Winter destinations I 65
Above: Carving a slope in Niseko
accumulating an average of around 16 metres, much of it dry and fluffy as duck down. That said, some neighbouring resorts do almost as well and the lessons of Niseko are starting to rub off here too. Loosening up the riding rules and adding eateries, new locations like Furano, towards the centre of Hokkaido, are expanding their offer. Kiroro and Tomamu, still centred on big hotels, appeal in particular to families and to Asian clientele, while the city of Sapporo has a ring of small resorts that let you follow days on the slope with nights on the razz.
skiing-hokkaido.com
HONSHU – Japan’s ski heartland Every winter, shinkansen (bullet trains) full of skiers fan out from the main urban hubs heading for the Japanese Alps and lesser ranges. In the heyday of the 1980s and 90s, so many people skied in the country that resorts proliferated like golf courses. Today, some are out of business but scores of others survive and a few are prospering anew, innovating and foraging
businesstraveller.com
overseas for new markets. Some valleys see several resorts clustered into great ski factories, impressive in scale but rather soulless and confusing for the non-Japanese speaker. Instead, the discerning foreign skier should aim for authenticity – along with ample snow of course. Nozawa Onsen, near Niigata, stands out here. The town itself is a gem, synonymous with the history of skiing and just as celebrated for its eponymous traditional baths. Crucially that gives it a draw card year-round with the result that this place, while not without its tourist tat, does avoid the see-saw seasonality that makes ghost towns of other places once the last skier schusses off home. It helps that most guests stay downtown, not in the unsightly tower hotels that sadly dominate many Japanese resorts, but in minshuku and ryokan (bed and breakfasts). They make a charming sight, especially when roofs are heavy with snow, mixing alpine chic and a Japanese aesthetic – chocolate box picturesque meets bento box orderliness. The picture is then
NOVEMBER 2016
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