banno 0 Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 Whats the reason behind only being able to book domestic flights 28 days in advance??? I tried getting on those 900 yen flights with Skymark from Narita to Sapporo and they were gone within 10 seconds and every other discounted fare....unbelievable. What is it a government rule? Link to post Share on other sites
Thundercat 60 Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 Whats the reason behind only being able to book domestic flights 28 days in advance??? I tried getting on those 900 yen flights with Skymark from Narita to Sapporo and they were gone within 10 seconds and every other discounted fare....unbelievable. What is it a government rule? You can book flights two months in advance... and a 900¥ flights seems somewhat unlikely. Link to post Share on other sites
Slippery Jim 65 Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 Actually Y980, unlikely as it may seem. Skymark is either going to go bust bigtime or revolutionize domestic travel in Japan. Link to post Share on other sites
NoFakie 45 Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 That's a promotional fare and since we're talking about it, it must work! It seems like bookings for that fare open at 9:30am every day for flights two months in advance. The 980 yen fare must sell out in seconds. I guess all you'll get is a single, so presumably you have to enter the same battle for the return leg. Once you tack on accommodation and transfers, it mightn't be much cheaper than the cheapest packages, which are much less hassle. With an ANA or JAL credit card, its not hard to rack up enough miles for a return domestic flight just off your car expenses, electricity bill, food shopping, etc. etc... basically everything. Sometimes just 7500 miles which is 750,000 yen spent. Link to post Share on other sites
Slippery Jim 65 Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 Indeed, the package tours ANA/JAL offer to Hokkaido are absurdly cheap. Difficult to justify the bother of separate bookings for Skymark, bus, hotel -- even if you get flights for 12,000 yen return you're unlikely to save much. ANA's basic Sky Holiday tours to Niseko, for example, let you also buy a 5-day all-mountain lift pass for 14,500 (vs 26,000 regular price). JAL's basic Niseko packages give you two coupons that can be exchanged for one all-mountain pass. And the package prices are damn near giving you free airfare. The only downside is the need to book at least 10 days in advance (which is why the shoulder seasons of December & March are a little iffy if you after powder). Link to post Share on other sites
Tubby Beaver 209 Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 which books are they in DiGriz? Been looking at brochures and the prices are not absurdly cheap, are they in a special brochure? Link to post Share on other sites
sand 17 Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 As well as the special books, are there any packages for lone skiers/boarders? Link to post Share on other sites
Slippery Jim 65 Posted November 15, 2011 Share Posted November 15, 2011 Obviously the best prices aren't for solo travelers, but I have a 5-day package at the Kanro for 60,000 (for example) with the option to buy lift passes at almost half price, and that's not the cheapest deal I could've booked. It helps a lot to be avoiding weekends. For two or more, I'd recommend checking out ANA's TabiDoki Hokkaido Ski and JAL's Power Up Hokkaido Ski brochures, many terrific deals and you can book with a single phone call. Also keep in mind that there's a lot of Hokkaido skiing outside of Niseko; packages this season to Tomamu & Furano are priced very competitively (yeah, I know I've bad-mouthed Tomamu in the past, but thinking about giving it a second chance at these rates). If you can put together a group of more than two, you can get even better deals. Research, grasshoppers! (true for Honshu resorts also) edit: I'll bring a couple of relevant brochures with me to the Taproom on 19th Link to post Share on other sites
dyna8800 3 Posted November 15, 2011 Share Posted November 15, 2011 One more thing to add about the package tours offered by ANA, JAL, etc. They have different brochures with different prices...so be sure to check them all. Link to post Share on other sites
tripler 0 Posted November 15, 2011 Share Posted November 15, 2011 is it easy for someone to book them from overseas? Link to post Share on other sites
Slippery Jim 65 Posted November 16, 2011 Share Posted November 16, 2011 If you can speak Japanese and have a Skype account, should be a cinch. Proviso on the packages is that you must book at least 10 days in advance. As dyna8800 notes, there are a lot of differences in the various brochures; you really need to decide where & when you want to go, then cost out the trip with each brochure to get the best deal. All sorts of offers on lifts/meals/activities -- it just depends on what you want. Link to post Share on other sites
dyna8800 3 Posted November 16, 2011 Share Posted November 16, 2011 For JAL, tours can be booked online with "real time" availability. I have not checked ANA (yet). Of course the person needs to be able to read and understand Japanese... If they have a JTB tourist office in their country, probably could book through them. Is there something like a meetup going on for the 19th? Link to post Share on other sites
Slippery Jim 65 Posted November 16, 2011 Share Posted November 16, 2011 Naka Meguro Taproom on 19th, dyna. starting around 5pm yes, you can also book ANA Hokkaido packages online (in Japanese), though it takes a little getting used to the way it's organized. Link to post Share on other sites
Recommended Posts