[Price of renting gear in Hakuba]

Farmer_Fred, when I said "the local store" I meant the store here in the Netherlands..

I'm not in Japan yet, just 3 more weeks...

 

Anyway, I'm planning on riding for 4 to 5 days so that will set me back at least 16000... that's over 100 Euro.. ouch.

Maybe I'll start shopping for some decent clothing here (at home)

[The Bus - what is it...where is it....is it any good?]

These are the accomodation options in Hakuba:

 

www.snowjapan.com/e/hakuba-guide/hakuba-places-to-stay.html

 

It really depends on what you're looking for and willing to spend.

[Price of renting gear in Hakuba]

I won't be doing a lot of jibbing (maybe try it once or twice...) and a non-waxed board won't get me down the hill in one piece..

 

I've checked out the local ski/snowboard store and they have a lot of good boards for a decent price.

 

But now for the clothing... how much is it to rent a jacket and pants? 'coz they're farking expensive to buy..

[The Bus - what is it...where is it....is it any good?]

Yup, the Super Azusa is an express train, not a shinkansen. You'll want to take the Asama Shinkansen

to Nagano.

 

Just check www.jorudan.co.jp/english/norikae/ for all the time tables and prices.

[Price of renting gear in Hakuba]

I've searched the forums using multiple variables, but I can't find any topics regarding the price of renting snowboard gear in Hakuba.

 

What will it cost to rent a snowboard (+ bindings & boots)?

 

I've heard stories about the somewhat bad quality of rental boards and since I'll probably be snowboarding more often, maybe it's smarter to buy a good quality, cheaper (read: beginner) board.

(I live in the Netherlands, so the boards are a lot cheaper than in Japan, I reckon)

 

And since I'll also need a jacket and pants, how much will I pay to rent those?

 

Thanks!

[The Bus - what is it...where is it....is it any good?]

I've taken a busride from Tokyo to Fuji and from Fuji to Matsumoto once... you're better of traveling by shinkansen.

And you get to travel at 300+ km/h over land, which is also pretty cool

 

Trains are the way to go in Japan, not busses

[Snowboarding n00b, where to go?]

Thanks for the advice everyone

I think we'll go for Hakuba and then visit a couple of resorts. Should be great fun \o/

[Moonboots?]

I wouldn't spend too much money if it's only for 6 days. If it keeps your feet dry and warm, you're fine. Also, make sure they have decent traction so you won't slip and tumble down any stairs

 

I just wear my dutch army boots, they work great:

http://www.de-generaal.com/magazijn/foto/legerkisten/legerkisten_2.jpg

[Snowboarding n00b, where to go?]

Hey people, I've been lurking around for quite a bit now, finally decided to register a few days ago

 

Anyway, I'm a bit of a snowboarding n00b since I've only been snowboarding once and that was for just one day... at an indoor centre.

I have been inline skating and ice skating for a long time so it didn't go bad at all (went down the "Experienced people only" section after about 30 minutes and had a blast

On top of that, I'm going with a friend of mine who has never snowboarded at all.

 

Since I've never been on a *real* mountain before I was wondering where would be a good place to lose my mountain-boarding-virginity?

 

My friend lives in Chiba so we're going to the Nagano region since that's pretty close by.

After spending some time browsing the SnowJapan website I've come to the conclusion that Hakuba would be an excellent choice. But now for the resort choice... which resort would be best for n00bs like us?

The Hakuba 47 & Hakuba Goryu combination looks pretty sweet to me, but what do you guys and girls say?

[Smorker ranking]

Yup, there's even one at the entrance of the 109 building in Shibuya: