 Poster: A snowHead
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Hi All
Am heading to Zermatt for our main trip this year but am toying with a cheeky Easter trip to Hakuba in Japan.
I don't see much talk here on Japan, is it purely the distance that puts people off ?
The snowfall is huge and the cultural differences are kind of appealing 
What do you think, on your must visit list or not ?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Would love to go skiing there, mainly since it's different and the cultural side of it would be amazing. Saw that they had a stand at the Metro Ski show, looks promising! Seems it's going to be expensive to fly out there, so maybe when I'm earning millions.... here's hoping
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Someone I skied with had worked in Japan and he said nobody skis powder there. After a snowfall they don't open the lifts till they have bashed it all flat.
He skied down the bit they had left under the lift and was then told off by piste patrol bods. The Japanese are obedient, so when he skied it again anyway, they didn't know what to do.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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holo,
I think it is mainly the North Island that gets the very heavy snow falls. I dont know where Hakube is but bear in mind that the resorts are fairly low so by Easter the snow might not be in quite such good conditionas in higher areas. The Japanese do ski off piste.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Will it not just be terribly crowded like Japanese golf courses or driving ranges ?
I have only stayed in the country on a stopover.
It will be expensive. I personally would not be too keen on wasting a fortnight skiing with the Harry Redknapps.
If I was going that far, I would head to New Zealand.
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For bragging rights in the bar, nothing beats Japan. Few Europeans ever go. Cost, distance and language are the main barriers.
Resorts are low but frequently receive obscene snowfalls. Niigata in the north received 10ft over 4 days during Jan 2006.
Hakuba Valley has plenty of stations to keep you occupied for a week. Pistes are mostly intermediate. Night skiing, even 24-hour skiing, is commonplace. Happo'one is the biggest resort. It is just 2 hours from Tokyo by bullet train, making it very popular on weekends.
Never been to Hakuba Valley at Easter, but my best guess is that it will be quiet. Summer temperatures ramp up quickly in Japan, so I would not be surprised if snowmelt were very rapid during April.
In short, Japan is a must-do tick in the box. However, pick your resorts and timings carefully, in order to avoid expensive mistakes.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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I hear conflicting reports - some say huge snowfalls, others say that skiing off piste is not allowed many places. Whether this means out of bounds illegal & you may be prosecuted e.g. some places in the US, not controlled as in Europe, not recommended or not culturally acceptable I don't know. Possibly its not in protected area e.g. forests. Anyone shed any light on this?
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Crystal are doing a week in Japan during January for £1,200 - not bad I suppose.
Alternatively, why not try the Lebanon. Go on November 5th and they'll be having a wicked fireworks display - exocets, Air-to-air missiles and that old favourite, the mortar bomb!!! - naughty of me I know!!! 
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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BTW I went to Naeba and to Gala Yuzawa in January sometime in the early 90's as daytrips from Tokyo (not much more than an hour IIRC). The early snow wasn't too great that year but the runs were crowded and I remember mainly narrow bumpy runs. My impression of Japanese skiers is that they didn't do intermediate - you went from beginner straight to fall-line bump skier! Night skiing was available but it was very cold at the time (would've made for depth hoar conditions ). Quite a lot of runs were closed though, so I don't think I got a fair view of these popular local stations. Don't know about the off-piste, I'm afraid.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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Swirly, you could always do a DIY trip - is there a Lebanese chalet pimp in the house?
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You know it makes sense.
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I went to Niseko in April a few years back. The temperatures were a little warm though they had huge snow depths. The Japanese certainly ski off piste. We hiked up a hill and met up with a Japanese woman who showed us around the area on and off piste. We also met up with an aussie ski bum or rather boarding bum who had been off piste the whole season and showed us a few runs.
It was very quiet in April though those we spoke to said that except for about one week of Japanese holidays it was reasonably quiet the whole year, the resorts that get busy are on the main Island. Costs other than getting there were no worse than many European / North American ones and cheaper than the more expensive ones. The lifts were often a little old fachioned with one seater chairs and very loud jap pop coming from the speakers on a few. I would take my own boots if going as there are not many larger boot sizes as I discovered when I tought I might give telemarking a go,(Still haven't done it).
Fantastic food and really good fun totally different culturally but definatley worth going to.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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I skied at Sapporo - Hokkaido (North Island), site of '72(?) Olympics - aeons ago. Plenty of snow and not at all crowded, but I guess it could be different now. Biggest hassle? - getting big enough boots!
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Poster: A snowHead
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Ive just booked a flight to Japan to ski in Feb.
Im planning to stay at The Powderhouse or the Yamato Hotel in Hakuba.
Anyone else going in Feb?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Hakuba is where the downhill races were held during the Nagano Olympics(on the main island/Honshu). Sapporo(the north island/Hokkaido) hosted the '72 Olympics....and the downhill started from the roof of the restaurant to add a few metres of vertical! With recent climate changes there are very few ski areas in the world which have consistently good snow conditions. We are fortunate to have the internet, web cams etc to help us now when making our decisions. The forecast for this winter from the met office here is that the season will start later than usual. Last season we had a sudden storm in November and first tracks were made on Nov 20th. The season before it was after Christmas. (I'm in the northern part of the main island, the Tohoku region, about half way between Nagano and Hokkaido).
Crowded times this season will be the weekends of Jan 6-8 and Feb 10-12; school holidays are March 22-April 4 approx. There is a constant stream of university students who are on holiday from the beginning of Feb to April, so depending on your accommodation you may be in for some noisy evenings. Japanese in general do not apres-ski as such, but return to their lodgings to take a bath. They find it 'interesting' that people in the west are happy sitting around in skiwear/boots for several hours after skiing. After bathing they usually have dinner from 6p.m. and then the alcohol flows. Many people take a bath again before going to bed/futon, and often the next morning before breakfast.....this especially true when staying at a hot spring resort. It is still difficult to find boots for those with large feet; not impossible at a major international area like Niseko, but difficult. I'm happy to answer any questions.
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Hey fossil, I'm also planning a trip to Hakuba but in mid-late Jan. I am also considering a few days at Nozawa Onsen resort to get a bit more of a cultural feel and enjoy the many onsen there. I'm happy to see that I will avoid the busy weekends as posted by Mac46. I have read that it does get busy on weekends so will aiming for weekdays on the slopes and Hakuba seems to have several areas within close proximity.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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LW, any ski area that can be reached by Shinkansen (bullet train) or highway from Tokyo/Osaka can be pretty crowded at weekends.
Weekdays you may find the slopes deserted.....enjoy! 
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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Ive booked flights for the 19th Feb and will stay at a lodge run by one of the skiers on the snowjapan.com forum.
Ill post a full report
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There was a fantastic article written about the Japanese island of Hokkaido in last months ski and snowboard mag. Pow for fun, "due to its location, its icy cold winds it recieves from across Siberia meeting with the more humid air from the sea of Japan it recieves a constant stream of weather fronts"
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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I haven't got to Hokkaido yet, but it's on my list of "to do's". Generally it gets loads of snow, and because of the northerly position, it's cold and dry. I have skied in the Japanese alps, since Mrs A is Japanese, and we can sometimes fit in trips to the mountains (unfortunately, the in-laws live at diametrically the wrong end of the country  ). It snows a lot there, too, but generally it's wetter and heavier.
As Mac46 says, its best to avoid the weekend if you're planning to fit in a few days skiing as part of a visit to Japan. Last time we were over in winter, we got a couple of days at Yuzawa (more like 2 hours by rail from Tokyo, I think, slikedges, but pretty handy, nonetheless) and stayed in a hotel with what seemed like an olympic-size bath on the roof, filled by water piped up from the hot springs. That was midweek, and apart from local schoolkids, who have skiing as part of their PE curriculum, it was pretty deserted.
There are a LOT of good skiers in Japan, and quite a few also get across to Western Canada, where they light up the mountainside in their fluorescent one-piece suits.
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FAQ
If anything had happened, the East Asian attitude to this kind of situation is likely to be a nonchalant "well, he 
Ill have to resurect my 80s Milka purple Descente suit and cut a dashing figure on the nipponese slopes next year.
