It was a tough year, due to low snow pack. Even though, it was expertly led on the slopes. We visited 7 destinations in 10 ski-days. All events transpired smoothly. The trees were tight and there was excessive brush that made linked turns rare. The best runs required hiking in varied lengths. We got 2 good powder days that made the trip.

On the not-so-hot list, the hotels varied widely from top shelf to unacceptable (shared room, bath down the hall, pounding music until midnight). Guide knowledge of local culture and history was zero.

I recommend this tour to the young at heart who don’t care about anything but skiing/riding. Bring your earplugs.
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Incredible guides and amazing skiing.
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Hokkaido, with the exception of parts of the Niseko area, is like skiing Vermont if Vermont were to have the best snow in the world. Modest-sized mountains at low elevation with limited steepness. Lots of tree runs. Beautiful powder that falls endlessly, day in and day out. We didn't have any particular day where it bombed snow, but that was probably for the best as it's not much fun to ski waist-deep powder on mountains that aren't that steep. Rather, we had consistent, light, fluffy snowfall throughout the trip.

Guides were solid. Group was a mix of skiers and boarders, younger and older. We divided up between the two guides accordingly. Eleven ski days with one break day. I'd say about half the skiing with on-piste and the other half was side-country. One day, one of the guides took some of us out touring, which was a first for me and was a lot of fun. Another day we did a bunch of runs with the vans picking us up down along the resort access road.

I personally liked all the places we'd stay, but it was a mix in terms of type. Furano we stayed at a classic roadside ski lodge type place. Nothing fancy, but really enjoyed it, especially their breakfasts. Niseko we stayed in what was basically a skiers hostel. It had a good energy, though aspects of it were inconvenient, e.g. the shared showers being in the basement of the building. Otaru we stayed in a higher-end hotel right on the water. (I wish I had stuck around an extra day to explore Otaru.) I was traveling solo and opted to pay extra to get my own room for Furano and Otaru, the other option being to share a room with someone else on the trip.

Besides the skiing, stopping at a beautiful onsen and then checking out the Sapporo Snow Festival during our break day were highlights.

Really nice group of folks from all around the world, many who I hope to keep in touch with and perhaps even ski with again in the future.
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It was our first time to Hokkaido and we loved the laid back atmosphere of Furano. Our guides, Blackie and Natalie were top notch and lots of fun. After a day with Blackie at Furano we skied there two more days and felt we knew the mountain, the best routes and what to look for for our safety. Natalie took us (sorry I don’t remember name) to another resort about an hour away on the coldest day in recorded history -31 F windchill and then to an Onsen to warm up. The best day was the last with the sun out at Sahoro resort doing van laps in the deep untouched powder. All in all a wonderful experience
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Went on this tour in Feb '18. One of the best experience of my life. Guiding was a hard 10/10, and Hokkaido is an amazing place to see. The itinerary allows you to see a good bit of the island.

Accommodations in Niseko & Furano are more or less hostel style, so if you want more hotel style, request the upgrade.
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Well organized, friendly guides, all of them experts! Know nearly anything about the ski areas.
I have recommended my friends on...
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It was a fantastic ski experience in Hokkaido with Josh the snowboard guide. We lived in Niseko; the guide took us to Rusutsu and Kiroro. These places are amazing. The guide also led us to different trail runs with fresh powder snow.

I am sure this is a once in life trip and I definitely go back there whenever I have a chance.
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Tour was epic, guides were epic, snow was epic, terrain was epic, it's the only way to get the full experience of Hokkaido's various fields and surrounding areas. The guides were excellent, good knowledge of terrain & flexible on where to ride but most of all get you the POW in all conditions.



Stop reading reviews, get booked & get out there.



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