Last March in Niseko.
If you are thinking of making a trip there. Do it and read on:
Before you go
Booking early is the key, particularly during Christmas or Chinese New Year holiday. Apparently flights are already full for CNY. Apart from flights, there are a few other things you might want to plan ahead. Don't wait till you get there.
Flight - There is only one flight per day from Hong Kong to Sapporo via Cathay and another one via HK airline. These flights are always full and last minute booking is almost never possible during high seasons. I highly recommend that you book a few months in advance at least.
Alternatively, you can travel through Tokyo, but not without a long layover. You might even arrive late, due to delays, and miss your connecting transit.
Seats are much more flexible outside of the two holidays. You can take your time. Ski season is said to begin in December and end in April. I have been there as late as end of March and it was still fantastic. However, once it get pass early March, snowfall will become spotty and rain might come in between. Powerlife is a great website to check the weather condition as well as other information before you go.
Restaurants - During high seasons, it is impeccable to book the restaurants before you go – I kid you not. Most restaurants, particularly the popular ones get snatched up quite quickly. They are usually small with a few tables available. They are usually booked up quickly (especially if you have a big crowd). Below are a few of my favorites:
Abucha 1 or 2 - A modern Japanese restaurant. Trendy and hip, also not very expensive. This is a very popular spot. We only managed to get in on our third trip to Niseko and only because we book a few weeks in advance. They have anything from sushi to hotpot to other fusion dishes.
Wagyu Dinning Zou - This is a small restaurants operated by a husband and wife. Specializes in Japanese hotpot - shabu shabu or sukiyaki. Do try the kimchi hotpot. You definitely need to book this in advance. They only have 3-4 tables.
Yo - This is on the very bottom of Hirafu, located in a hotel called "Slowly Hurry". Traditional Japanese cuisine. You have to order the set course before hand as well. The sets have many courses so make sure you go with an empty stomach. We have never been able to finish all the food.
This is the "Irori" set from Yo.
En Catering - A chef will be sent to the comfort of your own home. He will prepare, cook and do the washing. Great food but rather high end.
RIN - Modern Japanese cuisine. Sort of Yakitori plus a few other signature dishes. No sushi here.
BangBang - Some say it is better than Zuma, unfortunately, I am not one. Japanese cuisine. They have sushi, sashimi, raw oyster etc. Definitely Zuma type of pricing.
Tozanken - Best Ramen in Hirafu. I don't have a link for you and you probably can't book it. Go there early for lunch, say 11ish, and you will be seated with no problem. There is a gift shop above this shop as well.
There are a few good western restaurants such as Steak Rosso Rosso and J-Sekka (great for breakfast!) but it is my personal recommendation that you try as many local cuisine as you can first.
Accommodation - There are a wide variety of hotel and hostel of all pricing ranges. My suggestion is to stay on the Hirafu side, which is the most developed area in Niseko. All the great restaurants and bars are in Hirafu and ground transportation is limited at night.
However, if you prefer a proper hotel with full facilities - Hilton is a good choice, which is located in the Niseko Village, where you can simply ski-in-ski-out. Hilton is self-content with its own restaurants and spa etc. If you are one of those people who can't be bothered to leave the hotel, this is a good choice.
Otherwise stay in Hirafu and pick a hotel that is close to the shuttle bus route. You can see that from the map here. The blue bus stop signs are the route you want to live nearby. The entire hirafu is an uphill slope, you don't want to be walking to the ski slope carrying your gear, trust me.
Transit - You will need a transit from the Chitose Airport to Niseko. The journey will take 1.5-2.5 hours pending on the road condition. Unless you are a skillful driver in heavy snow condition, it is much safer to take the local transportation. I always take the Skybus which is not too expensive yet convenience service, taking you directly from the airport to your hotel door. A cheaper option is to take the local bus, which cost close to nothing, but they only have a few drop-off points in Niseko. If you are not staying near those, you will have to drag your luggage in the snow in the dark which didn’t look like fun to me.
(There is a whole world of shopping and eating in the Chitose airport on the domestic side. Make sure you don’t miss it. If you are flying via Cathay and Skybus, I’d say leave all the shopping till the return day. Between your skybus schedule and your Cathay flight, you will have a lot of time to linger in the airport.)
What to bring
Clothes - Bring your warmest jacket then a whole bunch of T-shirt. It is of course cold when you go outside but super hot & dry indoor given the amount of heat they use. Things like turtle neck and thermal will kill you once you go inside a restaurant. Ladies, UGGS are really not made for walking on snow and ice, don’t say I didn’t warn you. Just remember, you need to take off your shoes inside most restaurants so wear socks and shoes that doesn't take forever to put on/off.
Speaking of the heat, bring lots of body lotion as well. Some DVDs or games to entertain yourself at night will be a good idea. Local TV programs are of course all in Japanese. Or you can join the rest of the crowd and drink yourself from sunset (sunset is at 3ish!) to sunrise.
Gear – If you are a first timer. I would really recommend that you just rent everything from Niseko, save you the trouble from carrying them. If you must, Stanley have one shop that sells boarding outfit, gloves and goggles. Remember, you will be wearing many layers (including some padded tights perhaps) underneath, so buy the right size. There are a few other places you can buy Burton gears from but my info is dated. Otherwise Niseko have a much wider range of selection but it will surely be more expensive.
Now you are all set.
When you are there
Rental - You can pretty much rent anything from gloves to gear in Niseko. Rhythm is our go-to rental shop. It is operated by Australian owners and staff (most rental shops are) so pretty English friendly. One little tip from me – they don’t store shoes for you so make a trip to rent your gear on your arrival or store your shoes in the ski resort lockers.
Ski pass – As I was saying, the ski resort is divided into 4 faces, so you can either buy a pass for one side of it, or to all 4 sides. I think two sides per day is really the max you can do. At the top of the mountain, you can ski across all 4 faces (you will of course need the ‘all mountain pass’ to get on the lift to get back up). Otherwise there is a walk way, in mid-moutain, between Hirafu and Niseko Village; going back and forth from Hirafu to Hanazono is also quite easy. Lastly, there are buses that tranvel frm one resort to another as well but they are rather infrequent.
I would suggest that you buy day pass every morning. Surely an 'all mountain 10-day pass' will offer a discount, but lifts might be closed due to weather & wind from time to time and not everyday would you want to ski from morning to nightfall. I am not a big fan of night skiing. It is usually too cold to be enjoyable and it only give you access to the bottom part of the moutain. However, I suppose if you are only there for 1-2 days, you would want to maximize your time on the slope.
If you are a beginner, Hirafu will be interesting enough for you for at least 1-3 days. They have the largest number of lifts, variety of slopes and where night skiing is available. My second favorite is Niseko Village. One gondola ride from the bottom will take you all the way to the top. Hanazono is also interesting, with a great food court, very kids-friendly. The slopes are quite long and enjoyable (as long as you don’t accidentally stumble into a terrain park!). It has however many ‘flat’ bits – not so good for beginner boarders. Annapuri, if you manage to go all the way to the top, is also quite enjoyable. It has the least traffic and the angle of the slopes are rather consistent.
If you are adventurous, there are a few off-piste you can go to but I might not be the best person to talk about that.
Ski school – It is worthwhile to book in advance although they aren’t as fully booked as some of the other things. Lots of English speaking instructors from all over the world. Worth it to have a one-on-one lesson or two if you have never ski or board before. Don’t rely on your boyfriend or husband because they make the worst teachers.
Food courts - are usually very good for lunch. There are a few of them scatter around the resort at lower, middle and upper part of the mountain. Usually quite cheap and cheerful with great quality.
Activities Other than Skiing/Boarding
Not much else to do strictly in Niseko honestly. I suppose there are a few spots for onsen but they aren’t particularly picturesque. Foot massage is also a great way to kill time but it isn't going to keep you occupied for long. If you decide to take a break from skiing, you might just have to get out of Niseko. One of my friend who decided to take a day-off from boarding took the train to Otaru which is probably the nearest tourist spot.
In the summer it might be a whole different story with more time you can spend outdoor. I will tell you all about it after this summer.
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