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Personally i hate waiting in lines, anywhere. But most of my boarding experience i haven't had much in the way of cue's.

 

In Canada i would be surprised if i waited more then 5/10 minutes. In Australia this year i had to wait a little longer (and i wasn't happy). Next week I'm in Niseko for the first time and I'm hoping the cue's aren't all that big. What should i expect? on the weekends compared to weekdays?

 

SO, new thread.

What time's are you used to around the world?

What are your worst experiences?

What are your best experiences?

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What times are you used to around the world?

 

-JAPAN: no queues on weekdays (except on rare occassions or peak times on peak lifts (EG Opening of Gondola), and small queues on weekends (couple of minutes MAX) in Niseko in January.

The Gondola queue at Niseko DID get pretty long (maybe 15 minutes wait) on a long weekend when top lifts were closed due to wind, and people want to ride in the warmth of a gondola rather than on an open lift. Absolutely no queues anywhere in Niseko in Arpil.

 

-AUSTRALIA: medium to long queues at most times at Thredbo during June and August. Fast moving medium queues at Smiggins in August. I could count on one hand the times we encountered no queues in Australia - they were rare indeed.

 

-NZ: The boys tell me the queue's at Cadrona were similar to Aus, but not tested it myself.

 

Worst Experience:

A 45 minute wait to load onto a quad chair lift at Thredbo in Ausust on a weekend day - other lifts were on a wind hold, so it seemed like the entire snowsport population of Australia was queued at the one lift.

 

Best Experience:

Learning to board in Niseko with no queue's and hardly any people, so allowing for the terrified newbie to load instructor and beginner alone onto a quad chair and leave 2 emptys behind to ensure there was no panic if we fell at the other end. No pressure. I really felt for the first timers loaded 4 to a chair at Thredbo with another 4 in front and behind - the amount of multi person pile ups at the end of the chairlift was incredible. I was very thankful to have learnt in Japan.

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I have very rarely had to wait long for lines. I think the most was 10 minutes for a gondola at Happo. At least it's long. It's waiting long times for short slow lifts that would be unbearable.

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They were about 5 minutes this morning in Niseko. The hirafu gondala was shocking this morning. Have just returned from Hiragashima and you could count the number of people there on two hands almost. All in all it is still fantastic here in niseko clap.gif

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Don't manage too much pool while at the snow, so cues are not an issue.

 

OTOH, queues were a slight problem at opening tme at the gondola at Furano this January but not tto bad.

 

Aus, up to 10 minutes normal at PB for the highspeed quad at opening, up to 5 mins for some of the drag lifts there.

 

Best experiences, ski to the lift and straight on at almost every lift at Furano, Kamui and Niseko in January (except for Public holidays and weekends).

 

Worst experiences in Japow, having half the Army and a gazillion school kids on "year end trips" to contend with on the lower lifts at Furano. Not a problem on the higher lifts and on the Furano zone as they were mostly at Kitanomine.

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A weekend at Washigatake, Gifu had me waiting 5-10 mins on the quad (and that was the singles queue) and 10-15 on the pairs everywhere else.

 

Weekdays anywhere in Japan are usually awesome. Pity theres no chance for me to hit up a weekday ride \:\(

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Gifu - weekdays no lines

Weekends - sometimes a 5-10 min wait at the max. (can be shorter if you jump in the nigel no friends line)

 

Niseko - pre skippy days hardly any lines. Maybe a 5 min wait at the first gondola on a weekend if you were slow.

 

Experienced some pretty long waits at the hirafu gondola last week. Most of the top was shut and it was windy, so the gondola was running slow, but there was always a line down there most days, which we ended up avoiding by getting a little creative and helping us to get first lines our last 2 days!

 

Hirafu Gondola friday 15th Feb @ 8:15

(the line in front of us)

 

IMG_3239.jpg

 

and behind us! (probably about 20 Japanese in that whole line \:o )

 

IMG_3240.jpg

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Worst experience - lift queues in China... Especially with your own equipment. People here seem to have no respect for equipment, and refuse to queue in an orderly fashion. It's all about getting that extra cm in front of the person next to you, even if it means you're standing on three pairs of skis and a snowboard at the same time.

 

The upside is my pole-plants are deathly accurate now ;-)

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 Originally Posted By: Indo
Gifu - weekdays no lines
Weekends - sometimes a 5-10 min wait at the max. (can be shorter if you jump in the nigel no friends line)

Niseko - pre skippy days hardly any lines. Maybe a 5 min wait at the first gondola on a weekend if you were slow.

Experienced some pretty long waits at the hirafu gondola last week. Most of the top was shut and it was windy, so the gondola was running slow, but there was always a line down there most days, which we ended up avoiding by getting a little creative and helping us to get first lines our last 2 days!

Hirafu Gondola friday 15th Feb @ 8:15
(the line in front of us)

IMG_3239.jpg

and behind us! (probably about 20 Japanese in that whole line \:o )

IMG_3240.jpg


I have NEVER seen it that bad. NEVER. This year has gone nuts.
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i seriously HATE it that on busy days in Japan when lift lines are ridiculous THEY LET SINGLES GO UP. Like 3 in a row. I want to be riding, not stuck at the bottom for an extra 5 minutes because a few jackasses don't feel like sharing lifts. That is one of my pet peeves about riding in Japan. You would NEVER get away with that in North America. But then again, they have people at the major hills to get people matched up so the chair is running at full capacity.

 

As for my craziest lift experience, it would have to be onloading at the top of one of the Mt Baker lifts. They get a buttload of snow on good years, and the unloading stations are built up on scaffolding that makes it look like a ski-jumping station. Unloading was like trying to straight-line a blue course with youe back foot out of your binding, especially trying to get over the gouges where all the skiers turned .

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You are pretty scary Loon, I was terrified in your car!! ;\)

 

Shaydn, I heard that Chinese don't queue for anything, that its not their custom. Apparently there have been adverts from the government telling people that for the Olypics they must form an orderly queue.

Any truth to this rumour?

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It's certainly getting better in some places... I work at the China World Trade Centre, and when I got here 2.5 years ago, it was a free-for-all trying to get taxis outside. Now they make an orderly queue, and the guard shouts at people trying to get the taxis further down the road... Sometimes works sometimes doesn't :-)

 

And the queues in the subway have improved lots too... they used to be distinctly crowd shaped, and now they tend to be more slender...

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Heck - we were INVITED international guests at a fruit and veg conference in China and got shoved out of the way by the locals trying to wangle an entry so they can get some free stuff!! Took me 20 minutes before I realized that I had to PUSH to the front and scream for attention!

 

I also hated the way locals pushed a local woman with a baby in a stroller aside when trying to load onto the escalator on the subway - we had to help her get on by holding them back...rude!

 

GONDOLA QUEUE - FAR OUT! Indo...that is worse than we had it in January on the weekends - NO WAY! Snow looks choice though!

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That was Friday last week after most of the Mtn had been shut the day or 2 before. Didn't do the gondola again that day till the night session. And only took it again on the sat night session too as it was apparently pretty bad.

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Wow I never get any lift lines like that, max I ever seem to wait is one min or less, usually no lines. And I go to a lot of the main resorts, that would suck big time to have to wait so long to ride.

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I've had 10-20 minute waits in Whistler on busy weekends (American holidays), but the longest I've had to wait in Japan was 5-10 minutes at Isola in Rusutsu and the Hirafu Gondola in Niseko on a weekend.

 

Japan really needs "singles" lines. I've politely asked other singles to join up with me on a quad on busy days. Usually they don't mind and will join up rather than wait. You've got to take the initiative since resort management won't.

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