Shout out from a local who's skied and snowboarded in both areas quite heavily... Awesome job, sir, perfect grasp of the pros and cons and then some. The "metric shit ton vs. m**** shit ton" part really got me, and was actually a pretty accurate description. Even in Sapporo, a 2 million city, we get 6 meters of snowfall per year. That said my personal recommendation would be the northerner, if your priority is the snow and if you don't mind skipping the Tokyo experience. (FYI the major resorts have gotten so pricy this year no one I know is going there, but there are very decent alternatives.)
Japan aki travel tip you NEED to know.. don't lug your gear all over Japan. Use a service like Yamoto (you can find them in both Narita and Haneda). For a small fee they will transport you bag to your accommodation for you (or from accommodation to accommodation). If you have ever taken a bullet train and wondered why there is little to no luggage storage.. services like this are why. Once you know the Yamoto logo you will start to notice it everywhere in Japan. Cheers and happy pow shredding!
I am still going with my snowboard bag and nimotsu to my hotel in Saku, but my base of operations will be there. Once i am there, my big bags can stay there, and carrying a board with bindings is easy even for blue seats on the bullet.
Really love your videos. Informative and funny. I have really benefited from your advice. Only been to Japan once and loved it. We skied Nozawa Onsen. This season we are heading to Shiga Kogen
Lodging prices near Niseko tend to drop significantly in March towards the end of Snowboarding season. It ends in late May. If you go near December to February , expect to shell out $5,000 for two weeks near Niseko. Prices go up as demand goes up. Personally, I think a trip to Furano is more ideal during prime time seasons. Prices for lodging aren’t ridiculous in Nagano. They are typically in short supply near Shiga Kogen, Myoko Kogen and Nozawa Onsen around peak season times. My only other advice is don’t come before Christmas. It depends on the year, but if you come early, to Nagano, i would go after Christmas to February for peak powder action. Nagano gets hit with a massive snow dump around this time. If you go to Nozawa Onsen, i’d recommend going to the Arena for a good meal and $6.00 baths. Local onsens are free, but privacy is the tradeoff. Before 7:29 , In theory, Niseko should produce more snow because it’s further north, and the peak is higher in elevation. Essentially what this means is the temperature above the peaks of Niseko is colder versus the peaks of Hakuba. Niseko will get less sun exposure, and so the ambient temperature would be significantly lower to produce more snow. What isn’t taken into account is the congregation of rainclouds in the vicinity. If you have a higher chance of precipitation, due to more rainclouds, above Hakuba versus Niseko at a given time, Hakuba will produce more snow. Snow is produced when there is a higher concentration of water vapors in the air, and the cold air cause the phase change between a vapor to an aqueous to a solid. If there is no water vapors in the air, then the cold temperature just causes the snow on the peaks to retain its state or get harder. At 9:39 , if you are an American, flights on Hawaiian Airlines don’t leave till 9:00 pm or 2100 on a departure flight back home. I’d recommend not goofing around and get to the airport asap. Even if you are a few hours early, it’s worth not missing your departure flight. Also take into account the time dilation: Tokyo is one day ahead, and 10’hours behind from Pacific Time Zone. So if you flew back to California from 2100, Sunday,from Tokyo, you will arrive at around noon time in LAX on a Sunday. Expect a 10 to 12 hr flight, but it will be like 9 to 11 hours because the turbulence is behind the plane.
I went snowboarding back in 2017 to Nozawaonsen Village, It was fantastic, about about had about 4 meters of snow in 3 days. From the states so deep pow, unless in the back country is like 8-12 inches. Up to your arm pits was at a whole different level. Flew to Tokyo, to the bullet train. Awesome time, love the videos.
Awesome video and information, will be travelling from NZ to ski Hakuba from 10-22 Jan. Really appreciate your research and experience. Hope you have a great ski season…
Haven't been to Hakuba, but did Niseko in Feb and it was super fun. Would love to check out some of the less well-known resorts, like Rusutsu. Fwiw, spending a day or so in Sapporo is worth it if you have the time.
Enjoy your videos, I find your takes pretty accurate. I would say however if you can get your head around the train system in Tokyo you are better off using them. Not an exact science, and may depend on when you land and your last leg may be a bus anyway depending on where you go, but in many instances the Shinkansen will save you a couple of hours for Nagano based resorts. My tip? Get on the shink somewhere like Ueno instead of Tokyo, far less chaotic.
I live in japan, but I haven’t really tried too many resorts yet. I’ve tried sugadaira kougen (nagano), niseko, and fuji. My favorite one was sugadaira kougen - it is smaller than niseko, but less crowded and not as crazy expensive. Fuji was the worst of the 3
Hey, In Japan, is terrain off the groom not considered inbounds like many areas in Europe, or are there ropes and gates for leaving the ski area like America? Thanks for your help.
Great review and you covered a lot of ground! I have skied both islands. For Honshu I like Nozawa Onsen as it gets a lot of snow and has nice tree skiing. I have spent less time in Hokkaido and would love to do some backcountry there. Rusutsu was my favorite resort skiing, but have good things about Furano and Kiroro. Do you have any suggestions? From Grand Targhee, WY.
I'm gonna be renting a car and going wild in Hokkaido. I want to purchase a beer glass just like that! and of course, drink a lot of Japanese made beer!
You’ll have a great time but please be aware there is zero tolerance on drink driving in Japan. If you speak some Japanese or have someone help you, you can use the Daiko service. That’s where a driver will take you and your car home for a fee not much more than a taxi.
IMO, Hakuba attracts those who want to throw a visit to Tokyo and Kyoto, Osaka into their holiday. A sampler of Japan for the Ski n Selfie crowd. Hokkaido is for those who know want they want. The best food, the most powpow, epic landscapes, and the cool northern vibe of Sapporo. People fall in love with Hokkaido for good reason.
What about ski season length? Hokkaido is more snow sure in December and March. If you are traveling from afar in the shoulder season, Hokkaido is the safer bet.
Curious if anyone might have an answer or suggestions BUT......my partner and i are traveling to japan in January for a month. Our first two weeks we are sort of back packing around the southern part of the country. However towards the end of the trip we were going to ski for at least a week (probably Hakkaido.) Would we be better off just renting skis/snowboard at whichever resort? Or is there a way I could store my crap (snowboard/skis) in tokyo for a couple weeks then have it sent up to meet us? Logistically it sounds like a pain, but just curious if anyone had ran into this? Thanks!
Japan has well established luggage transfer companies that will send your gear anywhere in the country for a surprisingly good price. That Japanese use this a lot. Not sure if they can hold onto your luggage for more than one day but there are a few different companies so one of them might.
Hi Andreas, hast du eine Empfehlung für einen Guide in Niseko/Rusutsu? Idealerweise mit Fotos. Sidecountry, keine Touren. Sind bloß zu zweit, die Kosten die man so findet sind in der Regel 800-1000€ pro Tag. Das sprengt das Budget ein bisserl.
Ahahah move to the Netherlands, overcast everyday! (at the cost of depressing lack of mountains). No worries man, ur production quality tends to be 10/10❤
I skied in the Furano and Nesiko (including Rusutsu) areas a few years ago. The highlight of the trip was skiing off the peak of Asahidake, the highest point on Hokkaido island. The powder snow is very high quality and very easy to ski. The best snow and turns are going to be found beyond the boundaries of the ski resorts. I found the overall terrain very un-interesting, nothing really got steeper than a solid blue run. For reference my home resort is Snowbird. The Onsen's were a really highlight of the trip and something to not be missed. Everyone should ski JaPow at least once in there life!
@@magrider7627 Nesiko is a combination of several resorts and is overall larger providing much more terrain and can be enjoyed for several days. Rusutsu is less than an hour drive from Nesiko and would be good for one or two days. Furano, is perhaps my least favorite of the three resorts. As I mentioned, the highpoint of my trip was skiing off of the summit of Asahidake, which is closer to Furano. Japan resorts get skied out like US resorts. We toured three of the nine days that we skied, if we went back we would tour more days than we skied inbounds and that's sort of general consensus from my group. IMO most of the photos and videos you see posted are taken out of bounds of the resorts. If you want a true freeride experience head to La Grave, I've made four trips there!
So informative! Love all your videos. I’m stoked to go to Hokkaido for spring break in mid March. I would love to hear more about staying in Sapporo, getting there from Haneda, train vs limo bus, etc. @theslipperyslope
All your Japan videos have been so helpful in planning my first trip. Thank you !
My pleasure. Thanks for watching!
Shout out from a local who's skied and snowboarded in both areas quite heavily... Awesome job, sir, perfect grasp of the pros and cons and then some. The "metric shit ton vs. m**** shit ton" part really got me, and was actually a pretty accurate description. Even in Sapporo, a 2 million city, we get 6 meters of snowfall per year. That said my personal recommendation would be the northerner, if your priority is the snow and if you don't mind skipping the Tokyo experience. (FYI the major resorts have gotten so pricy this year no one I know is going there, but there are very decent alternatives.)
Japan aki travel tip you NEED to know.. don't lug your gear all over Japan. Use a service like Yamoto (you can find them in both Narita and Haneda). For a small fee they will transport you bag to your accommodation for you (or from accommodation to accommodation). If you have ever taken a bullet train and wondered why there is little to no luggage storage.. services like this are why. Once you know the Yamoto logo you will start to notice it everywhere in Japan. Cheers and happy pow shredding!
Definitely! Will cover it in this winter's "Japan Arrival Guide" video 🤫
I am still going with my snowboard bag and nimotsu to my hotel in Saku, but my base of operations will be there. Once i am there, my big bags can stay there, and carrying a board with bindings is easy even for blue seats on the bullet.
Really love your videos. Informative and funny. I have really benefited from your advice. Only been to Japan once and loved it. We skied Nozawa Onsen. This season we are heading to Shiga Kogen
Lodging prices near Niseko tend to drop significantly in March towards the end of Snowboarding season. It ends in late May.
If you go near December to February , expect to shell out $5,000 for two weeks near Niseko. Prices go up as demand goes up. Personally, I think a trip to Furano is more ideal during prime time seasons.
Prices for lodging aren’t ridiculous in Nagano. They are typically in short supply near Shiga Kogen, Myoko Kogen and Nozawa Onsen around peak season times. My only other advice is don’t come before Christmas. It depends on the year, but if you come early, to Nagano, i would go after Christmas to February for peak powder action. Nagano gets hit with a massive snow dump around this time.
If you go to Nozawa Onsen, i’d recommend going to the Arena for a good meal and $6.00 baths. Local onsens are free, but privacy is the tradeoff.
Before 7:29 ,
In theory, Niseko should produce more snow because it’s further north, and the peak is higher in elevation. Essentially what this means is the temperature above the peaks of Niseko is colder versus the peaks of Hakuba. Niseko will get less sun exposure, and so the ambient temperature would be significantly lower to produce more snow. What isn’t taken into account is the congregation of rainclouds in the vicinity. If you have a higher chance of precipitation, due to more rainclouds, above Hakuba versus Niseko at a given time, Hakuba will produce more snow. Snow is produced when there is a higher concentration of water vapors in the air, and the cold air cause the phase change between a vapor to an aqueous to a solid. If there is no water vapors in the air, then the cold temperature just causes the snow on the peaks to retain its state or get harder.
At 9:39 ,
if you are an American, flights on Hawaiian Airlines don’t leave till 9:00 pm or 2100 on a departure flight back home. I’d recommend not goofing around and get to the airport asap. Even if you are a few hours early, it’s worth not missing your departure flight.
Also take into account the time dilation: Tokyo is one day ahead, and 10’hours behind from Pacific Time Zone. So if you flew back to California from 2100, Sunday,from Tokyo, you will arrive at around noon time in LAX on a Sunday. Expect a 10 to 12 hr flight, but it will be like 9 to 11 hours because the turbulence is behind the plane.
I went snowboarding back in 2017 to Nozawaonsen Village, It was fantastic, about about had about 4 meters of snow in 3 days.
From the states so deep pow, unless in the back country is like 8-12 inches. Up to your arm pits was at a whole different level.
Flew to Tokyo, to the bullet train.
Awesome time, love the videos.
Starting the season in Iwate’s resorts and hitting West and Central Hokkaido in Feb/March! Can’t wait!
Awesome video and information, will be travelling from NZ to ski Hakuba from 10-22 Jan. Really appreciate your research and experience. Hope you have a great ski season…
Thanks for the breakdown...-23F out my door right now with no skiing, dreaming of Japow, or even desert single track with my Onewheel !
Haven't been to Hakuba, but did Niseko in Feb and it was super fun. Would love to check out some of the less well-known resorts, like Rusutsu. Fwiw, spending a day or so in Sapporo is worth it if you have the time.
3:18 is hilarious, love it
have u been to Hakkoda Ski Area (aomori) and Mt.Zao? What are your thoughts on it compared to nagano/niigata and hokkaido ski resorts?
They are building a shinkasen station in Kutchan, which is supposed to open by 2030, which will speed up the connections to Niseko.
Enjoy your videos, I find your takes pretty accurate. I would say however if you can get your head around the train system in Tokyo you are better off using them. Not an exact science, and may depend on when you land and your last leg may be a bus anyway depending on where you go, but in many instances the Shinkansen will save you a couple of hours for Nagano based resorts.
My tip? Get on the shink somewhere like Ueno instead of Tokyo, far less chaotic.
Love your vids!!!!
You’ve been a great help for me in planning my trip to Japan. I’ve got time on both Honshu and Hokkaido! Which month are you spending over there?
Honshu in Jan, Hokkaido in March this year. See you there
I live in japan, but I haven’t really tried too many resorts yet. I’ve tried sugadaira kougen (nagano), niseko, and fuji.
My favorite one was sugadaira kougen - it is smaller than niseko, but less crowded and not as crazy expensive. Fuji was the worst of the 3
Hey,
In Japan, is terrain off the groom not considered inbounds like many areas in Europe, or are there ropes and gates for leaving the ski area like America?
Thanks for your help.
Great review and you covered a lot of ground! I have skied both islands. For Honshu I like Nozawa Onsen as it gets a lot of snow and has nice tree skiing. I have spent less time in Hokkaido and would love to do some backcountry there. Rusutsu was my favorite resort skiing, but have good things about Furano and Kiroro. Do you have any suggestions? From Grand Targhee, WY.
Kiroro, Kokusai and Furano are really fun, I think.
I'm gonna be renting a car and going wild in Hokkaido. I want to purchase a beer glass just like that! and of course, drink a lot of Japanese made beer!
You’ll have a great time but please be aware there is zero tolerance on drink driving in Japan.
If you speak some Japanese or have someone help you, you can use the Daiko service. That’s where a driver will take you and your car home for a fee not much more than a taxi.
IMO, Hakuba attracts those who want to throw a visit to Tokyo and Kyoto, Osaka into their holiday. A sampler of Japan for the Ski n Selfie crowd.
Hokkaido is for those who know want they want. The best food, the most powpow, epic landscapes, and the cool northern vibe of Sapporo. People fall in love with Hokkaido for good reason.
i went to japan last summer but i nevr tried skiing there. how does the terrain compare to Rocky mountains
What about ski season length? Hokkaido is more snow sure in December and March. If you are traveling from afar in the shoulder season, Hokkaido is the safer bet.
Curious if anyone might have an answer or suggestions BUT......my partner and i are traveling to japan in January for a month. Our first two weeks we are sort of back packing around the southern part of the country. However towards the end of the trip we were going to ski for at least a week (probably Hakkaido.) Would we be better off just renting skis/snowboard at whichever resort? Or is there a way I could store my crap (snowboard/skis) in tokyo for a couple weeks then have it sent up to meet us? Logistically it sounds like a pain, but just curious if anyone had ran into this? Thanks!
Japan has well established luggage transfer companies that will send your gear anywhere in the country for a surprisingly good price. That Japanese use this a lot. Not sure if they can hold onto your luggage for more than one day but there are a few different companies so one of them might.
Hi Andreas, hast du eine Empfehlung für einen Guide in Niseko/Rusutsu? Idealerweise mit Fotos. Sidecountry, keine Touren.
Sind bloß zu zweit, die Kosten die man so findet sind in der Regel 800-1000€ pro Tag. Das sprengt das Budget ein bisserl.
Could you make a video on how you afford to live the ski life, given the skiing is typically amongst the most expensive sports?
I can fly to NRT for zero $$. I need to do a Japan trip.
The side view camera angle got used a little too much in this video i think.
Other than that you know your production quality is awesome
Yeah, you're probably right. Due to the constant lighting changes, it was my only way to cover all the cuts ;)
@TheSlipperySlope ah fair, thats the one downside on a beautiful outside location😅
I filmed that day because it was supposed to be overcast, i.e. perfect diffuse lighting. Turns out mountain weather isn't very predictable 🫠
Ahahah move to the Netherlands, overcast everyday! (at the cost of depressing lack of mountains).
No worries man, ur production quality tends to be 10/10❤
@@TheSlipperySlope Maybe if you got rid of those two beer drinking drunks things would get better.😁
Thanks, this is really helpful.
why not both :D
I skied in the Furano and Nesiko (including Rusutsu) areas a few years ago. The highlight of the trip was skiing off the peak of Asahidake, the highest point on Hokkaido island. The powder snow is very high quality and very easy to ski. The best snow and turns are going to be found beyond the boundaries of the ski resorts. I found the overall terrain very un-interesting, nothing really got steeper than a solid blue run. For reference my home resort is Snowbird. The Onsen's were a really highlight of the trip and something to not be missed. Everyone should ski JaPow at least once in there life!
For Freeride which of yhis 3 ski resort in best?
@@magrider7627 Nesiko is a combination of several resorts and is overall larger providing much more terrain and can be enjoyed for several days. Rusutsu is less than an hour drive from Nesiko and would be good for one or two days. Furano, is perhaps my least favorite of the three resorts. As I mentioned, the highpoint of my trip was skiing off of the summit of Asahidake, which is closer to Furano. Japan resorts get skied out like US resorts. We toured three of the nine days that we skied, if we went back we would tour more days than we skied inbounds and that's sort of general consensus from my group. IMO most of the photos and videos you see posted are taken out of bounds of the resorts. If you want a true freeride experience head to La Grave, I've made four trips there!
First like , then watch
That’s the spirit! 🙌🏻
Video just in time freund
So informative! Love all your videos. I’m stoked to go to Hokkaido for spring break in mid March. I would love to hear more about staying in Sapporo, getting there from Haneda, train vs limo bus, etc. @theslipperyslope