64 I Winter destinations


PLAN


With winter on the horizon, Steve White presents a range of interesting seasonal Asian escapes


I NOVEMBER 2016


n a continent strewn with balmy tropical isles, the typical “powder” escape means hitting a beach to savour talc-soft sand between your toes. But winter brings an alternative bounty of white gold to the mountains of North and Central Asia.


From as early as December, well into spring and even later in some cases, snow lovers are spoilt for choice. There’s everything from the mildest of slopes for your family’s first foray on skis, to the wildest imaginable backcountry where full avalanche kit and years of experience are required. So switch your shades for goggles, the bikini for a beanie, and come dive into Asia’s snowy deeps.


HOKKAIDO – Deep and crisp and uneven One resort has single-handedly put this northern island on the agendas of the world’s skiers and snowboarders. A couple of decades ago, an enlightened off-piste policy and outward-looking attitude lifted


little Niseko out of obscurity. Interestingly its success has coincided with the country’s long economic slump, so it’s a case study in the sort of fresh thinking needed across Japan, not just in ski tourism. Today the early adopters – mostly Australians and


Kiwis, hungry for midsummer snow – are fanning out to look for fresher tracks. In their wake come increasing numbers of Europeans, Hong Kongers, Singaporeans, Malaysians and the more affluent mainland Chinese. Old hands now like to bemoan the lack of Japanese to be heard around town, but on the plus side the influx of foreigners has led to a diverse culinary scene. It’s possible to eat twice-baked croissant aux amandes for breakfast, Neopolitan pizza or a gourmet burger for lunch, and Mexican or Sichuanese for dinner. Head for the ice bars afterwards and later on a kebab shop or chippy van might tempt you as you wind your way back to your chalet. Of course the fact there’s a resort here at all is down to the most essential ingredient of any ski location: snow. In this, Niseko is richly endowed, with winters


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