[Run your own resort!]

I'm coming into this a little late but I honestly dont think that most resports are into the customer satisfaction thing. There still pissed off that the golden days have ended and that they cant count on every schmoe from town to pick up a pair of skis and head to the mountains for days on end. Under those kind of sellers market conditions, no wonder what people actaully want is secondary. Case in point, have you guys ever been to naeba mid week? Its been snowing like a banshee for 3 days straight, you take a day off work to enjoy some primo pow get to resort only to find out that they decided that the top part of the mountain should be closed because of windy conditions. So then you have THOUSANDS of people lined up at the crappy lifts at the bottom(you know where you have about 10 lifts in a line all going to the same height on the first mountain), while if they had the whole mountain, you wouldnt have any lines. SO you call the management and innocently ask whether by now(after x number of years of operation) they hadnt figured out how to keep the lifts open in windy conditions. The least they could do is give you a reduced ticket, no the least they could is install a @#$%ing t bar. PLenty of agony but at least you get to the good stuff.

What really bothers me is that most resorts in Japan are really proud of themselves for having these ssiter resort relations with European resorts and havent learned anything from these realtionships on resort of customer management.

Niseko and some of the smaller resorts like Hachi are some of the few resorts that seem to be onthe right track...

 

Thoughts?

[Run your own resort!]

I'm coming into this a little late but I honestly dont think that most resports are into the customer satisfaction thing. There still pissed off that the golden days have ended and that they cant count on every schmoe from town to pick up a pair of skis and head to the mountains for days on end. Under those kind of sellers market conditions, no wonder what people actaully want is secondary. Case in point, have you guys ever been to naeba mid week? Its been snowing like a banshee for 3 days straight, you take a day off work to enjoy some primo pow get to resort only to find out that they decided that the top part of the mountain should be closed because of windy conditions. So then you have THOUSANDS of people lined up at the crappy lifts at the bottom(you know where you have about 10 lifts in a line all going to the same height on the first mountain), while if they had the whole mountain, you wouldnt have any lines. SO you call the management and innocently ask whether by now(after x number of years of operation) they hadnt figured out how to keep the lifts open in windy conditions. The least they could do is give you a reduced ticket, no the least they could is install a @#$%ing t bar. PLenty of agony but at least you get to the good stuff.

What really bothers me is that most resorts in Japan are really proud of themselves for having these ssiter resort relations with European resorts and havent learned anything from these realtionships on resort of customer management.

Niseko and some of the smaller resorts like Hachi are some of the few resorts that seem to be onthe right track...

 

Thoughts?

[Snow Kiting In Niseko]

From the pictures I've seen its just like kitesurfing, but on snow... I.e. you need large flats if youre into speeding, but theoretically only a smaller area if you wanna do tricks and stuff. You use a traction kite usually between 7-12 sqm meters in surface area, a control bar and harness(like any windsurfing harness). This stuff is excellent on water and looks like a lot of fun on snow so....

[Snow Kiting In Niseko]

Could you decode that please?

[Snow Kiting In Niseko]

So its getting a little colder these days. Want to take my kites up to Niseko. Anyone have any experience where you can do some Snow kiting up there?