Thundercat

Sorry, kind of a vague question. Was just wondering what the terrain is like. I've heard that the scenery is beautiful but the mountain is not very challenging. Is it true?

So the pictures look great... but how is the mountain?

Onsens issues with tattoos is really a case by case kind of thing here. I have tattoos and have been refused at some places and had to show my tattoos to prove they weren't gang related (as if a blue eyed gaijin would be yakuza). To be honest though, it's pretty rare that onsen in 'touristy' spots have a problem with tattoos. As I said, it's case by case, call ahead (or have someone call for you!) if you are planning on travelling any distance to have a bath and you should be fine. As for mixed baths in Hakuba, they are few and far between. A few years ago we found an outdoor private bath

The allowances and airport 'handling fees' are completely different for international and domestic flights in Japan. I've taken domestic flights with 3 surfboards (one of them a 9'6"!!) plus baggage and no one batted an eye. Of course, I didn't just show up at airport with all my gear but had called ahead to make sure that that specific flight would allow me to check all that luggage. I don't know the specifics of your situation but I highly doubt that you were ripped off. Make sure to call ahead next time and save yourself some frustration!

cool, just picked up a Burton '08 Fish at the beginning of this season for 25,000 Y... still some good deals out there!

do u want to buy this year's model? if yes, i'd say it's surely going to be cheaper in Aus. if no, then there are great deals on last year's models. this late in the season you'll need to know where to look though... i've bought a couple of boards from rakuten.com but you'll need to be able to read japanese... what kind of board are you looing for? if you're quite big or tall you it might be difficult to find the best board size for u!

i wonder how often he has to redo his edges?

There are a couple of options. Usually, the rail passes are only worth it if you are planning on hitting up a few different areas over the period of a few days or a week. The 'Shuyu Kippu' is a ticket for different zones including Hokkaido and offers 5 days unlimited travel, with a 10 day option(Hokkaido only) but the prices and zones vary so you'll need to ask at the station. The 'Seishun Jyu-Hachi Kippu' gives 5 non-consecutive days of travel on any local or rapid train for 11,500 yen(doesn't include Express or Bullet trains). The 'Hokkaido Rail Pass' gives 3 or 5 consecutive day passes

I don't think anything would happen... I also don't think they do anything to stop you considering the deposit return machines are beside the ticket sales window. The ladies working at the counter can easily see what is going on... Some people even try to sell their tickets for 2000Yen (making a little something for themselves! a cheeky bugger once asked me for 3000Y)

I know, I haven't done that or even been there, in ages. I don't know if people do it anymore but during my first season here it was the norm. Better off paying in the morning and getting first tracks!!

hmmmm... I'm going as often as possible. So far this year: Dec 20 - Jan 5th Niseko, Rusutsu Jan 10 - 12 Nozawa Jan 16 - 18 Myoko Jan 24 - 25 Hakuba Jan 31 - Feb 2 Kagura Feb 7 - 11 Myoko Well, I'm sure you get the idea... Basically last minute decisions each weekend depending on where the snow is. Usually one of the above mentioned each weekend

As an example. From the Goryu website: Single day: 4800 + 1000 deposit. 2 days: 8500 + 1000 deposit (consecutive days) 3 days: 12,500 + 1000 deposit (consecutive days, all mountain) 5 weekdays: 16,500 + 1000 deposit (non-consecutive weekdays) There are other deals out there that include multiple mountains and days. Just thought I'd let you know what you are in for! If you want to ride half day for free at Goryu just stand around the ticket machines around lunch time and when someone returns their full day ticket to get their deposit back just offer to pay them the 1000Y. You'

timcraig, was there 2 weeks ago and the off piste was fine then.. i suspect it'll only be better now!

awesome pics!! what did you think about the lift system there? personally, i found it quite annoying with too many flat bits inbetween...

BTW, forget duty free! Much cheaper here...

Restaurant prices in Niseko have gone up about 10-15% since the '08 season. Doesn't mean much to those of us earning yen but if you're coming from over seas you'll be feeling the pinch. As for the King Bell Hut recommendation for lunch, that place has gotten more expensive and the quality has gone down. There aren't many places with tasty affordable treats at Grand Hirafu this year (compared with last year anyway). I also found the Hanazono Resto to be really over-priced... if you are thinking about budget lunches I'd say take a couple of onigiri (rice balls) with ya otherwise you're payi

Originally Posted By: grazza Also you have to convince the Akakan lifties that is is a legit ticket, which took more than a few minutes the first time we did it. Seeing as Akakura Onsen is pretty uninspiring, I wouldn't bother. Stick to Akakan. In my experience, having to convince the lifties that it's a legit ticket leads me to believe that it's not a legit ticket. Japanese tend to be very accommodating and probably just let you get away with it... especially if you were trying to convince them in English. Anyway, stick to Akakan unless you want to ride park! Heard it's been pre

I was surprised this year that there is a conflict between the two places. I've been going there for years and passing between the 2 resorts without ever having a problem while having only bought a ticket for Akakura Onsen. Was there last weekend and noticed that there are even signs this year indicting when you are passing from one resort to another. I'm not sure about this, maybe Myoko Guy can help, but I think the 'Big 4' pass is a seasons ticket and the day pass is called 'Mt. Myoko Ticket'. Furthermore, I was informed that the 'Mt. Myoko Ticket' didn't include Akakura Onsen... s

The problem is that when you buy multi-day passes you don't usually get much of a discount (usually something like a few hundred yen). Also, a lot of the 'discount' tickets are actually for getting a reduction in the price of lunch (vouchers to use in the restaurants) and not a reduced lift ticket price. Which resorts are you going to? How many days boarding/skiing? Do you need only full day passes or will half days do?

Originally Posted By: muikabochi Sadly, I'm not the most "rad" of people so you'll have to ask someone blessed with being so. Yeah, me neither. Hoping for some pointers!! Looking forward to the pics and such!

Nozawa, eh? I'll have to go there on a weekday I suppose as I've always felt it was too crowded for my likes... maybe it has something to do with the lift set up there. I always find that if you aren't boarding in Yamabiko you're spending too much time skating or even walking between lifts. It's getting popular with the aussy crowd, isn't it?! Is Nozawa your pick then for rad resorts? What do you think about the terrain there?

Happy hump day! Was wondering about opinions about your fav rad spots to board in Nagano and Niigata area. Don't worry, not looking to steal any secrets (but feel free to let me in on a few, if you're so inclinded ) I've been boarding in both areas for the last 5 years and have gone to almost all of the major resorts and of all the places I've been I find that Myoko is one of the best areas for my style of riding. I'm not really into riding piste or park and spend most of my time dodging trees. Myoko seems to have the most relax off-piste policies and fewest crowds. Granted the terra

check out airdo certainly the cheapest way to get to new chitose airport (sapporo) from haneda (tokyo). as low as 9800 Yen one way. the website is only in japanese but you can get their phone number and call them directly (ask them about the Value 28 tickets). good luck and have fun!

Left Niigata just before the rain on Sunday so can't really comment on that, however, it had really warmed up by about 2pm yesterday making the snow super heavy!! I can imagine that had any rain fallen on snow in that condition it would have done a lot of damage... might take a few good dumps to get back to normal!

lol, i have a silly video taken 2 weeks ago... if i wasnt at work id post it. if i can remember on monday ill do something about it! (won't have time this weekend as im heading to myoko!)