Whilst not quite the same ridiculously snowy day that we scored in 2023, our day out cat skiing with Iwanai was once again a mighty lot of powder skiing fun.

The wind had been brutal over the previous few days which had left some wind packed snow in places, but it snowed steadily all day and the snow in the trees was lovely.

They’ve continued to do more glading and have created some fun tree zones in the middle of the terrain. E Bowl out to skiers left was amazing again, whilst out to skiers’ right a newish egress snowcat trail has resulted in less traversing out. On one run we pushed out a long way right and there was a bit of bush bashing to get in there, but it was worth it once we got to the more open slopes.

We were in the snowcat that had aeroplane business class seats in the back so it was very spacious so there was no elbowing the person next door. There was also some nice storage in the seat back pockets.

Après ski drinks were festive at the end of the day and there was plenty of high 5-ing.

You can see our full Iwanai cat skiing review for more detail on our thoughts.

Stay tuned for the new lodging to be introduced for the 2024/25 season.
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This was our second time in Iwanai and we went for 2 days. This time was under a freak heatwave with snow conditions being much more challenging than the first time around (which was perfect). Despite this, the guides found us terrific (albeit a bit slushy) powder in the trees and we had an awesome awesome time.

Big call out to the guides for getting creative - we went to new runs we had not gone to before in search of POW and it worked.

Iwanai attracts a good crew of people from different walks of life - was fun to ride and spend time in the Cat and bar with them.

The bar (and especially the sparkling sake) under Dan's masterful guidance deserves a shout-out as well.

Overall great skiing/ snowboarding/ thoughtful and competent operation/ really nice atmosphere and vibe and great facilities. Will definitely come again.
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We had the most amazing day out with Iwanai cat skiing in late January. There was fresh snow overnight so we scored fresh powder on the former piste for the first couple of runs. Then the skies opened up and Puki Yuki the snow goddess gifted us throughout the day. It reinforced that one of the joys of snowcat skiing is that storm skiing can be a reality. It’s not like heli skiing where the helicopter gets grounded when it’s dumping with snow, or that upper lifts go on wind hold when the wind is howling. We were rewarded with deep line after deep line of powder. We scored 9 blissful runs which sort of satiated the powder appetite, yet it was so damn lovely that we could greedily have done more had it not been après ski time.

We’ve been out with Iwanai Cat Skiing a few times and it was nice to see its evolution over the years and the initial kinks ironed out. There is a new snowcat road to assist with egress on one side of the terrain, and it looks like they’ve been doing a bit of vegetation snipping. In the past it wasn’t the most polished operation, yet now it’s a well oiled machine. The guiding has advanced and the guides provided very clear instructions about runs and where to regroup, along with plenty of hollering which was welcomed considering the snowstorm and reduced visibility.

It sounds like the next iteration of the outfit is to add lodging to enhance the multi-day experience.

The rates have gone up in recent years and are in line with the rising tariffs of Niseko.
It may not be affordable for all people, but if it’s within your budget then you might manage an amazing day like we did. The powder memories will keep us going for a while.

You can see our full Iwanai cat skiing review for more detail.
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I booked a few days in a row with Iwanai Cat Skiing and I don't know where to begin gushing.

The service was incredible to the point I felt like I was being hosted by family; helping me figure out how to get there; organising late notice local accommodation for me; arranging pickup (I decided to take a bus from Otaru to the local station); organising meals at AMAZING local restaurants (Iwanai isn't really a tourist town) was all incredible.

Hosting, shuttling, and guiding staff are all friendly and easy to get along with, the snow was incredible (on the rare occasion Iwanai doesn't get fresh snow there seems to always be enough new wind swept cover), and I personally loved the terrain as there's plenty of tree lines to be made and a variety of difficulties one can create with what's available.

Can't recommend highly enough; will DEFINITELY be back next I'm in Japan.
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My first experience with cat skiing. Extremely fun and safe experience with Dan Yoder, Sidik, Joe and others at Iwanai. Communication was great even with 13 hour time difference, everything happened as stated. The guides went above and beyond to assure safe rides and adjusted things according to conditions and skill of skiers.

Felt safety was primary objective, guides would check and wait for skiers to meet at meeting points on the way down.

Lots of food at lunch. The ryokan was nice and dinner there was generous. One night probably a good enough experience.

Small group that listens to guests and communicates well. English speakers would feel very comfortable. A safe cat skiing experience. Highly recommended. Great snow.
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A day at Iwanai is definitely a day to remember. The cat was extremely comfortable providing a time to reenergise, communicate with the other group members or to sit quietly and take in the snow covered scenery. We were lucky enough to have a break in the weather for some sun and the view of the ocean around the city of Iwanai. The guiding was clear and not over done with thought put into everyone's safety, both guides did a great job taking us to beautiful untracked terrain, mindful of the ability of each group member. The snow and varied terrain were amazing and the level of satisfaction by the days end was sublime exhaustion.
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Paid about one grand USD with taxes for five hours of Cat skiing. Ended up with a little over one hour of short runs in blizzard/white-out conditions before spending the rest of my time boot packing through the woods in very deep snow. I followed the wrong tracks at a critical juncture (which I was never informed about) on a tree run. The terrain flattened out. I was preparing to boot a bit in order to follow the tracks when the Ski Guide came after me and made me drag my snowboard through the woods, traversing through thick trees for almost three hours when I could have just kept going and rode out to a main run then down to the main lodge according to earlier instructions provided and the word of other guides I spoke to at the end of the day. Almost everyone in my group said they didn't understand the instructions on the tree run where I was separated at the end of the day. One of the guides, not affiliated with my group, said the exact same thing happened to a group of three skiers the day before at the exact same spot. They just rode out though. Not a nice experience, not a professional operation, poor planning, preparation, guiding, and execution. I politely attempted to contact the owner to discuss a partial refund but my efforts were stonewalled. If you decide to come here for the Cat Skiing, bring your own map/GPS equipment and plan on being your own guide. I wished I had packed my Drift boards for the getting lost/stuck/booting part of my day. A highly likely scenario based on my experience. Iwanai has some very inexperienced new arrival "guides" from outside of Japan who are unfamiliar with the resort. The guiding could have been much better, but guiding a mixed group of 14 skiers and boarders in a raging blizzard is not an easy task. We probably needed at least one more guides given the conditions and the size of our group. Maybe now that they have one full winter of post-covid max capacity money-making they will slow down and clean up the operation. My impression of Iwanai was a young, overly ambitious, in-the-red operation running at full speed when they needed to slow down a bit and focus on training, procedures, logistics, customer communications etc. My day of Cat skiing/storm riding at Iwanai was a horrible value for the money and an absolute shit show operationally.

Response from Iwanai Resort Staff
"Thank you for your feedback regarding your recent CAT tour experience. Actually, we rarely have bad experiences at Iwanai so we take your feedback seriously. I’m very sorry to hear your story and I would like to take this opportunity to address your concerns.

In regard to the lack of communication provided before your run, we apologize if you did not hear the dangers of that course, especially the specific point where riders must exit the valley. There is no easy way out of there so everyone needed to be aware. As mentioned, the winds and weather were bad so communication must be improved on those bad-weather days. To this end, we are installing media units in our new CAT cabins so that clients will be able to be briefed inside the CAT before departure. This coming season, you’ll be able to see video of the run before you embark. And we have made further adjustments so that clients will have better communication with our guides throughout the run.

Regarding a missed opportunity to respond to your request, we sincerely apologize. You are correct, this past season was extremely busy, as we had more clients than ever. But there should have been a call-back to you. We missed the chance to hear your story. We would have apologized and immediately obtained information about how to improve our service. We will humbly do so now. We very much appreciate your understanding and hope that you will give us the opportunity to provide you with a better experience at Iwanai Resort in the future."
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Two great days at Iwanai — John and Dan run a great operation and skiing Iwanai was highlight of our Japow trip!
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This was an exhilarating and intense day of bottomless powder. Not for the faint of heart, but if you like deep, nothing in the area compares. We did CAT skiing with other providers and this gives you about double the vertical with more varied and steeper terrain.
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The day started with a few problems, some people did not get an email about the pick up time so a few delays. They need to smarten up on that one!
That was the only slight hiccup, the rest of the day was a powder dream, with good length runs with great pitch. Loads of untracked powder with a mixed bag of open and tree runs.
The number of runs you get done is really up to the experience of the team on your cat.
A day for the memory bank!
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