Northern Odyssey Tour
The Northern Powder Odyssey Tour is a great value trip that takes you to Northern Tohoku, the most northern part of Honshu, the main island of Japan. This tour heads to ski resorts that are off the radar of foreign skiers and snowboarders, so very few gaijin (foreigners) visit these areas.
The ski resorts in the Iwate, Akita and Aomori Prefectures are the antithesis of Niseko and Hakuba that are completely over-run with westerners. In Northern Tohoku, there is very little competition for the abundant fresh powder, very little English is spoken (but your guides will help with communication and organising logistics), the cuisine is authentically Japanese, and other cultural experiences are plentiful. Most of the accommodation is in Japanese hotels with an amazing onsen (hot spring) for soaking the aching body, and with fantastic Japanese cuisine. On a Northern Powder Odyssey Tour, you can experience the real Japan and satisfy your appetite for riding fresh powder.
Besides the abundance of fresh powder and lack of westerners, there are characteristics that are common to many of the Tohoku ski resorts. Many are small and only have enough off-piste terrain to keep you entertained for a day or two, so they are not destination resorts you’d want to head to for a week long trip.
One of the major benefits of the Northern Powder Odyssey Tour is that you can sample multiple ski resorts and the guides keep it really flexible. The guides can drive you around and can get you straight to the goods and show you where the powder stashes are. Off-piste riding may be considered taboo at some of the Tohoku resorts, but with discretion and leadership from your guide, you’ll be rewarded with abundant freshies in the trees.
Each tour runs for one week with a Saturday departure. The tour starts and finishes at a train station so you can easily get to Tokyo or your next destination.
Areas and Resorts Visited
You and your guides are in search of the best lines and best conditions….this means that the actual destinations visited are subject to the weather and where the powder will be the deepest. So the guides keep it flexible and chase the snow and best weather.
From the base in the Iwate Prefecture, here are a few examples of ski resorts that may be visited:
Hachimantai,
Geto Kogen,
Tazawako,
Shizukuishi plus other hidden gems.
From the base in the
Aomori Prefecture, you’ll likely visit
Aomori Spring and possibly
Hakkoda if the weather gods are king. There are also a couple of other secret ski areas nearby.
A few ski resorts are so deserted midweek that they'll almost feel like your own private ski resort!
Ability Level
So that you get the most out of the adventure, the guides try to group the tours into ability levels. You don’t have to be a pro, you just need to have a sense of adventure and want to ride powder including off-piste tree skiing.
Groups and Guides
There will be either 1 or 2 guides depending on the size of the group, however the guide to client ratio will not exceed 1:5. The head guide is an experienced snowboarder (14 seasons in Japan at over 200 resorts), certified instructor with off piste/back country knowledge of the ski areas, and avalanche qualified.
Transportation
Transport for the tour will be provided in private 4WD vans. The tour will incorporate a fair bit of driving, but your guides do it all for you, so you can just sit back and relax.