Day 1: Arrived by Shinkansen to Sapporo (12 hour train ride from Kyoto)
Day 2: Sapporo (Mount Moiwa)
Day 3: Niskeo (Snowboarding in Annupuri)
Day 4: Niskeo (Morning Snowboarding in Annupuri and night skiing in Grand Hirafu)
Day 5: Niskeo (Walked around Grand Hirafu, did some shopping, and enjoyed our little hut in the middle of the woods of a suburb in Niseko)
Day 6: Noboribetsu ( Enjoyed the amazing Onsens, and walked through Hells valley)
Day 7: Return by to Tokyo and fly out
Sapporo
We arrived late in Sapporo after taking the Shinkansen all the way from Kyoto. All though a twelve hour train ride sounds insane to most, it was actually a really enjoyable experience. The JR pass covers the cost of the ride, and there are a few transfers but its not that confusing. You do have the option of flying either from Osaka, which is a nearby city to Kyoto, to Sapporo or from Tokyo to Sapporo. I was really trying to cut costs on the trip so I opted to just take the train and enjoy the experience. It didn’t feel like that long of a ride to be honest. Just be sure to go in advance to the ticket booth and book a seat, there is a possibility during peak times that seats will not be available, and you do not want to stand for hours on end on a crowded Shinkansen.
After arriving late in Sapporo, I checked into my hostel, and walked around the city a bit. It is a cute city with not too much to conquer. You can wander around for a few hours and feel good about what you saw. We also heard that the neighboring city Otaru is nice for a morning crab market run, but we didn’t have time to check it out. Otaru is accessible by JR Pass as well. We stayed at Guest House Waya in Sapporo, and I highly recommend it! The receptionist was actually an expat from New York living in Japan. He recommended climbing Mount Moiwa the next day for some adventure and for some beautiful sightseeing. It was fantastic! A great climb for all levels. They had just had a snowstorm so I was trekking through piles of fresh snow with normal sneakers. As long as you take it slow you will be ok, but if you did bring some good hiking boots then definitely wear them. Its a short tram ride to the mountain and then a short walk. There is also an option for taking a cable car up to the top.
On our way to the start of the path I found another Fushimi Inari.
This one wasn’t crowded 🙂
Top of the mountain view
Niseko
After a short stay in Sapporo we jumped on the JR once again, yes we really made use of our JR PASS, and headed to the main event! SKIING IN NISEKO!!!
Niseko is really something. There are different towns to stay in Niseko for skiing, however you do have to book in advance during peak seasons. I had a really hard time booking this year.
Different towns in Niseko to stay:
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Grand Hirafu (the main town with all the action and an amazing slope)
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Annupuri (which is where we stayed- quiet and lovely)
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Niseko village
There is a shuttle bus that is free once you get your lift pass that will transport you between each village. There is also a gate at the top of the volcano that provides access to all of the slopes. So you can start your day skiing in Annupuri then go to Hirafu then come back all through ski lifts. And yes I said volcano! Niseko is an active volcano that you get the pleasure of skiing on.
This is the only place I have been snowboarding where the lifts are right outside your door. Literally just feet away. You wake up and hop on a lift. Niseko Annupuri is much quieter than the other villages. If you don’t like to wait on lines, or just like a quieter atmosphere opt for Annupuri. If you like to be more in the town and around the nightlife and excitement then Hirafu is your place. I bounced between the two places and it was a perfect balance. Night skiing is amazing at Grand Hirafu. They also have night skiing at Annupuri, but Hirafu has more slopes at night and the views of the Hirafu at night from the mountain are breathtaking!
Night Skiing in Hirafu
Sunset over Annupuri
This ski area seems to be on the rise, and maybe in a few years it will become less affordable. Therefore I highly recommend making a trip out there before it gets way too expensive. I stayed at Annupuri Oasis Lodge and booked a bed in a dorm room. Let me tell you , that was the most expensive bed I ever paid for. Although the prices were steep for housing I would still not hesitate to pay it again. The lodge was lovely, clean, and cosy. They had a constant fire burning and the kitchen was open for you to cook whenever you want. The lodge hosts picked me up from the bus stop as well as had my lift tickets available at the lodge so that I could head straight to the lifts. I rented my equipment from winter first. They were fantastic! They delivered the equipment straight to the lodge and picked it up for return from there as well.
I could only book two nights at the lodge next to the ski lifts. The only other option I could find for housing in Niseko was far from any of the ski resort areas. I wasn’t sure that after two days of snowboarding I would want to spend another day on the slopes. So I found a small cottage that was far from any big towns for relaxation. This was by far the best decision. This little cottage was built by a lovely older man. It was called Niseko Shirokuma Cottage and you can find it on booking.com.
The cottage does not have a shower, however the host will provide you with passes to the local onsen if you wish to shower, relax, and enjoy the hot springs again. The cottage does have a toilet, full kitchen, oldschool fire burning furnace with tea kettle, amazing views from the window of Niseko, and an upstairs area for sleeping on the floor old school Japanese style. Whenever I am having a bad day I think of my one night in this quiet peaceful cottage and imagine that one day I will own one just like it. This place really takes you away from everything in the world and you just simply relax.
Our host picked us up from our other lodge, as well as offered to drive us back to the town to walk around Grand Hirafu for the day and pick us up again. He will provide you with his phone number and basically will help you in anyway he can. He was beyond an amazing super host.
Definitely spend some time wandering around Grand Hirafu and enjoying the posh shops and the street foods! They have an amazing Indian food truck with the best butter chicken with naan I ever tasted.
Noboribetsu
I researched Noboribetsu a ton before arranging the trip, however not many bloggers talked about it. I went back and forth between another day in Niseko or one day in Noboribetsu. Although I could spend the rest of my life in Niseko, I am so glad I did a one day stay in Noboribetsu. Again I took the JR to this small town and hopped on a local bus at the train station that stopped right in front of our hotel. I stayed at an all inclusive hotel called Park Hotel Miyabitei. You can find them on booking. The location of this hotel is right in the town and walking distance to everything. The second you land in this quaint little village you breathe in the fresh scent of sulfur. The whole town’s air is filled with it. Noboribetsu is home to Jigoku Valley (“Hells Valley”).
You will see demon gods sculptures all over the village. But they do not believe these are bad demon gods, on the contrary they believe they are good demon gods.
You can walk around the valley and experience some really amazing nature, hot springs, geysers, and active volcanic activity. Our hotel had an onsen, hot spring, located on the bottom floor that was filled with natural hot spring waters from the park. They had both outdoor and indoor bathes to choose from. Our hotel also had a delicious buffet dinner comprised of every Japanese delicacy you can imagine. You will not leave there hungry.
They also had a gaming center for your after dinner entertainment.
I walked around the town checking out the little gift shops and small restaurants, and then enjoyed visiting some of their local temples. The entire town is completely walkable.
My favorite part was getting lost in the park. There are many trails to choose from each leading to a different natural phenomenon. One of the trails lead me to a footbath. This is a must if you are here. The water is so warm and relaxing and in the cold month of December it was exactly what I needed to keep me warm.
Just remember to bring a towel with you to dry your feet. We had to stick our wet feet back into our shoes and our feet were frozen for the whole walk back.
Noboribetsu was the last adventure on our two week trip to Japan. After Noboribetsu I took my last Shinkansen train ride back to Tokyo and flew back to Dubai. I hope you enjoyed reading about this trip and if you have any questions about any of the places mentioned then feel free to write me:) Arigatou!
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