Pippu is one of those ski areas that on checking out the “mountain” statistics, you think it is worth giving a skip. It’s not a “mountain” but just a “hill” and only has 3 chair lifts and 9 runs. The stats for the vertical (330m) and top elevation (580m) won’t get you frothing either, but that’s the thing with little powder gems like Pippu. You have to look beneath the veneer to realise its potential, and because the stats put some powder punters off, you can have more powder to yourself. Pippu is definitely worth visiting for a day (unless temps are warm).

True to form, there were lots of school kids when we visited Pippu. And perhaps not surprisingly, there were a few tour groups because it would have too windy for Asahidake. The off-piste and sidecountry isn’t large enough to feed an abundance of powder hounds, but we still managed to find plenty of fresh tracks by pushing out a fraction. The snow quality was classic Hokkaido dry powder and the temperature approximately minus 12 degrees C. Delicious!

This is a cute little ski resort with plenty of community spirit from the strawberry town of Pippu. The ski area doesn’t look like it’s rolling in yen and the number of lifts appears to have shrunk. Even though lift passes are really cheap, undoubtedly Pippu will appreciate your patronage.
See our video here

Headed to Pippu as a day trip out of Asahikawa just to give it a go, and we were pleasantly surprised! Although it's a very small ski field, the snow was great and there were plenty of trees between every run, which make for some nice easily accessible off-piste terrain. Best of all, since the place is almost entirely populated by locals, the trees were mostly completely undisturbed - fresh tracks on run after run! Despite several school groups (who stick completely to the groomed pistes) the place was still very empty, and once they left we had it largely to ourselves. There's wouldn't be a lot to do for multiple days, but if you like some relatively easy but untracked tree runs, it's definitely worth a day trip. Lift tickets and food are also very cheap - you can get a set menu lunch for an extra 300 yen if you buy a 5 hour pass for 2500!
See our video here