Hokkaido Classic Tour
The Hokkaido Classic Tour is a multi-day tour that takes in the 3 "classic" powder zones in Japan. You'll cover the best of Hokkaido powder skiing and riding.
You'll start in the
Niseko area, which is renowned for amazing bountiful powder because the powder factory often goes into overdrive. lovely tree skiing, and some alpine objectives. Next on the agenda is
Otaru which is a small city near the sea that has lots of great restaurants. The ski areas near Otaru are up there in the
top snowiest ski resorts in Japan. You'll finish in
Central Hokkaido staying in
Furano, where the powder is lighter and the mountains steeper.
Fixed Date Mixed Group Tours
Solos, duos or small groups can join a mixed group tour.
Summary
- Visits various ski areas in Hokkaido
- Terrain focus is lift-accessed powder chasing in the off-piste and backcountry of the ski areas, with the occasional bootback (ie you don't need touring gear)
- Targeted at advanced and expert skiers/riders
- Explores three zones of Hokkaido: Central Hokkaido/Furano; Niseko region; and Otaru region.
Ability
This tour is for advanced and expert skiers and riders. As a minimum, all skiers/riders must be proficient skiing/riding powder in trees and snowboarders should be highly skilled at holding a traverse.
This tour requires a minimum of 4 people.
Equipment
All mountain/powder skis and snowboards will be needed for this trip. For skis a minimum of 100mm underfoot is recommended. As the terrain accessed on this tour is lift accessed or via boot packs, so there will be no need for backcountry touring equipment but snowshoes can be rented.
Avalanche safety equipment is essential and can be provided if required.
If you have any questions or want to double check availability you can make a booking request.
Private Tours
The other option for the Hokkaido Classic Tour is to do it as a private group (minimum 2 people) and the terrain focus can be whatever you like, pending weather and snow conditions. On snowy days it may make sense to ride the powder off the lifts, whilst on others you may use a ski resort lift or cable car (ropeway) to get an initial lift and other ascent is under human power.
Ability
This private tour requires advanced riding skills with entry level backcountry knowledge. Riders should be fit and comfortable skiing black run pitch in powder, and riding amongst trees.
Your guide can give you a few tips along the way if you wish, regarding efficiently riding powder or backcountry safety.
Equipment
The equipment required will depend on your group’s objectives. If you want to do some touring then backcountry ski and snowboard equipment will be required. For touring skis we recommend a minimum of 100+ underfoot and these can be rented via SummitSki.
For more information on equipment rental please contact us for details.