nagoid 4 Posted January 19, 2011 Share Posted January 19, 2011 My first time this weekend. Wondering how lift lines have been for people who have been out so far. -Resort name -weekend-weekday -any waiting times if any Domo! Link to post Share on other sites
muikabochi 208 Posted January 19, 2011 Share Posted January 19, 2011 -Gala Yuzawa -Weekday -No wait at all Link to post Share on other sites
smostyn 1 Posted January 19, 2011 Share Posted January 19, 2011 Hakuba 47, Goyru and Iwatake Weekdays No wait. Link to post Share on other sites
ILoveZao 8 Posted January 19, 2011 Share Posted January 19, 2011 -Zao Onsen -Weekday -No wait -Zao Onsen -Holiday -5-10 mins but can be worse, especially ropeway/gondola Link to post Share on other sites
iiyamadude 6 Posted January 19, 2011 Share Posted January 19, 2011 -Nozawa Onsen -Weekday, blizzard conditions -No wait, in fact I had to wake the liftie up! Link to post Share on other sites
rider69 18 Posted January 19, 2011 Share Posted January 19, 2011 Weekdays no waiting of course. Weekends depends on the lift really. Tsugaike gondola 5 to 15mins wait any other lifts are mostly walk on. Happo the same thing. Link to post Share on other sites
fukdane 2 Posted January 19, 2011 Share Posted January 19, 2011 Inawashiro Weeday No people. Not sure if there were even any lift dudes. Link to post Share on other sites
Thundercat 60 Posted January 19, 2011 Share Posted January 19, 2011 Hakuba 47/ Goryu Weekdays and weekends No lift lines (no comment about the morning gondola at Goryu though as that used to be so bad I now avoid it at all cost... maybe things are different now though?) Link to post Share on other sites
panhead_pete 27 Posted January 19, 2011 Share Posted January 19, 2011 Originally Posted By: Black Mountain Hakuba 47/ Goryu Weekdays and weekends No lift lines (no comment about the morning gondola at Goryu though as that used to be so bad I now avoid it at all cost... maybe things are different now though?) Add Iwatakie to that list based on my recent experience. 9 of us waiting for Gondy on a mad pow day at 47. No one else when it opened. Link to post Share on other sites
nippontiger 8 Posted January 19, 2011 Share Posted January 19, 2011 Kagura weekend near xmas: 2 minute wait once or twice on the main quad and gondola, otherwise nothing. Happo 3 days, just before new year, 10 minute wait for gondola, and at the pair lift at the bottom, 4-5 minutes on skyline lift in the mornings, but otherwise nothing. Kagura Holiday monday one week after NY hols, no waiting on any lift. Urabandai Nekoma last sunday, no waiting on any lift. No other people on upper slopes later in afternoon. Link to post Share on other sites
Tubby Beaver 209 Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 GALA Yuzawa Weekday No wait Link to post Share on other sites
HelperElfMissy 42 Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 Cortina: couple of minutes wait on main central (cant recall the name right now) quad (alongside the main green run) on a weekday pow day - all other lifts NO wait time whatsoever. But the waits were only in the morning, rest of the day no wait at all anywhere. Iwatake: Weekday and weekend. Worst was maybe 4 Gondola's wait. Rest of the mountain zero wait time. Goryu: ?Sunday - Gondola had a 5 minute queue. Few minutes wait for most of the lifts at Iimori that same day, but poor visibility meant few people at the top, LOTS at the bottom. 47: Weekday - no wait for anything. Happo: Weekday - no wait for anything. Now in Niseko... what a difference! Loads more people on the mountain. I have not waited more than 2 minutes for a lift all day, but I took a pic of a big queue at the Ace Family Pair this afternoon. A school group (and I think the whole of the Hokkaido school system was up here today) was in the queue and despite it being a pairs lift and they were skiing they loaded them singly!!! I kid you NOT! I believe they were letting the other mountain users through 1 for 1, but I still reckon if we were not ready to call it for the afternoon it would have been quicker to walk up to the Ace Quad than join that queue! Link to post Share on other sites
SKI 15 Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 Interesting to have the Hakuba vs Niseko perpective in there. Compare the resorts to what they were like 20 years ago. Pretty shocking when you think about it, 30+ minute waits for pair lifts were a norm on a weekend. Link to post Share on other sites
HelperElfMissy 42 Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 Originally Posted By: SKI Interesting to have the Hakuba vs Niseko perpective in there. Compare the resorts to what they were like 20 years ago. Pretty shocking when you think about it, 30+ minute waits for pair lifts were a norm on a weekend. lol ... bit like Aus!! hee hee Really, despite the school kids acting like slalom gates at the bottom of the mountain, and the hilariously long queue of them, it was really not that busy on the mountain. Busier than Hakuba, yes - but compared to Australia it was quiet as! Link to post Share on other sites
Jynxx 4 Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 Still long enough to put me off. If I were there and saw one person per pair lift Link to post Share on other sites
HelperElfMissy 42 Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 was quite bizarre Jynxx, they were first timers, but they were on skis - not like it was snowboards and more difficult to work out... and the get off on that lift is markedly easier than it has been in previous years - a lot flatter. Link to post Share on other sites
RedLotus 0 Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 Been in Furano for a week, and the only time I've had to wait at a lift line was because of the school groups. Usually only a minute or two, and only on the bottom quad, which is easily avoided. They also don't load them properly here, often one or two people per quad seat! Link to post Share on other sites
Go Native 70 Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 Well at least in Niseko we don't have to worry about lift companies going bust anytime soon! Link to post Share on other sites
SKI 15 Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 That's a definitely plus! Link to post Share on other sites
Wizz 11 Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 I remember waiting close to an hour for the quad at Kagura. Link to post Share on other sites
best skier in hakuba 5 Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 This is what I have learnt.... Hakuba and Niseko. We are different! But let's friend. Link to post Share on other sites
OCTOPUS 0 Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 The idea of waiting an hour for a lift!! Link to post Share on other sites
HelperElfMissy 42 Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 Had the schools on the lift today as well. They were letting others through, we didn't gave more than a 2 minute wait despite the queue, and I am pleased to report the kids were able to load in pairs today! Progression! Again, no more that 2 minutes wait anywhere today. And bluebird. Link to post Share on other sites
Metabo Oyaji 71 Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 The only significant lift lines I have seen this season were in the "pre-season," a Saturday in October at Yeti and the first Sunday in December at Gran Deco. In previous years the big lines I remember were in November at Marunuma, and Golden Week at Kagura. Basically, the early and late season times when there aren't too many other options available. Which, yes, does make me worry about the survivability of a large number of places, especially those which are not open early- or late-season. Link to post Share on other sites
best skier in hakuba 5 Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 Hardly anything on weekdays, a bit of bustle on weekends but certainly nothing like I hear things used to be. Link to post Share on other sites
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