Xmas Day on ANA then skiing, skiing, (NYE) and more skiing in Niseko

[NoobFlyer]

Accomodation
The Hokkaido snow machine is turning it on but I'll try and catch up with the TR.
Arrived at Kutchan to a glorious sight of snow falling from the heavens, and really falling. (As seen in last pic of previous post)
Called the accommodation using the the station's pay phone to arrange the pickup and 10 mins later off I went.


I'm staying at the Snowgum Lodge, a basic dorm style lodge in Izumikyo but it was a good price, offers free breakfast and (importantly) was available when I was looking for accommodation relatively late in the piece. I won't go into too much depth here but it is a nice enough place for those on a budget. They offer complimentary breakfast and a shuttle up to Hirafu from 8:00 every morning so you don't need to rely on the regular shuttles which are often very busy around that time. You can also wander over to Ramat lodge next door (run by the same owners) where there's a bar, pool table, etc. All the workers are very helpful and super friendly and they also provide shuttles up to Hirafu village (about a 15 min walk) every night and also into Kutchan for grocery runs when required. I'll be making use of the onsite kitchen facilities most of the time, so can't offer much advice on the Niseko restaurants or nightlife.

Also attached is some examples of the cheap alcohol available in the Kutchan supermarket.


Coming up: First day on the slopes

 

[NoobFlyer]

Skiing Day 2
Some views from around the mountain, lunch at Boyoso and a trip to the onsen to finish the day with the accompaniment for the walk home.

 

[mimishat]

Subscribing.

Looks amazing! Japan is on our return trip list when the kidlets are a bit older.

 

[andy2015]

If you aren't a beginner: up Hirafu Gondola and do the short 1 minute hike up on your right when you leave the station to the Miharashi trail.

 

[NoobFlyer]

If you aren't a beginner: up Hirafu Gondola and do the short 1 minute hike up on your right when you leave the station to the Miharashi trail.

Unfortunately Miharashi isn't open yet. Can't be far away looking at the cover it has from the gondola.

 

[Fiches Mouser]

NoobFlyer, thank you for sharing your trip with us! I'm very envious. If you get the chance next time, head up into Hokkaido for some truly incredible (and very remote) skiing.

That said, it's remarkably easy to get onto Japanese snow from Australia via Tokyo.

I think you've done it perfectly – I was hoping to give ANA a go now that their SYD-HND route is up. And in premium economy too! Nice work.

Looks you're having the best time. Make sure you bring home some Yamazaki 18 (if you're into whiskey). It is tremendous value in Japan, without all our pesky taxes.

 

[NoobFlyer]

NoobFlyer, thank you for sharing your trip with us! I'm very envious. If you get the chance next time, head up into Hokkaido for some truly incredible (and very remote) skiing.

That said, it's remarkably easy to get onto Japanese snow from Australia via Tokyo.

I think you've done it perfectly – I was hoping to give ANA a go now that their SYD-HND route is up. And in premium economy too! Nice work.

Looks you're having the best time. Make sure you bring home some Yamazaki 18 (if you're into whiskey). It is tremendous value in Japan, without all our pesky taxes.

Thank you for the kind words mrsmart, I am certainly having an absolute ball here in Niseko. The tree runs here are certainly beyond anything I have experienced at the Australian fields. It just lives up to all the hype and more.

I think the real beauty of the new ANA route is the greater opportunity to redeem star alliance miles for Aus-Japan. I definitely think if I was to fly them again I would try and use purchased miles to get into J as that product looked really nice. Certainly no complaints about premium economy but I don't think I could do economy. That 9 across in the 787 is a killer IMO. But it seems they have been running quite a few sales for return sub $8-900 which is not too far away from being Jetstar competitive (normal non-scientific peices) and that really isn't a comparison.
I have noticed the very cheap spirits available here, not just local alcohol either as seen in the pictures of a previous post. Unfortunately I'm not much of a whiskey drinker but the comparatively expensive price of beer is certainly steering me that way.
Sorry if this post doesn't quite make sense, it was posted from the phone while giving the legs a break from all this powder!

 

[NoobFlyer]

Well what a way to bring on the new year. Participating in the 40th NYE Grand Hirafu torchlight run was a surreal experience (http://www.grand-hirafu.jp/blog/hir.../2015/12/60168f4fca5cd15d9baefa774baa7698.jpg). Certainly felt like I was a part of something special, particularly being one the lucky few to form part of the '16' to signify the new year
https://youtu.be/OHB9MKJ2Tuc

Footage from within the '16' formation
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Is9yk8XeLLM

Some of the run down the slope to come.

 

[NoobFlyer]

Last day of skiing
Managed to get up reasonably early on New Years Day and drag myself up to Hirafu for what turned out to be a very special morning of skiing, with about an hour of skiing continuous fresh lines in knee deep powder without any wait at the lifts. A spectacular way to end the skiing portion of this trip and the legs were well and truly gone by the time I wrapped things up in the early afternoon.

 

[NoobFlyer]

Back home on a proper computer now so no excuses for poorly formatted posts or pictures.

Sapporo Day Trip
A late change of plans for the last day as I decided to leave Niseko early and do a little walking day trip in Sapporo before the flight home instead of skiing and travelling straight to the airport.

Unfortunately a few of the attractions were closed for the New Year Holiday but I tried to make the most of my limited time in Sapporo. So first up was an early train from Kutchan, transfer at Otaru and onto Sapporo.

Some scenery from the train


I was a little unsure what I would do with my ski bag knowing it wouldn't fit in the largest coin lockers, preparing to just leave them sitting on top of the lockers of something similar, a quick trip to the tourist information desk and they informed about these brilliant things - ski lockers!

Complete with slot in the roof to poke the skis through if they're too long. In hindsight I guess Sapporo would get a lot of through traffic from skiers and boarders heading to one of the many snow fields on Hokkaido and hence have a good reason to cater for that market. I was even more impressed at them being all available and plenty of the largest normal lockers for the suitcase also being available! 600 yen for the ski locker and 700 yen for the large suitcase locker and I was off to my first stop, the Old Hokkaido Government Building.

Originally I was planning on visiting the Sapporo Beer Factory and Museum but it was unfortunately closed until the 4th so I had to leave that one for next time. Likewise I believe the Old Government Building is usually open as a museum but not today so it was just a circumnavigation of the grounds.



A short walk away was another 19th Century structure modeled from American architecture, the Sapporo clock tower. Again the museum inside was closed for the New Year period so it was external pictures only.

 

[NoobFlyer]

Now to something a bit more modern, and yet again closed for New Years (didn't I plan this well!), the Sapporo TV Tower and adjacent Odori Park. With the former Hokkaido Court House found at the far end of the park.



Up to the shopping district with a quick walk by the Nijo Fish Market (where everything is so big!) and onto Tanuki Koji Shopping Arcade. Probably should have taken more photos of the variety of shops in here as well as the underground malls such as Pole Town and APIA but I was after something specific from Tanuki Koji, a Japanese made santoku chef's knife from Miyabun. Miyabun doesn't have the centuries worth of history like many knife smiths in Japan but I was just looking for a good value knife that I wouldn't be afraid to use everyday. Some of the pieces looked absolutely exquisite though.



From the far end of Tanuki Koji it was a short walk to Sankichi Shrine. Nestled among high rise buildings, the shrine offers a pleasant place to relax and take a moment to reflect.


I also detoured off Tanuki Koji up to Ramen Alley, an apparently famous ramen spot in Japan although I didn't partake as I wasn't confident in my limited Japanese being abel to explain what vegetarian is . Also went for a wander around the underground shopping mall Pole Town which was a nice way to escape the winter chill of Sapporo.


Then it was onto the final stop of the Sapporo tour, JR Tower. (After my initial plans of walking through the botanical gardens were cancelled due to - you guessed it - closed for New Years)

 

[NoobFlyer]

Unfortunately the visibility was a bit limited due to the low cloud (and all that pesky snow!) by this stage and in hindsight I should have went straight up upon my arrival in the morning when it was much clearer but the views were still quite spectacular.


The APIA Dome and aforementioned (closed) Sapporo Beer Factory and Museum.

 

[NoobFlyer]

And so onto the journey home.
Flight 3
ANA
NH76
CTS-HND
B773
Seat 7K

Access to the priority lane for check-in was definitely appreciated here as the regular economy queue for international connections contained >100 people and was being slowed further due to pre-screening of baggage prior to being checked-in. Unfortunately no express path for security screening so I was quickly bought back down to earth, also as the first leg was in economy no lounge access for the domestic flight.

My seat had plenty of legroom for standard economy although the space was a little obstructed which would limit the size of the carry-on able to be stored there. This meant the seat next to mine had ample space in the foot well due to the lack of seat support. The inbound flight was delayed leading to a late gate change and boarding being called about 30 mins late, with take-off about 45 mins late. This meant that my time in the HND ANA lounge was being significantly cut down


On the plus side from the first few rows in Economy, you can peek into the Business cabin and watch the nose camera video feed for takeoff and landing while the shutters and curtains separating the cabins were open. We also had some rather lovely views of greater Tokyo on the approach into HND, though the photos from my phone can't do it justice.


After a short wait and 15 minute transfer bus ride later I was at a completely empty security and immigration area which I was very thankful considering my next flight would be departing in about an hour so my lounge time was being eaten away by every wasted second. A short walk down to Gate 110 and up the escalators to that amazingly (and for me at least - newly discovered) oasis that is the Airport Lounge!

 

[NoobFlyer]

ANA Lounge HND



Lounge was quite busy as would be expected for a lounge at an airlines hub but no problem finding a seat in one of the many different areas. The lounge has two food and beverage areas, with a larger area located at the entrance end and a smaller selection available at the far end. I found the F&B area at the far end to be a lot less busy Although I was looking forward to one after a long day of travelling and sightseeing there wasn't enough time for a shower due to late arrival combined with the number of people already on the waiting list. The food selection was quite good for a late dinner, although I didn't see any dessert options which I imagine is more due to the Japanese nature of the lounge as opposed to the time of day. A choice of Kirin or Sapporo on automated tap was novel and appreciated. Otherwise the alcohol selection was a little limited, with sake and shochu available in the main F&B area but I didn't see many wines available.



A number of displays around the lounge contained Star Wars figurines which I quite enjoyed.

 

[NoobFlyer]

Flight 4
ANA
NH879
HND-SYD

Fairly uneventful flight to round out the trip. A small snack in the form a few sandwich quarters was served shortly after departure along with a choice of usual beverages and hot towel. I then managed another few hours of sleep as nothing on the IFE tickled my fancy. Awoke as we were flying over PNG with some spectacular views of the sunrise over the clouds. Similarly to the outbound, I'm not entirely sure what the vegetarian meal I was served for breakfast actually comprised but I do know it was quite tasty


I really do love the electronic shades of the 787's and I think these along with the size of the windows themselves is one of the aircraft's best features. The views coming into Sydney were of course wonderful though there have been much better shots of the scenery already posted so no need to elaborate.


After landing a little early, I was off and through immigration fairly quickly, though I think QF18 and QF26 had also just landed so a small wait was expected to get through the Smartgates. Unfortunately I later discovered that priority tags were not attached to my luggage in Sapporo meaning a fairly lengthy (>30 min) wait for both my suitcase (on the carousel) and ski bag (from the oversize baggage claim) to appear. Not sure why the tags weren't attached but it was a shame to end on what was the only point I could fault ANA on for the entire trip. It was a little difficult to tell if the priority tags were being enforced anyway as the same carousel was being used for a few different inbound flights. Another fairly long wait and I was through border control, all up about an hour after landing so nothing too crazy but something I wasn't accustomed to after the very speedy processing that I found in almost all areas of Japan.

Wrap Up
And so that brings to an end this little TR, I have certainly learnt a lot from this trip and could not have enjoyed myself more. I was extremely lucky with the conditions with around 180 cm of fresh snow falling during my stay in Niseko while other Japanese resorts on Honshu struggled to get into the teens. My decision to spend the extra on flights to get to Hokkaido instead of stopping in Tokyo certainly paid off. They were quite simply the best snow conditions I have ever skied and my skill level could simply not do justice to the terrain available to ski. Upon reflection, the trip just went from highlight to highlight and didn't stop being incredible for it's entirety.
I hope anyone reading it has also been able to learn something from my experience and would welcome any feedback on how to make my next TR more entertaining and informative. Not to give too much away but I may be back very, very soon

 

[jastel]

Great Report...bought back memories of a few years back.
I spent a week there in Feb, every day a digger had to remove 1m of powder before we could leave the resort.
I had an Aussie local mate guide me around, and probably wouldn't have found lots of the little restaurants etc without him.
I tried lots of weird food, most was ok, but I was hanging for Maccas or a steak when I got back to Tokyo.
I am not a good skier but tried skis, then board, then snowmobiles...all fun.
Couldn't believe the price of booze at the Seicomart!!
They have a big Snow and Ice sculpture thing in Sapporo in Feb which was great to see as well.
I want to go back!