Niseko

Lots of Squeeky Snow Day and Night

The Vale has a great bar and restaurant. The food and drinks were a little expensive but the quality of the food meant that you didn''t feel like you were being taken advantage of (Secomart is a good source for reasonably priced wine).

The room we had was very clean but a little ordinary. While it had plenty of hanging space, it had no shelves or drawers to put cloths in and so you have to live out of your suitcase to some extent. I was not impressed with having a room in the basement (no view to speak of). When I go again I will probably stay in Alpen Ridge and eat in The Vale. From my experience Alpen Ridge has more functionality in its rooms and has better access to the slopes (not walking up or down stairs with ski boots on).

In Niseko I love the length and variety of the runs, the option to ski at night, the variety and quality of the eating places on/near the runs and except for opening times in the morning, the lack of waiting in lift lines. It''s quite a different experience to ski IN snow rather than ON snow.

A must for all.

Absolutely loved Niseko!

We stayed in Yama Shizen Apartments. The rooms were beautiful and front desk staff really helpful. Only downside was our noisy/selfish neighbours who took up all the space in our entry way/drying room, but this couldn''t be helped.

As a first time skiier I wasn''t sure how I would enjoy it but Niseko was just beautiful. Loved every minute of it and would definitely recommend it! Will probably be going back again next year.

I could never ski the icy slopes of Australia after this experience.

The Vale - the place to stay, the place to be seen!

Just back from Niseko with a stay at The Vale. Why, I ask myself have I come home! Still on a high one week later! The snow was exceptional.

The Vale offered outstanding well thought out 5 star accommodation with every convenience covered from the hip bar/restaurant with heated outside sitting area, to the stylish indoor/outdoor onsen.

Our deluxe suite was the perfect size for two and offered every modern comfort you would expect to find at home.

Hirafu village has been heavily infiltrated by the overseas market, Australia in particular, and while this does detract from the "feel" of what you would expect from a Japanese resort, on the other hand it caters well for the non Japanese speaking visitor.

Plenty of eateries and bars. Remember however that Japan has not embraced ATM''s in the country so cash is king. There is just the one foreign ATM and it is only open selected hours. In conclusion I would recommend The Vale and the Niseko ski area for anyone; families, couples, groups of friends and so forth.

The Vale - Review

Design wise - attention to detail at The Vale is exceptional. Nisade really put all their extensive knowledge into creating apartments with great comfort, design flair, quality fit-out and efficienct use of space. We wanted for nothing here - they''ve really thought of it all and you feel wrapped in 5 star luxury without excess in design extravagence or unneeded services. Wagyu out of HKG manage the bar & restaurant - and do a superb job - great friendly staff, terrific ambience and excellent food when the legs can''t take you around the block to eat local. The onsen is fantastic and can be quite a social hub at the end of the day. The location is perfect and you step out of your skis just metres from the heated stairs to the thoughtfully designed boot/ski room. Only one note of caution - if you take accom overlooking the public carpark by the Ace family chair - the snowploughs noisily clear the carpark every morning from 5:00am. Nothing earplugs won''t fix. I would highly recommend The Vale.

Although this was a mates trip - next time I''ll bring the family - we saw kids as young as 4y.o. loving it and their parents very happy with the ski school. A general comment about Travelplan''s in-resort staff - they offer a great service that we used a lot, and differentiates Travelplan in the market. Although not promoted prior - we were even offered the mountain guiding services of Peter Ilinski for a day - complimentary. We discovered terrain that would have cost hundreds in backcountry guide costs if it weren''t for Peter. We were shown the real Niseko past the Gates, that had us reaching for even fatter skis as we whooped through the deepest powder of our lives, and wondered if there''s any point in heli-skiing when you can get fresh deep lines for such little effort (for the adventurous), while the family can be minutes away enjoying the groomers.

Oh - and I recommend a day trip to Rusutsu - strap on your race carvers - the smoothest, widest and least crowded groomers I''ve ever skied. Super G as much as you want - then drop off the side into the trees where no-one has touched the knee-deep powder. Not that I''d ever stay in Rusutsu - no comparison to Niseko/Hirafu in terms of restaurants and nightlife.

Enjoy!

Youtei Tracks - Niseko

Our stay in Niseko was made all that much better by the great facilities available at Youtei.

An added bonus was the proximity to the slopes, as well as nearby bars and restaurants which were all a stones throw away.

When I go back to Niseko I would definitely stay at Youtei Tracks again.

Ski Niseko

Youtei Tracks was a great place to stay.

We had a 1 bedroom apartment with a small kitchenette which suited us perfectly. The rooms are modern and clean. 

We loved the cafes, restaurants and bars in Niseko, there are some really exciting places to eat!

NISEKO IS THE BEST

Our second visit to Niseko, last tme was in a Lodge, but for the same price we stayed in Horizon Apartments this time which are fully self contained.

The apartment is brand new with EVERYTHING supplied, even washing powder. The cleaning service is great clean towels every 2 days. Location is excellent a short walk to all the nightlife, restaurants and many restaurants within a 5 minute walk from the accomodation.

The excellent bus service supplied by Niseko which takes you to the Gondola was a short walk from Horizon and comes every 10-15 minutes.

Travelplan picked us up and dropped us off from the bus coming from Sapporo.

Vale Niseko

Finally got a Ski at Niseko. Great Snow and the Vale Resort while probably the most expensive in Hirafu is luxury. We had a two bedroom with its own onsen which we used every night and sometimes twice per day.

Two double bedrooms ,one with ensuite . The other bedroom used the main bathroom which does not have a bath.

Unit had own drying cupboard and washing machune and dryer.

Ski and boot storage was in the basement. O

ur apartment looked over the beginners chair which we used to get to the main quad chair.

Great Snow - Brilliant ski in-out location

Snow at Niseko was perfect for both ski and board.

Sometimes terrain was limited due to low clouds/fog which caused bad visibility (most days). Some of the lifts could do with a makeover.

The was a variety of restaurants and we felt most were value for money.

The Vale had a really nice relaxing feel with a brilliant ski in-out location.

The food and service in the restaurant and bar was excellent and the Onsen is a great place to relax.  

Yama Shizen apartments

Fabulous accommodation, well designed, stylish and very comfortable apartments. Good range of kitchen utensils and quality appliances. Great facilities for storing skis and boots.

Beautiful views if you are on the slopeside. Yama Shizen is in a great location - however it is not ski in or ski out. No assistance or guidance was given on getting to the slopes to make this as easy and efficient as possible.

Yama Shizen is located approximately half way up the hill to the main ski area, a bus stop is close by however buses were always full. It is a long and exhausting walk up the hill to the lifts. Better to walk down the hill to the Family lift although still a long way around. We only discovered a shortcut through to this Family lift on the last day which made it a 5 minute walk and a short ski to the lift. Some information from Hokkaido Tracks would have been very welcome. 

There is also a very rough ski in track which we could see from our apartment, however again we were never given any information on how to get onto that track to come home.