There’s so much to love about a ski holiday in Japan, I had heard great things about it but only truly appreciated it on my trip to the Nozawa Onsen resort. Everything from the powder, the food, the kindness of people and huge number of kit kat flavours make it the place to go on your next ski holiday.
For all of you our there looking to tick off Japan on your skiing bucket list, here are some reasons I know you’ll love it.
The Prices
If you’re coming from Europe or the USA then of course it’s not going go under the category of budget trip because of the travel. However there are plenty of deals to be had out there and one way to save money is to get an indirect flight with one stop over. You can also buy the Japan Rail Pass which will give you unlimited rail travel for unto 21 days. Food and drink is similar to France and maybe even lower – an example being that you can get a refillable hot chocolate (which everyone loves on the snow) for less than $3. We though one night we would spells out for dinner and ordered a ton of tempura and sashimi, I was shocked when the bill only came to $30 per person.
Off Piste Access
Skiing in Japan is famous for powder, but you must check about the rules before you go. It is allowed for you to go off piste and into areas populated with trees, but each destination will have its own rules – for example Hakubu and Myoko Kogen will be different. The best thing to do is hire a guide for the day if you want a real adventure, and trust me with these pros you’ll have all the powder fun you could wish for.
You Don’t Have To Be A Pro
Just because Japan gets the world’s best powder doesn’t mean that it’s all set up for experts. With all of the snow falling it means that the slopes are always covered, they are also very well taken care of and are well groomed everyday. When we were there we saw plenty of people learning how to ski and lots of kids flying by in their ski schools. They do have signs up letting you know that some runs are just for experts, if you’re not one I’d advise you give it a miss.
People Are So Polite On Lifts
Anyone who has been crammed in a lift queue in Europe will know that people love to argue and complain – there are no rules so generally the biggest and rudest people get to go first. North American queues are not so bad but they can’t hold a torch to Japan. The Japanese have taken lift queueing to a whole new level! Someone will raise their hand politely to let you know that you should wait, then you are invited on to the lift with the lift monitors often greeting you with a bow – this part of the holiday blew me away!