Rusutsu
Why all the way here?
‘On a clear day, from the top of Mount Rusutsu you can see both lake Toya and the Sea of Japan’. I’ve gotten used to the tendency at exaggerating very simple things the Japanese are prone to (take flowers, for instance), but Hokkaido’s snow is really something else. I’ve never experienced anything like if – on a good day riding feels like surfing, as the snow is so smooth. It also snows consistently through the entire season as winds fly in from Siberia. Surprisingly, it is not that cold – or being so crisp it doesn’t feel as cold as it could. Falling in the fresh snow is even pleasant as it is so fluffy. Paradise. On a snowy day, the black slope descending Mount Isola is a lot of fun. But all slopes were amazing and quite wide too, so good for practicing. Besides from the usual appealing food scene, this onsen inside the hotel is beautifully designed and has a rotemburo with sky+snow views and a jet bath (and even a hair brush steriliser, which looks like a small fridge filled with brushes instead of ice cream). I stayed here and loved it, perfectly placed by the slopes!
Niseko
Hokkaido in general gets washed out in snow, but I experienced this is Niseko in particular. It snows so consistently that groomed slopes will be covered in fresh snow in a matter or hours. Might have been that day specifically, but the snow piles up in white blocks similar to the dunes in the desert. The powder’s consistency makes it just dreamy to ride down – I loved the black slope on the Higashiyama side finishing at the gondola by the Hilton (from the gondola’s vending machine you can buy, among other items, corn soup, which seems to be extremely popular). There is also a charming single person chair that you can take from the top at Hirafu – I think it dates back to when the resort first opened – it’s cute.
The surroundings
Being food so exceptional in all of Japan I even feel Hokkaido’s specialties fall a little behind the national standard.. with one notable exception :::: seafood *during my Hokkaido trip I also tried fish jerky for the first time* Skip everything else and focus on the fresh seafood! Seafood Don is an excellent option (uni don = sea urchin being my favorite)! The train ride from Kutchan (closest station to Niseko Hirafu) goes by Otaru, which used to be an important port/fishing town with frequent commercial relations with Russian and Chinese counterparts. I might have had the best serving of octopus of my life here. Half of the train ride is by the seaside so you get to experience the unusual combination of fresh snow and waves (and even some surfers). There is some kind of poetry to the Sea in winter. The vibe in Sapporo was super nice and I hadn’t seen a big city covered in snow in a while. If you have some time to kill at the airport.. there is a great onsen with rotemburo on the last floor: some snow froze on my hair while I was on the rotemburo 🙂 onsen with snow is onsen at its best!
this is of course merely introductory …I love Hokkaido !!
