Where is Rusutsu?
Rusutsu is near Mt Yotei, the Mt Fuji of Hokkaido Japan. The
Rusutsu ski resort is 75km southwest (90 minutes) of Sapporo, 89km west of the New Chitose Airport, 30km southeast of
Niseko Hirafu (about 30-40 minutes), and 29km from the town of
Kutchan.
The actual town/village of Rusutsu is a few kilometres from the resort.
Flights
The New Chitose Airport (Sapporo) is the gateway airport for Rusutsu. Many flight routes will necessitate that you fly into Sapporo on a domestic flight from Tokyo (Haneda or Narita), although there are a limited number of international flights to New Chitose from cities such as Hong Kong, Seoul or Taipei. You can use a
flight search engineto compare different airlines and routes.
If you want to use the Rusutsu bus service (see below) rather than paying the premium for a private airport transfer, ideally get a domestic flight that arrives before 5:05pm (or international flight prior to 4:30pm). Outbound flights should be after 11:40am for domestic flights and after 12:45pm for international flights.
If you do need to overnight at the New Chitose Airport, really convenient hotel options are the
Air Terminal Hotel or the
Portom International Hokkaido. Or there are other
New Chitose Airport hotels nearby.
Rusutsu Bus - Airport Shuttle to Rusutsu
There are no train stations near Rusutsu but there are good shuttle bus options. There are Rusutsu bus options at very reasonable prices from the New Chitose Airport, with several departures a day.
You can book your airport shuttle to Rusutsu here (and see rates and schedule):
[AdListings collection="Japan" category="Rusutsu" subcategory="Scheduled Airport Transfers"]
Private Airport Transfers to Rusutsu
Rusutsu private transfers from the airport are handy if you want the convenience of door to door transport and want to choose your departure time. You can also add on a shopping stop if you need groceries or other supplies. Different sized vehicles are available, from a sedan for 1 to 2 people up to a coach for up to 16 people with luggage. You can
see pricing and book your private airport transfer here.
Transfers from Sapporo to Rusutsu
If you want to do a stopover in the city of Sapporo, there are shuttle buses from Sapporo to Rusutsu each morning and a bus from Rusutsu to Sapporo each evening which conveniently stops at 8 different hotels. See the Sapporo hotels page for information on which hotels are on the bus route.
Or Rusutsu Resort runs a free bus each day (if you can get a reservation) between the Kamori building near the Sapporo train station and Rusutsu hotels. It leaves Sapporo in the morning (not in time to get there for first lifts) and departs Rusutsu in the afternoon.
Driving to Rusutsu
Having a car is ideal if you want to chase the powder at different ski resorts in the area. You can
rent a car at the New Chitose Airport or there are limited car rentals in Niseko.
The telephone number for Rusutsu for GPS navigation is 0136-46-3331. Powder hounds that are day tripping to Rusutsu will want to park at the base of the East Mountain rather than at West Mountain near the hotels.
Getting from Niseko to Rusutsu
If you’re wanting to do a day trip to Rusutsu, you can get a bus and lift pass package with Niseko Ground Services, which departs from the Hirafu Welcome Center. The main limitation with this bus to Rusutsu is that it arrives too late for first lifts.
An inexpensive way to travel from Niseko to Rusutsu is the Donan Bus, although this hasn't operated for the last couple of seasons, and Donan only had a bus between Kutchan and Rusutsu.
Another option of getting to Rusutsu is to stay in/near Niseko and jump on one of the many
guided day-trips to Rusutsu. This service is for private groups (ie you can't join a group as a solo/couple) so you will probably want to get a group of 4 to 5 together to make it financially viable.
Or some of the Niseko ski schools such as
Whiteroom offer private lessons at Rusutsu which includes the transport.
Or if you have the budget, you can get a
private transfer between Niseko and Rusutsu.
[AdListings collection="Japan" category="Rusutsu" subcategory="Photography"]
Getting Around Rusutsu Resort
There isn’t really a village at Rusutsu Resort and many of the facilities and services are inside the expansive Rusutsu Resort Hotel (which has the North Wing, South Wing and Highland Lodge), so a lot of walking inside is required to get around. The Vale Rusutsu is inter-connected with the Rusutsu Resort Hotel, so guests of the The Vale can walk via the indoor corridors to get to restaurants and shops.
More facilities are located at the Westin Rusutsu Hotel which is connected to the Rusutsu Resort Hotel by a little kitsch monorail that operates from 7am to 11pm.
Outside the main entrance to the Rusutsu Resort Hotel, about 200m walk away, is a lane with a strip of izakayas and bars. Across the highway is the 7-Eleven, Seicomart, ski shop, a few pensions, and a restaurant, all within easy walking distance of the resort hotel.
About 3km to the southwest is the little town of Rusutsu where there are various vacation rentals, restaurants and shops. The Donan bus stops in town, otherwise those staying in Rusutsu town can get to the resort via host shuttle or a rental car.
[AdListings collection="Japan" category="Hokkaido" subcategory="Car Rentals"]
Ski Resorts Near Rusutsu
Niseko Hirafu is 29km northwest of Rusutsu and other nearby ski resorts include:
Other skiing nearby:
Further afield is Tomamu and you can get a
bus between Rusutsu and Tomamu.
[AdListings collection="Japan" category="Rusutsu" subcategory="Activities Ski Tours"]