep hills, on and off piste...it was all magical. Most nights we were blessed with another 20cm or more of fresh, dry snow that was very forgiving and accommodating to my awkward snowboarding style.
We stayed in a lovely little lodge nestled in a valley just a short drive from the main gondola at Grand Hirafu. Every morning we jumped into the van and were dropped right at the base station where we planned our day's attack. Niseko is made up of 5 different resorts: Annupuri, Higashiyama, Hirafu, Hanazono and Moiwa. Most passes will allow for skiing at four of these, with Moiwa being the smaller more local resort on the western side of Annupuri which caters more to the local market.
Modern lift systems take you quicky and comfortably up the hill. There are gondolas from the base stations and covered lifts throughout most of the resort so even on bad days you can keep warm and dry whilst heading up the mountain.
We had great fun at Strawberry fields, dodging in and out of the trees down the base to Hanazono where a strange Ninja Platypus like mascot entertained the kids by doing Karate moves. Then headed up to the huge bowls off The Peak where we had to unstrap and carry our boards across for 15 minutes or so before we dropped down into wonderful untracked powder...and lots of it!
That day ended in us heading to one of the onsen at one of the local hotels. It was wonderful soaking in the hot springs and while we opted to go sans bathing suits, most of the Japanese wore modesty cloths or dresses. Half way through our soak an older Japanese lady rushed up to us offering the same garments, which we put on as we did not want to offend. I think it is important to be respectful and while we were told it was ok to go buff, perhaps in future a little more modesty would serve us better! Anyhow, the Sapporo beers we were downing whilst soaking took the edge off and a few bows and "Arigato's" later all was well again.
One thing that did surprise me was the amount of Australians in Niseko. Apparently there has been some major investment by Aussies in condo's and apartments. This did detract a bit from the feel of the place as I was expecting a more cultural experience. Even so, there were fantastic local restaurants and shops around and if you really wanted to, there was pizza and western cuisines to choose from as well. Another thing which surprised me was that credit cards are not widely accepted in a lot of places, so it is wise to take plenty of cash.
We had an excellent time in Niseko and it is a beautiful resort nestled under the watchful eye of Mt Yotei. It is also worth catching the free bus to Kutchan, the town that services the larger area. We had a fantastic dinner at a local restaurant and while we had no idea what was being served, it was all fantastically fresh and tasty. The owners bought out a sake sampler for us with glasses of different varieties and we were all rosy cheeked and giddy as we stepped out into the night for the busride home.
All in all our stay whetted our appetite for more Japanese powder. This coming January we are planning our second trip to Japan, this time bringing the kids to try out Club Med Sahoro, which is North of Niseko...I am hoping for great things!