Is (the "N" word) popular with Japanese?

[Yuki's Passion 1]

Sanjo, is that cuz all the earthquakes scared them away? Ive never skiied in Niigata so dunno... but would guess like in a diff. thread thats what happened.

 

Niseko rocks. Ive been there infinite times, lived there, and lost my powder cherry there There is some steep stuff there but no comparison with mainland. Trees there are much more wide open too.

 

Ive enjoyed this season tremendously - except for my creek ordeal But, I wouldnt have improved as much as I have had I only been to Niseko over the holidays. As Ive stated before, I still think it has the best pow Ive been in; hoping that will change though.

 

Hope to have the chance to go to someplace like Alta or JH whenever I go back to the states. Never skied anywhere but Japan.

[sanjo 2]

I should have been more clear. No, not to do with the earthquakes. For "here" read Nagano, Gunma, Fukushima, Yamagata as well as Niigata.

 

I think lots of the "image of Niseko not being crowded like parts of Honshu" is based on 10 year old data, and happily promoted by people selling Niseko. It is for the most part hopelessly out of date though, and I wouldn't be surprised if Niseko wasn't busier than many of the places here and increasingly so with every year.

[mattlucas 0]

-The only place I have had to worry about getting first tracks is at Niseko

 

-And other than the feburary long weekend in Hakuba the only place I've had to wait in line for a chairlift was Niseko. But that was over the Christmas holidays.

 

-And I found Niseko to have pretty good nightlife and tons of girls for a ski town.

[powwwers 0]

tha place certainly isn`t what it used to be! it appears to have lost its `appeal` of being a foreign place to slide.

i`ve been going there since jan. `99 and the change is... remarkable. i no longer hold it in as high esteem as i used to. dont get me wrong, tha snow is still epic and there is tons of it, and i`ve never had an issue with tha terrain, but its all the other b.s. i.e. aussies.(not all mind you, but most)

for tha first time this year, i got to witness what it means to be a `YOBBO`, in full flight, not impressive i really feel for tha `locals`. they more or less have had no choice/say in developments up there. they`ve more or less been forced into numerous things and in tha name of what??? DEVELOPMENT.

how tha joint ends up remains to be seen. but i can`t see how putting in an additional whatever thousand bed hotel can be a good thing.

 

niseko r.i.p.

[Fattwins 0]

You can cart all the auzzies in that you want but if the japanese wont go then the place will die in the end.

 

I hope it goes over well. when you think of resorts they should be multi-national so bring over tons of people. but Japanese do have complex manners that dont fit the "im on vacation" and just wanna have fun mentality.

 

As for how they sell the resort open trees and deep powder will pack em in. if hakuba ever opened their trees then more peeps will come for sure. But the trees arent open so of course peopled dont want to get their passes pulled.

 

Alos dropping off of places like 47 or happo need skill and respect. also knowing where and how to cross the rivers can save you tons of time on the way out.

[SerreChe 2]

What is a YOBBO???

[SerreChe 2]

By the way, no need to come to Japan, there is no snow here...

 

http://www.snowjapan.com/e/daily/webcam/central/marunuma.html

 

[unit 0]

Yeah, This year was my fourth year up there for the winter holidays. Was not impressed with the yobbo factor at all.

[Fattwins 0]

wnever heard of that before and the wife doesnt understand so explain that word

[sakebomb 0]

 Quote:

Was not impressed with the yobbo factor at all.

I can understand that.

 Quote:

.......so explain that word

Yobbo is english slang which is the same as hooligan and or rowdy. Used in Australia (New Zealand ? ). It's what makes me embarrassed to be Aussie, bunches of drunken d*ckheads . Can't think of anything better to add to a Japanese snow holiday. Not all of us are 'yobbos' " title="" src="graemlins/cry.gif" />

[scouser 4]

So what are the Aussies up to then up there? Any stories of particular cases of yobbiness or just generally?

[Ski Beaver 0]

Didn't see any sign of yobboish behaviour at all.

 

Did see some snobs , but that's a different story.

 

The Asahi Shimbun SAPPORO-It started with a smattering of ``G'days'' and a trickle of discarded Vegemite jars in the early 1990s

Then came the occasional English-language billboard

Soon the number of Australian faces in and around Hokkaido's Niseko ski resort had snowballed from several to scores to thousands

Now, tourists and investors from Down Under are gradually making some of Japan's most popular ski hills their own

Hard on the heels of skiers, Australian businesses and private investors are financing construction of condominiums, resorts and commercial complexes that promise to transform Niseko in the coming years

With 1,308-meter-high Niseko Annupuri mountain at its center, the ski resort encompasses the towns of Kutchan, Niseko and Rankoshi. Two-and-a-half hours drive west of Sapporo, the area attracts about 700,000 skiers and snowboarders in winter

Word of mouth and media reports about the great snow gradually attracted more winter revelers from Australia

In the last two years, the influx of Antipodean powder-lovers spiked sharply. The number of such tourists who stayed in Kutchan, where three of the seven ski slopes in the Niseko area are located, reached 2,924 in fiscal 2003, up from 214 in fiscal 2001

The figure is expected to grow to 5,000-6,000 in the current fiscal year, according to Hajime Sekiguchi, director of the commerce, industry and tourism section of the Kutchan municipal government

Australian Airlines started direct flights between Cairns and New Chitose Airport near Sapporo in November. The seasonal operation of the two round-trip flights a week will continue until March 26

In November, Harmony Resorts Niseko Pty. Ltd., a resort development company based in Melbourne, purchased the Hanazono ski field from Tokyu Land Corp., a major real estate company, in partnership with a Tokyu Land subsidiary. The field is part of the Niseko Hirafu Ski Resort, the largest skiing facility in Kutchan

Nihon Harmony Resorts KK, a joint venture 99.55 percent owned by the Australian firm, plans to spend 24 billion yen to build a resort complex, comprising a hotel, apartments and commercial facilities, in the ski field. Construction will start in 2006 for completion in 10 years

Colin Hackworth, president of the joint venture, said the complex will accommodate 8,000 to 10,000 guests

Hokkaido Tracks, a developer of Western-style apartments for holiday rental and investment, has built 12 condominium units in two buildings in Kutchan since it was set up in August

Company President Simon Robinson said all the units in its third condominium building due to start construction in March are sold out

For Australians, Niseko has the advantage of being closer and cheaper than European ski resorts

A two-week package tour to the area from Australia is typically priced at about A$3,000 (about 240,000 yen), roughly half that to North American and European destinations

Australians are in a spending mood thanks to a strong economy and the rise in the Australian dollar against the yen, which has made it cheaper for Australians to holiday in Japan. The currency rose to about 80 yen at the end of 2004 from about 64 yen four years ago

[mattlucas 0]

So did you have a good time up there SB?

 

Coming back again next year?

[sakebomb 0]

Toque, actually avoiding there this year due to some feed back from friends who went up there earlier this season, been going local mostly, probably head to the other resorts further up north if I get a chance.

[Ski Beaver 0]

I had a great time - as the photos show! the snow was so deep, so consistent and a great town too with awesome people and food.

 

As to whether i will be back next year, I doubt it. I have other places to go first starting with Jackson Hole / Utah trip in Feb 06, then an assault on Europes finest, then maybe settle back into Japan.

 

It's not that I wouldn't be satisfied going back there year after year, it's just that there are other places on this planet that I would like to ski.

[mattlucas 0]

Haha

Well look at that. 2 people with initials SB

 

Ski Beaver - Sure there is lots of powder but did you find the terrain challenged you?

 

Sakebomb - Bad feedback?

[sunrise 0]

8000-10000 guests The slopes are going to get so crowded up there it isn't funny. The Japanese will definitely be feeling invaded. I hope they implement some anti-yobbo rules fast.

[sakebomb 0]

OOOpps, sorry Toque!

[Ski Beaver 0]

 Quote:

Originally posted by Toque:

Ski Beaver - Sure there is lots of powder but did you find the terrain challenged you?

At no time was I challenged by the terrain, however i was continually amazed at how much snow fell from the sky, first 9 days it stopped snowing for only a couple of hours on one afternoon - the rest was just dumping.

I got my powder fix, should last me a while, I am still dreaming of the steeps I had at Kicking Horse, Fernie, Whislter, Banff resorts, the stuff that makes your mind sharpen up and concentrate, and gives you that rush after skiing down. Hence the Jackson Hole, Snowbird/Alta trip, then Europe(again) - but this time with stronger skiers.

A powder rush is just as exciting, just not as scary.

[mattlucas 0]

I know what you mean about the steeps. Powder is great but it has to challenge as well.

 

I get that feeling pretty good at the Nagano hills. Didn't get it so much in Niseko.

[Fattwins 0]

Toque amen and see you this weekend for so ginnie piggin if it snows.

[keba 0]

I am an Aussie, and am in Niseko now, but I won't be back. The terrain is OK, but I didn't come all this way, to a foreign country and culture, to be surrounded by a swarm of other Aussies, and have the waiters/bus drivers/etc speak better English than me. There is no ambience here. It is an Australian resort, and there will be further development in that direction, which is a great shame.

[keba 0]

BTW, was in Honshu a couple of weeks ago, and had a much more satisfying experience (I won't say where, because I DO plan to go back there...

[rachael 0]

I will never go there, it just does not appeal./

[2pints-mate 0]

I'm sure I almost never read anything negative about Niseko until this season. There does seem to be a growing not-mad-about-what-it's-becoming faction.