SnowJapan.Com#3 0 Posted November 12, 2004 Share Posted November 12, 2004 A new Setting Journals Feature - "A Day in The Life - 3AM to 6AM", has been put online. http://www.snowjapan.com/e/features/setting-journals-20.html "The front desk at the Inn at Arai is bracing itself for a very busy morning as front staff of The Hotel Division are about to deal simultaneously with early check-ins (overnight drivers arriving from Tokyo), check-outs, baggage storage, courier service, lift passes, room cleaners, in-house enquiries as well as shuttle-bus and coach arrivals/departures. Although it is difficult to quote the busiest time for the front staff, three peak times are check-in (3 PM), checkout (11 AM), and lift pass/baggage control from 8:15 AM" http://www.snowjapan.com/e/features/setting-journals-20.html Please note that the views expressed in any Features on Snow Japan are not necessarily those of Snow Japan. Discuss it here... Link to post Share on other sites
joshnii 2 Posted November 12, 2004 Share Posted November 12, 2004 Blair, how strong were the earthquakes in the arai region? I imagine about 3 or 4 maybe? And how about aftershocks - are you still feeling them periodically or what? I hope it doesn't affect your resort too much. Cheers Link to post Share on other sites
Blair 0 Posted November 12, 2004 Share Posted November 12, 2004 Hi joshnii Thanks for the post The earthquakes were as you say, and there has been a tremor here and there. The resort has pulled through fine though. When the facilities were designed, care was taken to build them to withstand the weight of the snow in the area - this with the fact that all the infrastructure is new, including the highway to/from Nagano - means business as usual. The only time my regular routine was interrupted was a roadblock on Route 18 following the first earthquake. The Police wanted to make sure northbound vehicles were not heading to the Chuetsu region but instead going no further north than Joetsu. Link to post Share on other sites
Fattwins 0 Posted November 12, 2004 Share Posted November 12, 2004 Hey Blair you guys getting people caling up worried about the quakes and the season at all? Link to post Share on other sites
charlotte 0 Posted November 13, 2004 Share Posted November 13, 2004 Surely they must be. It must be hard selling "Niigata" right now, even if they are not affected that much by it all. (I don't have a problem, I'll be taking the fairly short trip up to Myoko and Arai this coming season) I like the article again, its really interesting. Looking forward to the ones to come. Link to post Share on other sites
A lawyer 0 Posted November 14, 2004 Share Posted November 14, 2004 These articles are really interesting, keep them coming. Quote: Some guests depart the resort early and a few have been known to try to sell their passes to others arriving later in the day - to discourage this the resort recently only issues tickets which wrap around a “plastic hanger”. Care to expand on that at all? How does that stop people selling them? Link to post Share on other sites
sanjo 2 Posted November 17, 2004 Share Posted November 17, 2004 Hi Blair Hope its all going well down there, do tell us more about the situation down there with bookings for winter. It was just on the local news again here about Niigata-ken as a whole (even including Kaetsu and Joetsu) seeing 80% cancellations for Nov / Dec - and hardly any new bookings for the ski season coming in as they should be. Link to post Share on other sites
echineko 1 Posted November 18, 2004 Share Posted November 18, 2004 I am going to Arai in late January with group of girl friends - there are 6 of us together. We are really looking forward to it. Link to post Share on other sites
jared 0 Posted November 18, 2004 Share Posted November 18, 2004 TSL - I think its harder to sell the ticket because you ned to rip it to get it off the metal clip or cut the metal clip. Not impossible to sell just more difficult. Its called a sumimasen ticket by a guy I know. Sumimasen, are you leaving? (they are often given away rather than sold.) Link to post Share on other sites
DrMabuse 0 Posted November 19, 2004 Share Posted November 19, 2004 So its void according to the resort if its ripped. Blair? Link to post Share on other sites
Blair 0 Posted November 22, 2004 Share Posted November 22, 2004 Hello Fattwins - Yes, the resort has been getting calls, e-mails etc. and the like concerning the Chuetsu quakes. sanjo - preparations for the coming season are proceeding as planned. To be clear, with every successive day that Chuetsu does not experience aftershocks the situation improves. Also for guests that have visited the resort before, their local knowledge of the resorts geography/access points has helped to dissipate concerns. Concerning bookings, both the Japanese and English websites post updated availability online. Presently - despite some cancellations - it is looking more like the three hotels will be almost full over the Christmas period(before the Japanese New Year Break begins), which if so will be the first time this has ever happened. DrMabuse - Yes, a ripped ticket is considered to be void by the resort. Link to post Share on other sites
DrMabuse 0 Posted November 22, 2004 Share Posted November 22, 2004 What happens if it gets ripped by accident? Link to post Share on other sites
DumbStick 13 Posted November 23, 2004 Share Posted November 23, 2004 Quote: Fattwins - Yes, the resort has been getting calls, e-mails etc. and the like concerning the Chuetsu quakes. And......? Link to post Share on other sites
Blair 0 Posted December 11, 2004 Share Posted December 11, 2004 And there have been some cancellations. In my mind the guests that cancelled are those who have never visited the resort before. While the repeaters appear to have few qualms about returning, new guests - especially those from overses - sometimes fail to understand that Chuetsu and Joetsu are different areas. Link to post Share on other sites
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