timnz 0 Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 Hi All, you will notice first time poster. Anyhow I am after advice regarding a hatching plan. For years my wife has been badgering me for a New Year trip to Japan. Considering as her parents home is made of cardboard and has a stiff breeze blowing through it I have always responded unfavourably. We have been in March before and the house was f'ing freezing so why would I fly out of a perfectly decent summer to spend 3 weeks freezing my butt off in a house unsuitable for sane habitation. Anyhow this dosn't seem to wash anymore so I have had to compromise and do a deal, "Okay but I get to go skiing for a week". And this is where you good people come in. I am aware that the Christmas week leading up to New Year can be a bit a bit hit and miss snow and weather wise and you will all say 'come in Feb'. Well the only time I can take 3 weeks leave is July and Xmas time so I am stuck with 21st- 29th dec. Next of course I will ask Where? and you will all respond 'Niseko' the snow will be better and you can hurl abuse at Australians all day and night. This is sound advice of course but with two major drawbacks. 1) it's not a simple Narita to Chitose and back, we also have to go to deepest darkest Kanagawa before and after the ski week so that is 4 Narita trips incl all our ski gear. 2) we own a car in Japan and having gone to that extravagant expense we feel duty bound to use it at every opportunity. So looking at Central Honshu... Now then, the car is a pile of crap, dosn't have snow tyres, is 2WD and in all likelihood dosn't have a working heater. So we need somewhere that even the least prepared idiot (me) can get to and from without ending up in some road side drain. As Mentioned we are coming from Kanagawa so using the Chuo expressway as I don't fancy going through Yokohama Or Tokyo in the middle of the New Year migration. Thus Hakuba or Nozawa Onsen (unless anyone has a better idea) ? The wife is a an occasional skier with all the daring of a Health and Safety inspector so will want to spend the day pottering around something wide and flat. I have been skiing since I was a nipper and am happy on and off piste so will want as much variety as I can get in a day whilst still being able to get back to have lunch with the missus and generally harass her for being happy mingling with the snow ploughers. So finally getting to the point, and given all that has gone before... which is the better of the two options and why? Cheers Tim Link to post Share on other sites
frannyo 2 Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 Considering as her parents home is made of cardboard Welcome. I am aware that the Christmas week leading up to New Year can be a bit a bit hit and miss snow and weather wise and you will all say 'come in Feb' After this years February, I wouldn't be so sure! Link to post Share on other sites
Tubby Beaver 209 Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 Depends on where in kanagawa you are starting from, but I personally wouldn't want to detour down the Chuo unless I lived further west than Kozu. If u live closer toYokohama, why not ditch the car altogether and shink your way to the snow? Yuzawa is easily accessible this way and Nagano isn't too bad as long as your staying longer than a day Link to post Share on other sites
frannyo 2 Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 Tubby recommends Yuzawa only because of his love for the Kanetsu Expressway. Link to post Share on other sites
Mick Rich 78 Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 Would tend to agree with Tubby, as I live in Kanagawa but am only 30 mins by train from Shibuya, so can make do with a bmx rather than a car ;-) As for the 2 places you mentioned, I think the Hakuba valley gives you plenty of choices (resorts, accommodation, restaurants, etc) and although I've never been there, I've heard some good things about Nozawa! So both get my vote! Link to post Share on other sites
Tubby Beaver 209 Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 Tubby recommends Yuzawa only because of his love for the Kanetsu Expressway. Haha! Yeah, I have a strange love for that road Make sure u take the shink!! Link to post Share on other sites
Thundercat 60 Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 I wouldn't recommend driving a 2WD shitbox without snow tires to snowy places at the end of December. There can be pretty big storms at that time of year. You might want to consider what Tubby and Mick wrote. Link to post Share on other sites
Metabo Oyaji 71 Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 I wouldn't recommend driving a 2WD shitbox without snow tires to snowy places at the end of December. There can be pretty big storms at that time of year. You might want to consider what Tubby and Mick wrote. And no heater? Yes, somewhere reachable by train sounds like a much better idea. Never been to Nozawa, but sounds like it has a good combination of walkability to the slopes and around town. Link to post Share on other sites
onehunga 26 Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 Got to add my vote to the "take the train" option. I wouldn't drive a 2wd shitbox without winter tires anywhere near a ski field, even in December. Take the train, gives you more options for places to go but remember BOOK NOW Link to post Share on other sites
Alexander L 80 Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 1 week skiing? You need to go to Niseko. Link to post Share on other sites
DCx3 2 Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 I will also recommend take the train option. There are many great places you can go to by train and even by bus. You also don't need to necessarily go all the way to narita you can go to haneda. There is also the option of left luggage if you don't want to cart around your snow gear. By the way does snow Japan have an option to see past snow depths for resorts. Cause sometimes it would make decisions a little easier for people knowing what previous seasons early season conditions and late season conditions are like. I know you you can kind of get an idea with the past NOW updates. But not everywhere gets updated with a NOW update. Link to post Share on other sites
Alexander L 80 Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 worth noting that there are 88 flights on Sundays and Mondays to Sapporo from Haneda. Other days number around 66. That is far more frequent than any train and it's only an hour and a half from Tokyo to the Winter Wonderland. Link to post Share on other sites
Metabo Oyaji 71 Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 worth noting that there are 88 flights on Sundays and Mondays to Sapporo from Haneda. Other days number around 66. That is far more frequent than any train and it's only an hour and a half from Tokyo to the Winter Wonderland. Having looked into this recently, I'd say more like half a day to get to the slopes. But, not so different from Honshu options, true. Could also suggest Zao. Shinkansen to Yamagata city, bus to Zao Onsen town. Walk to slopes, walk to onsen. Not much else nearby, though, if that is important. Monsters seemed to get off to a good early start this season, judging from pics. Link to post Share on other sites
snowdude 44 Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 I reckon like the others have suggested getting the shink to Nagano or Niigata might be your better bet, saves getting stuck in a snow storm on the motorway in a 2WD car with no winter tyres on as is most likely the case if you hire it in Kanagawa area. Link to post Share on other sites
Tubby Beaver 209 Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 Yes, Haneda or Narita to Sapporo is only 1.5hrs or so, but getting to either airport can be anything from 30 mins to 3 hours depending on where in kanagawa he is coming from, then minimum 36 mins into Sapporo city, or 2 hrs to Rusutsu or Niseko, or even longer to Furano, Kamui etc Link to post Share on other sites
gozaimaas 61 Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 Buy snow tyres Link to post Share on other sites
Peetan 10 Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 Going by train = not salting the road with your tears of bitter frustration. Link to post Share on other sites
timnz 0 Posted March 5, 2014 Author Share Posted March 5, 2014 Thanks all, Train or Plane then, will leave the car growing more cobwebs. Will start investigating these options. Initial view is that cost of Shink vs Flight isn't massive, although the cost of the bus from Chitose to Niseko skews heavily in favour of Honshu. For ease and cost from Chigasaki, Hakuba via Hachioji and Matsumoto seems best option, Only an hour longer than Shink/bus via Tokyo and Nagano. Last time I went to Matsumoto by rail someone threw themselves under the train. We were sat there bloody hours. Deep down I guess I was hoping for something a little less obvious and more intimate than Hakuba. Would love to hear about good early season alternatives that are good for a weeks skiing (I know you get heaps of first time posters asking 'where should I go', so apologies, it's just that with so may options it's a bit like pinning the tail on a donkey). One immediate question, what do you do with your skis on the shink? When they're full It's hard enough to stow a backpack let alone Ski's, do you end up with them between your knees or can you usually get them in the racks at the end of the carriage? I noticed whilst browsing a few days ago that some one on here appeared to be a Hokkaido based travel agent as they seemed to know everything, can't remember who, can anyone remember? If I went Hokkaido option then maybe a package is the way to go and locally based agent I would think I would get better deal and better accom than using a kiwi agent? A friend used Kiwi agent and ended up in accom serving burgers and pizzas each night, not what you go skiing in Japan for. cheers Tim Link to post Share on other sites
onehunga 26 Posted March 5, 2014 Share Posted March 5, 2014 Tim, I think you might have been thinking of Go Native. He lived there for a while. Christmas/New Year isn't that busy (all relative I know) at ski resorts. I would research three or four areas, then decide just before you want to go based on snow depth and weather forecast. We all like to joke about booking now, but you shouldn't have any problems finding a place to stay. Link to post Share on other sites
pie-eater 207 Posted March 5, 2014 Share Posted March 5, 2014 Book Now!! A friend used Kiwi agent and ended up in accom serving burgers and pizzas each night Isn't that, along with BBQ, the local cuisine up there? 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Thundercat 60 Posted March 5, 2014 Share Posted March 5, 2014 You don't need to actually take your skis with you. Just arrange a takkyubin service from Yamato (Kuroneko) or Sagawa. They'll come to your house to pick up your stuff and then send it to your accommodation. It usually takes under 24 hours from pick up to delivery. If you are arriving from overseas with your gear you can send it from the airport directly to your hotel. Myoko Kogen or Shiga Kogen might also fit the bill. Just keep in mind that early season is hit an miss anywhere in Japan (you can increase your odds by going to Hokkaido but it's still no guarantee). Link to post Share on other sites
Tubby Beaver 209 Posted March 5, 2014 Share Posted March 5, 2014 From Chig? Jump on one of the early trains to Tokyo, 45 mins and 950¥ or so, then get the shink to Yuzawa and hit up Kagura, if it's a day return then you'll pay another 11,000¥ for shink + lift ticket then another 300¥ or so for the 25 min bus from Echigo Yuzawa station to mitsumata rope way. Link to post Share on other sites
timnz 0 Posted March 5, 2014 Author Share Posted March 5, 2014 We all like to joke about booking now, but you shouldn't have any problems finding a place to stay. Ah, the old 'Forum in joke' gotcha, thanks Link to post Share on other sites
Alexander L 80 Posted March 5, 2014 Share Posted March 5, 2014 That would be the case for lesser resorts, but for the Big N, be cautious and check 12 months beforehand. Link to post Share on other sites
u-tan 2 Posted March 5, 2014 Share Posted March 5, 2014 What is this book now joke all about? Link to post Share on other sites
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