Niseko

Niseko is a place in the city of Hokkaido.  It’s very near yet so far 🙂  because there is no direct flight yet to Chitose.  And yet from Chitose you need to take a 2 hour bus ride.  We flew to Tokyo  for around 3 1/2 hours then had to transfer to Chitose for another hour and a half then bus.  We are hoping that Pat can talk to Lance Gokongwei or maybe PAL will have a direct flight to Chitose.  We love Chitose so we don’t mind landing and departing from there!! 🙂  I LOVE Niseko and I do not even ski!  I wish I had more time to explore!

In Niseko there are 4 resorts

Annupurri, Moiwa, Hanazono, Niseko Village and Grand Hirafu.  I was only able to go to 3 areas – Annupurri, Hanazono where we snowmobiled and Grand Hirafu.

We stayed in Grand Hirafu which is the main or the downtown of Niseko 🙂  This map looks big but actually it is a very very small village.  I love it because it is small and everything is so near each other.  It’s so cozy!! I love walking the small side streets going to the bars and restaurants.  People who stay in Grand Hirafu want to be where the action is 🙂 and where all the restaurants and shopping is.  No need to take a car or taxi to eat in a restaurant because everything is walking distance This is another main street which is going uphill and here you will see restaurants and shops too I love these bees!  They were giving out yellow beanies! of course they were promoting their online grocery.  In Japan there are many people doing this – I like the ones giving out tissue paper haha!! very useful 🙂 though I do not  understand the japanese on them I have never stayed in a resort that had snow – falling snow!!!  I loved being here because wherever you go, snow was falling!!  Light and powdery snow that was so pleasant!!!  I love seeing these trees which you normally only see on a shop window or in a store and artificial at that!  These were the real thing and they were so beautiful.  They were not dirty or messy.  They were Christmas trees 🙂  that were cover with snow – just so pure and angelic The only thing blocking the view sometimes are the wires 🙁   These are scenes from just walking around.  I made sure I was clothed well because I wanted to walk outdoors and appreciate this.  I usually don’t like to walk ( lazy haha ) but here I walked and walked and walked On our first day we rode a taxi to go to Annupurri.  It is also beautiful to drive outside the village because the scenery is beautiful!!

 Mt. Yotei

 Mount Y?tei is an inactive stratovolcano located in Shikotsu-Toya National Park, Hokkaid?, Japan. It is also called Yezo Fuji or Ezo Fuji, “Ezo” being an old name for the island of Hokkaido, because it resembles the more famous Mount Fuji. Wikipedia
Elevation: 1,898 m
Last eruption: 3550 BC
Prominence: 1,878 m  Icicles on roofs of homes!

The roofs in these places have to be very sturdy or else they will fall down if there is a lot of snow on top!  It can get heavyWe walked in Annupuri and it was a peaceful place.  People who stay here want to be away from the “action!” haha!!  This resort has mostly chalets.  A chalet is also a nice experience for a family or group!  The slope here is also less “action” therefore not crowded.  You have to drive to Hirafu for the main restos and shopping so you need a car to get around from where you are here.  Though there are a few restaurants here too like Rakuichi, Lucky Fingers and Pizza del Sole
A sign taken by Kim 🙂

Click below to go to the official website of Niseko for more informationFrequently referred to as a “winter wonderland”, Niseko’s unique location makes it a ” must-see, must-ski” hotspot for winter sports enthusiasts.

Winter Activities in Niseko

Dining

Snowmobiling

Skiing & Snowboarding

Onsen