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Some people are just built that way. They find a place that delivers on all fronts for them and they are happy to go back year after year. Its the same with people at home and their summer holidays, I know loads of people who go back to the same Spanish or Greek resort every year for their 2 weeks of fun in the sun. Its not really my idea of fun, as much as I love a place and perhaps return to it more often than other places, I do enjoy getting out and experiencing new places. Each to their own though, there isn't anything wrong with either brainset if that's what makes you happy.

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Let me sum up this thread....  

Niseko put Japan on the map as a viable ski destination for Westerners. Many people try to be cool by staying on the fringes and avoiding anything mainstream. Niseko is now mainstream so people will b

And here ends this thread.

last season I did a 30 day stint in a row based in Niseko (late Dec - Late Jan), and got fresh tracks on 24 of those 30 days. The previous season I had 18 out of a 24 day stay in Niseko.

I have been to a number of of other places (living here in Japan makes that a little easier to do) and haven't experienced those kind of statistics. Let me know another place, and I will be excited to try it.

Otherwise, I am more than happy to keep going back.

 

Where else have you done 30 days in a row to make a valid comparison of your statistics?

 

Anyway, if it ticks the boxes for you that's great. What matters most is that you enjoy where you are.

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You can call me sheep, goat, camel, Moscow mule, donkey dong or anything you like. I will keep returning to Niseko because I want to and am able to.

 

The place remains to be magical for people for different reasons. I’ve had some magical times there and they will be with me forever. For that reason, Niseko will always be my home resort.

 

One Christmas Eve, coming down the King slope and the lights had just come on. It was snowing large flakes with no wind. The lights caught the flakes and made them into gold and silver drops as they silently fell into ankle deep waves. There was no sound. The snow had swallowed it all. That was walking in winter wonderland.

 

One January, Shin Chitose was snowstormed, our flight attempted to land 3 times before diverting to Tokyo. Shin Chitose had to shut down for hours before we could attempt again. When we eventually landed that evening, 6 hours late, the whole airport had waited for us. The coaches, trains, all other transport just shifted their timetable 6 hours back and they stayed on.

 

Arriving at Niseko it was 1:30am. The wind had formed snow walls imprisoning cars. The snow whipped up to form a solid impenetrable white sheet over us. Dragging our cases it took us an eternity to walk 100 meters from the coach station to our hotel.

 

The door had been left slightly open and a sign said “welcome”. The lobby was dark with only signage lighting up the reception area. Walking towards reception, we feared that we would be spending the night on the sofas.

 

Then a figure rose from behind the reception counter. It was the old silver haired Takeshi-San in his pyjamas. He had been sleeping on a camp bed behind the counter waiting for us. He did the formalities quickly and suggested that we go down to the onsen to soak away the cruel day. And we obliged. What a great suggestion.

 

When we returned the following year, we learnt that Takeshi-San had passed.

 

I could go on and on, but since I’m paid by the word, I desist from sending SJ into the red.

 

These things of course could happen anywhere. They happened to me in Niseko, and that’s what has given me this connection and I shall return often until I am not able to do so.

 

Baaaaaaaah.

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Dang, thursday, you got me all choked up there.

 

I guess we all have our places that feel like home, for whatever reason, that others will not share the same feeling for because they have their own personal reasons for feeling connected to wherever it is that they do.

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last season I did a 30 day stint in a row based in Niseko (late Dec - Late Jan), and got fresh tracks on 24 of those 30 days. The previous season I had 18 out of a 24 day stay in Niseko.

I have been to a number of of other places (living here in Japan makes that a little easier to do) and haven't experienced those kind of statistics. Let me know another place, and I will be excited to try it.

Otherwise, I am more than happy to keep going back.

 

Where else have you done 30 days in a row to make a valid comparison of your statistics?

 

Anyway, if it ticks the boxes for you that's great. What matters most is that you enjoy where you are.

Unfortunately outside of living in a ski town over 15 years ago, I haven't done 30 days in a row anywhere. I would dearly love to try another place for that length of stay, if they usually get similar amounts of fresh pow.

I considered Myoko this year, but as I have friends visiting from overseas, I would prefer to be able to show them around places I know. Where would be another good place to head to in the future that gets similar levels of consistant snowfall?

 

 

As for being a "Sheep" or "hardcore" , some people are obviously not content with their own choices, and have a need to worry about what others enjoy doing.

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:lol:

 

Get off your stage, man., and untwist you knickers,

It's a forums discussion board where people can, like, discuss things if they want and have opinions.

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Unfortunately outside of living in a ski town over 15 years ago, I haven't done 30 days in a row anywhere. I would dearly love to try another place for that length of stay, if they usually get similar amounts of fresh pow.

I considered Myoko this year, but as I have friends visiting from overseas, I would prefer to be able to show them around places I know. Where would be another good place to head to in the future that gets similar levels of consistant snowfall?

 

 

As for being a "Sheep" or "hardcore" , some people are obviously not content with their own choices, and have a need to worry about what others enjoy doing.

 

This is exactly what I'm taking about. If you have personal reasons for going somewhere like having friends or liking the comfort of what you know then more power to you. Jumping into the marketing hype by saying you go there because of 'the driest most consistent deepest most excellent blowjob snow in Japan' when you have no real basis for comparison is just strange to me. That's why I think people are missing out if they only ever go there and nowhere else.

 

As for another place with similar snow fall I'd go with Myoko (I know I sound like a broken record).

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Lots of people are definitely missing out.

I suppose more people are starting to branch out a bit after doing The N and The H.

 

I'd go to a different place on every day I went skiing if I could.

I shouldn't complain with so many good places within easy day trip distance from where I am. :friend:

As much as I love some places, the idea of going there and only there and for a long time is really strange to me.

Variety is tons of fun.

I might even make it back to Kagura this season, haven't been there for a while.

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Unfortunately outside of living in a ski town over 15 years ago, I haven't done 30 days in a row anywhere. I would dearly love to try another place for that length of stay, if they usually get similar amounts of fresh pow.

I considered Myoko this year, but as I have friends visiting from overseas, I would prefer to be able to show them around places I know. Where would be another good place to head to in the future that gets similar levels of consistant snowfall?

 

 

As for being a "Sheep" or "hardcore" , some people are obviously not content with their own choices, and have a need to worry about what others enjoy doing.

 

This is exactly what I'm taking about. If you have personal reasons for going somewhere like having friends or liking the comfort of what you know then more power to you. Jumping into the marketing hype by saying you go there because of 'the driest most consistent deepest most excellent blowjob snow in Japan' when you have no real basis for comparison is just strange to me. That's why I think people are missing out if they only ever go there and nowhere else.

 

As for another place with similar snow fall I'd go with Myoko (I know I sound like a broken record).

 

I've been very fortunate to spend 30+ days in quite a few of the 'snowy' resorts / areas around the world - Utah, Montana, BC, Colorado - and this little part of Hokkaido has the most consistent deep & light powder I've had the pleasure of skiing.

 

That being said I ski in Kiroro more than I do Niseko United now, and if I could only ski one place for the rest of my life then Kiroro would be it. It used to be Kicking Horse, BC, Canada.

 

I'll get round to skiing on Honshu for the first time soon, maybe even this winter, and I'm sure I'll find similar areas to Niseko United and Kiroro. But for now Hokkaido ticks all the boxes for me.

 

Wales ticks the steep skiing box ;)

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Lots of it is all like 'I've got a bigger cucumber than you have' isn't it?

Personally I don't really care where anyone else loves or likes, after all it doesn't affect me.

I like what I like, surely that's the whole point.

 

For me, that's variety as well.

I'm not that interested in going back to the same places time and time again without exploring other places.

It just seems so... limiting. Which is a shame really when there are so many excellent places to check out.

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...and this little part of Hokkaido...

 

 

...isn't only Niseko, is it?

 

Skied Niseko United for the majority of my time for my first three seasons and my sentiments still apply.

 

Don't spend as much time there now because there are quieter hills which don't charge a ridiculous season pass price.

 

I pay by the day in Niseko United now and it's always worth the entrance fee.

 

With regards to "Why do all sheep go to Niseko?" that's been already answered on this thread.

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Agree with much that has already been said.

 

I'm not sure I entirely believe the that the OP wasn't trollin'. Even asking the question of 'why do all sheep go to Niseko' is quite inherently offensive. It implies that all people who go to Niseko are dumb and being shepherded into a lesser environment...and that is simply untrue.

 

I have been to Niseko, a number of times. It is the place I first saw snow and was cajoled into taking a snowboard lesson. It is the place where my addiction began, and the place where walking around the village (others complaining about the chilly walk and wishing for a car ride) that I exclaimed "I think I was born in the wrong environment, I feel ALIVE walking around town here". It was the place I first got amongst the trees and headed out gates and hiked for turns. All awesome memories.

 

But since beginning my love affair with snow in Niseko I have also ticked off Thredbo(home mountain from Perth and I am on my 3rd season pass), Perisher, Falls Creek, Chamonix, Zermatt (including the Italian side) Grindlewald, Wengan, and a few hills in Japan (Happo, Goryu/47, Iwatake, Cortina and Rusutsu). I loved them all. I have gone back to Zermatt, and Hakuba has also had a repeat visit. Thredbo, with it's sometimes sketchy conditions has had the most patronage of all - so it can't be for the snow quality! Some places just feel like home and draw you back, and that might be different for each person.

 

Why is Niseko chosen?

I can't speak for all but I recall a conversation with a close friend that we travelled to Niseko with a few years back. She was asking what our plans were for that northern season (last Jan) - I told her PB and I were off back to Zermatt with a few side trips planned. Her response was she would love to do that, but given that her medical specialist hubby could only get one week off work they would probably be going back to Niseko again. It wasn't disappointment, they were very happy to be going back to a brilliant ski destination, but if they had the luxury of time, they probably would have chosen somewhere else. When time is tight, and you are dragging children with you Niseko fits the bill for return visits. It's familiar, it's consistently good, the services and accomodation are fabulous, and from Perth it's pretty easy being in the same time zone.

 

So I reckon the answer to 'why do all sheep go to Niseko' is that Niseko meets the needs and desires of a range of visitors, many like it so much they keep going back. The 'sheep' that return to Niseko range in variety - some are families, some are partying young people, some are oldies, some go back for the friends they have made, some go back because they still have a few runs left to tick off the piste map, and there are even a few hard core shredders that love it and return.

 

As long as there are more people getting out there and loving the snow, who cares where they do it?

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