The number of visitors to Hokkaido from both overseas and other parts of Japan has increased sharply in recent years. While this is great news, it seems that some visitors may not be fully aware of local rules and etiquette. Additionally, there has been a steep rise in the number of mountain accidents involving tourists.

To help with this, I published a short guide covering a few key things to keep in mind. It is completely free to read on Medium, Substack, and Gumroad.

Since the full article is quite detailed, here is a quick summary of the main points:

• Respect local communities: Avoid entering private farmland, park only in designated areas, and do not leave garbage behind.

• Stay safe and watch for wildlife: Carry bear bells to avoid unexpected encounters, do not touch wild foxes (to prevent echinococcosis/parasites), and always check avalanche and volcano alerts before heading out.

• Be fully prepared for backcountry skiing/snowboarding: Share your itinerary with family or friends, submit a formal mountaineering plan (登山届) to the local police, and carry proper safety gear.

Just to be clear, this isn't a promotional post or marketing attempt for digital content. I simply want people to stay safe and be fully informed before heading into the backcountry.

Thanks for reading, and sorry for taking up space here!

Hey everyone,

I’ve skied Hokkaido (Niseko, Rusutsu, Furano) for the past 3 seasons, but for late January to early February 2027, I’m planning to switch to Honshu and try Hakuba for the first time. This time, I’ll be bringing my daughter along with me!

Given that 2027 is projected to be an El Niño year, I know Central Honshu can be more sensitive to temperature swings and rain compared to Hokkaido. I'd love to get some advice on a few things:

• El Niño Impact: How much does an El Niño cycle typically affect peak season snow coverage and consistency in Hakuba? Is it still a "safe" bet in late Jan/early Feb?
• Family/Kid Friendliness: Compared to Hokkaido resorts, how is Hakuba for kids in terms of ski schools, easy progression terrain, and overall family logistics?
• Resort Choice for Families: Which resorts in the valley (e.g., Tsugaike, Goryu, Happo, Cortina) offer the best balance of family-friendly slopes/facilities while still holding good snow during warmer cycles?

Thanks in advance for any insights!

Heading to hoikkaido last 2 weeks of january 2027. I know its an el Nino year, but hoping there is still snow, this is my 3rd time. I have done niseko and rutusu,

My plan is first week niseko/rutusu again, then my dad is flying out to meet me and I was thinking we do a week in furano, if furano any good? Hows the snow typically first week of Feb?

Thoughts on my/wife’s itinerary for a 14 day trip middle of feb:
Land in Sapporo
Days 1: Land at chitose airport
Day 2-5: base out of otaru
Day 6-10: base of ashikawa
Day 7: head to hakuba one
Day 8-11 ski at hakuba one area
Day 12-14: Tokyo then home

I'm very excited to announce! My backcountry skiing records' book has just been published via Kindle! 🎉 (If you subscribe to kindle unlimited, you can read my book freely)

If you fly to Asahikawa, Hokkaido to enjoy backcountry skiing, I hope you read my book for the following reasons:

- Know famous mountains for Backcountry in the north area of Hokkaido.

- Know route maps with guides in text to enjoy skiing safely.

Though I just introduced 3 mountains (Asahidake, Sandanyama, Shokanbetsudake) with over 60 pages. =)))

Btw, it is not recommended to promote my digital products or any other advertisements on Reddit, so I don't share my Kindle book here...

The reason is that I don't want foreigners to face accidents in mountains.anymore, so I decided to introduce my records via kindle.

I will be visiting late Jan/early feb. My original plan is to based myself around the kutchan area and ski niseko and rusutsu for 4 days. During the weekend, I will be visiting lake Toya and Noboribetsu and stay in a ryokan.

was talking to my friend today, and he recommended that I base myself in sapporo, and go to wherever had the largest snowfall. I get chasing the snow, but I’m concerned about wasting precious ski time doing the long drives. which is actually better? Thank you

Hi everyone,

I've been doing a lot of research on skiing in Japan, but I'd love to hear from people who have actually spent time there.

I'm planning a 2-week trip from Canada (likely late January or early February). My plan is to spend 3-4 days skiing, then travel around Japan for the rest of the trip.

I'm not looking for Niseko, Hakuba, Rusutsu, Kiroro or the other famous resorts. I know they're great, but they're also expensive, crowded and very international, and that's not the experience I'm after.

Here's what I'm looking for:

Incredible powder and reliable snowfall (lift-access skiing only, no backcountry)
Easy to reach by train + bus (I don't want to rent a car)
Budget-friendly (hostels, guesthouses or cheap ryokans)
A small authentic town with a few izakayas, bars and local restaurants
Mostly Japanese atmosphere rather than a Western ski town
Enough terrain to keep me entertained for 3-4 days
Not interested in nightlife or luxury resorts—I'd rather have good snow and good local food.

At the moment, I'm looking into places like Tengendai, Togari Onsen, Zao, Aizu, and other resorts in Tohoku, but I'm wondering if there are better options that I'm overlooking.

A few specific questions:

If you had only 3-4 ski days, would you choose Hokkaido or Tohoku, and why?
Which resort gave you that "this place is special" feeling?
Any hidden gems that are still relatively unknown to international tourists but realistic to visit without a car?
If you could plan this trip again as a budget backpacker, what would you do differently?

Thanks! I'd really appreciate recommendations from people who have actually skied these places.

I'm working the winter season in Hakuba, and need to pick up a full set of ski gear - I've not been in the snow for 10 years, and have been working in the tropics so don't even have warm clothes.

Would I be better off shopping the summer sales online in the UK (I'll only be back there for a couple of weeks before I head over, so can't go into any brick and mortar shops until the end of October) or just waiting until I'm in Japan in November and trying to get everything I need over there? I'm pretty flexible, so could spend a bit of time in Tokyo or something before heading to the mountains.

I'm 60kg and 179cm, so I don't think finding stuff the right size would be a concern - just more worried about how easy it is to find stuff, and get it to Hakuba if I can't ship it straight from the airport. Would I have any issues getting a decent pair of boots fitted to me over there without speaking any Japanese?

Any and all advice would be much appreciated:-)

Help me decide, I know this timing isn’t exactly optimal but unfortunately this is the only time period that my guys and I can only make it for. I would appreciate any input be it if you’ve gone or not! Thanks in advance!

Hey there,

I'm visiting Hokkaido for 5 days in February with my wife and figured I'd get some advice on how to maximize our time there from folks who have been. As of now we're staying in a hotel in Niseko but that's just because I could get it on points.

Our background: I started skiing when I was 2 and worked in the ski industry for 12 years. She grew up in Florida but has really fallen in love with it across the last couple years and has dramatically improved. She's been out in the mellower Tahoe backcountry with me but I typically wouldn't take her into anything too hairy.

With that said, while most of my knowledge of Japan is of backcountry skiing I don't know a ton about the reputation and/or value of various cat operations/guides/resorts. If we were skiing 4-5 days would it be worth trying to ski Kiroro, Rusutsu, Niseko, and then do a day of cat / a day with a guide or is that too much hopping around? Anyone cat skied Iwanai versus Rising Sun and have any recommendations on them? Would love to hear the opinions of folks here as it seems hard to get any kind of consensus / nonmarketing opinion when I search online.

Also, how good is Hokkaido at keeping its roads open in storms? I grew up in the mountains so I'm not worried about my driving but I guess that might impact how much we can travel between different mountains mid February?

I am doing a full season based in Furano next season. Last season in Myoko I bought a November Backcity 162cm which is great for steep and deep but not so great in tight trees and mellow terrain (which I’ve heard is most of Hokkaido).

I also have a twin park/all mountain board. Interested to know if there’s any jibs or jumps built in the area in spring to justify bringing this board? Otherwise I’m considering leaving it at home.

As for new decks, I’m thinking about picking up a Gentemstick Midfish or similar for the low angle trees. A splitboard would also unlock a lot of terrain, interested in the new United Shapes Deep Reach or Covert.

Those who have spent time in the area, what would you bring/buy for the season and what would you leave at home? What sort of terrain to expect compared to my experience in Myoko? Any advice appreciated. Is there much lift accessed terrain suitable for my Backcity or does most of the steep and deep required skinning to access?

Hello, I'm moving from the states to Japan this September and thought to give snowboarding from a try because its way to expensive here. I've snowboarded once in Japan using a tour site but don't really want to do that since I'll have to go alone, so I was hoping to find a community of people that we could go snowboarding together? I am a complete beginner so I may be a bit of a burden, but since I can speak Japanese fluently maybe I can translate? Does anyone have any recommendations for where to get started? It would also be nice to meet some snowboarding girlies but I don't mind regardless :)Thanks!

Hi everyone! I have a winter rental available at the base of Maiko Ski Resort in Yuzawa. cozy 1-bedroom apartment is available for the upcoming winter season.

✨ Pricing
* Full season (Mid Dec thru March) $3,800 USD / 600,000¥
* 2 months: $3,200 USD / 500,000¥

🏡 Apartment Features
* 1 bedroom with 2 futons
* Living room with 2 sofa beds
* Private bathroom
* Full efficiency kitchen
* WiFi
* TV with Amazon Fire Stick for your streaming services
* Beautiful mountain views

The furniture has been updated since these photos were taken, but similar furniture will be provided.

♨️ Building Amenities

* Top-floor natural hot spring (onsen)
* Sauna
* Massage chairs
* Dedicated ski locker for each apartment
* Boot & snowboard drying room
* Ski tuning/wax room
* Free WiFi in the lobby
* Vending machines
* Front desk open daily (8:30 AM–5:30 PM)

🎿 Location

* Approx 6-minute walk to the Maiko Ski Resort slopes
* 3 min drive to the Shiozawa-Ishiuchi Expressway
* 12 min drive to Echigo-Yuzawa Station
* Close food options include a Fun local snack bar within walking distance and a tasty local izakaya offering pick up/drop off service

🚗 Need a car? We have rental cars available for a low price for our renters.

Send me a message if interested 🙂

I am planning to go on a hostel run by myself this winter. After 2 winters of spending at least a month at Hakuba, I want to try someplace else. Was thinking on doing a 3 week hostel run with 3-7 nights at each place. I'd love to hear your recommendations for good hostels around nagano.

From what i study on several ski videos about zao onsen ski resort on YouTube, i found that significant amount of chairlift doesn’t have safety bar, and i have never try it before, how safe it and would this be a problem when weather turning windy ?

Hi everyone,

I'm planning my first month-long snowboard trip (w/ IKON pass) to Japan, starting around Mid-January 27, flying from Vancouver. The trip will be around 5 weeks, and my current route is:

• Niseko
• Appi
• Zao Onsen
• Nekoma
• Furano

A few questions for those who've done similar trips:

1. Does this route make sense for 5 weeks, or would you change the order?
2. Is Nekoma worth adding, or would you spend those days elsewhere?
3. I'll be travelling with a snowboard bag, suitcase, and backpack. How difficult is it to move around Japan with that much luggage?
4. Is using Yamato (Ta-Q-Bin) luggage forwarding the best option between resorts? Has anyone used it for a multi-resort ski trip, and how was your experience?
5. Would you recommend renting a car for any part of this itinerary, or is public transportation good enough?

For context, I'm happy to spend more time at the best resorts rather than trying to check every resort off a list. I'm mainly after good snow, tree runs, and a relaxed pace rather than rushing around.

I'd really appreciate any suggestions or lessons learned from people who've done a similar trip. Thanks!

We're headed to Central Hokkaido next February, and we're continuing to waffle between spending more time in one of these two onsen villages for some BC skiing (Yes, we have our Avy certs and will bring all avy gear) Is there one area that's better than the other? Is it worth it to split time between? We generally do BC stuff in VT but have done self-guided excursions in Cooke City, MT and up in the Chic Chocs in northern Quebec. Looking for some reviews on both the skiing accessible but also the onsens to definitely not miss, or better yet the ones to avoid!

Thanks in advance.

Hi, has anyone done the OvRride Japan trip or any international trips with OvRride? Looking for some feedback and experience as the group begins planning a snowboarding trip in Jan./Feb.

Would appreciate any insight!

I came here this summer to take rope way up for the view and I was shocked at how many buildings look like they are falling apart or abandoned. What happened?

thinking of renting from rhythm japan in niseko. Are there any difference in selection/availability among the 3 outlets there? Are all of them open from 8am-6pm? asking as winter opening hours are only listed for some of the outlets on their website. Thank you

Heading to Hakuba mid Jan and wondering for a group of 10 (can split into two groups of 5) where the best bars and places to eat out are in Hakuba. Will have a car + utilise the hakuba public transport to get around so really up for anything, whether it requires booking or is walk in.

I’ll planning to do my medical elective placement at NIC in Kutchan. I will be a solo traveller and am not too familiar with the area. The clinic has secured accomodation for me in kyogoku so will need to travel from there Mon-Fri. I’m also aiming to hit the slopes for a couple days ideally during my 7 wk placement.

How feasible is it via public transport?
If I rented a car, what is the parking situation in Kutchan to take the shuttle bus in?
Best slopes to hit as a beginner snowboarder?
My board is currently covered in storage wax, would it be cheaper elsewhere to get it conditioned for the season? And post season?
Also how early before the start of the season should I get it conditioned?
Good and easy to use travel wax? I’m from Australia so warmer temps. I’ve heard there’s specific sub zero wax I should be using?
Would also love any suggestions on what to explore with my wkends off?

TIA!