I'll keep this thread humming along in anticipation for a quick trip I have planned to Hokkaido. Myself, my wife and two kids (12 and 14) are permanent intermediates and have never skied in Japan.
It will be very much early season but the 10 days before Christmas on Hokkaido is generally a little more reliable for snow cover than a lot of other destinations in the Northern Hemisphere. (Average snow base by December 15 is generally at least 100cm I'm told by those that are regulars to the region). For Tony Crocker's benefit I will say in advance that I understand there are better times to ski if planning well in advance but circumstances dictate I have to be back in Australia to work over Christmas/New Year and January as will be heading Stateside in February/March.
As it happens we're on the Mountain Collective Pass so we'll be sure to get the 'free' days in Niseko but will also check out Rusutsu, Kiroro and a couple of the other hills close to Sapporo/Otaru.
From a cost point of view the flights to Chitose from our base in Brisbane are pretty reasonable compared to LA, Vancouver, Munich and Geneva and there's no time difference either. The cost of lodging in Japan is probably more expensive than North America and Europe. Car rental (at that time anyway) is cheap. Lift tickets seem very reasonable on the face of things.
No matter if we get to sample the famed Japow or not we'll have a great time I'm sure.
So far the summer in Hokkaido has been pretty standard fare. I'll be watching for the temps to slowly reduce as the months roll on.
Anyone else planning a trip to Japan for this coming winter?
It will be very much early season but the 10 days before Christmas on Hokkaido is generally a little more reliable for snow cover than a lot of other destinations in the Northern Hemisphere. (Average snow base by December 15 is generally at least 100cm I'm told by those that are regulars to the region). For Tony Crocker's benefit I will say in advance that I understand there are better times to ski if planning well in advance but circumstances dictate I have to be back in Australia to work over Christmas/New Year and January as will be heading Stateside in February/March.
As it happens we're on the Mountain Collective Pass so we'll be sure to get the 'free' days in Niseko but will also check out Rusutsu, Kiroro and a couple of the other hills close to Sapporo/Otaru.
From a cost point of view the flights to Chitose from our base in Brisbane are pretty reasonable compared to LA, Vancouver, Munich and Geneva and there's no time difference either. The cost of lodging in Japan is probably more expensive than North America and Europe. Car rental (at that time anyway) is cheap. Lift tickets seem very reasonable on the face of things.
No matter if we get to sample the famed Japow or not we'll have a great time I'm sure.
So far the summer in Hokkaido has been pretty standard fare. I'll be watching for the temps to slowly reduce as the months roll on.
Anyone else planning a trip to Japan for this coming winter?