What do I look for?
BEFORE GOING CONSIDERATIONS:
- easy to get there;
- not too expensive;
- not too much of a journey
WHEN THERE:
- big and wide;
- good snow;
- high elevation;
- steep slopes;
- the usual things
IT'S IN JAPAN:
- the feeling of being in Japan (eg Nozawa);
- not being mini-Australia
I much prefer Nozawa, Hakuba valley, Shiga Kogen to Niseko. I've been to all of them a few times.
It's my opinion, so there you go. I am not saying it's trash, it is a good place - I just don't think it quite deserves the level of adulation it seems