JAPAN 2013/2014
Glad someone got the snow I think I’ve seen more bluebird days here then I did at perisher.
where the f**k is all this snow??? it certainly isnt in niseko, park laps for days
That’s pretty disappointing for you guys I didn’t get to experience the true Japanese powder until my second trip back but boy was it worth it it’s hard to explain how amazing it is!
I hadn’t been following the snow recently so decided to look it up
In fact here’s what we have observed from here in the Hirafu Village area:
3cm snowfall in the last 7 days;
178cm snowfall in February 2014;
1,037cm snowfall since the beginning of the season.The same numbers taken at the beginning of March 2013 last season were:
62cm snowfall in the last 7 days;
406cm snowfall in February 2013;
1,400cm snowfall since the beginning of the season.So acccording to what we have seen here on the ground, we’re over 2m adrift from what we observed last season for the month of February and nearly 4m behind on the total for the season up until the end of February.
Seems like Honshu has done better over this period going by Lano’s photos but Billy’s from Niseko earlier this season were also epic.
Maybe Kuraokami (Japan’s Ullr) was drinking at the same bar as you guys in Tokyo? 
Looks like there’s some fresh stuff on the way mid-late this week if it misses Niseko and is confirmed to hit Honshu I’d be mighty tempted to ditch the camp and fly/train down to the Nagano region.
Hopefully you’ve still enjoyed the amazing people/culture/food while there.
yea my last day of riding is Wednesday so im just getting as stoked off the park as i can till then. im actually really really looking forward to the aus season
yea my last day of riding is Wednesday so im just getting as stoked off the park as i can till then. im actually really really looking forward to the aus season
Bummer but good attitude, I bet your riding has progressed heaps after a month straight of riding and plenty of time in the park.Just have to go back another season to truly experience Japow!
yea my last day of riding is Wednesday so im just getting as stoked off the park as i can till then. im actually really really looking forward to the aus season
Bummer but good attitude, I bet your riding has progressed heaps after a month straight of riding and plenty of time in the park.Just have to go back another season to truly experience Japow!
no it really hasnt 
ive honestly been riding like shit up until today, still not up to what i was at the end of last season. some of my freeriding might have improved a little but all in all i havent been stoking until today. yes i will but i foresee thats not gunna happen for a while because ill be in canada, usa and europe for a while
Had the awesomeness of being able to ride Happo for 12 days and Niseko for 10!
Completely different places and diversity was evident…. Loved how traditionally Japanese Happo was, with awesome Terrain not for the faint hearted. 47 Park absolutely owned it on a blue bird day.
Niseko’s tree runs and off piece areas just blew my mind, particularly with the night ski option at night.
Hano park I will miss you !
Oh to go back from reality!
Hello Japanites
Heading over next year, wondering what people tips/recommendations are for some activites after hitting the pow.
We are going in March and we have 5/6 days afterwards to explore some more of Japan. Was thinking of doing 3 days in Tokyo, 2 in Kyoto and 1 in Hakone and stay at a Onsen hotel or something like that.
Hotel suggestions? Travel suggestions? Must do’s etc??
Any guidance would be great as I haven’t been to Japan before, but I do speak pretty decent Japanese! (seriously! - studied 6 years of it at School)
Hello Japanites
Heading over next year, wondering what people tips/recommendations are for some activites after hitting the pow.
We are going in March and we have 5/6 days afterwards to explore some more of Japan. Was thinking of doing 3 days in Tokyo, 2 in Kyoto and 1 in Hakone and stay at a Onsen hotel or something like that.
Hotel suggestions? Travel suggestions? Must do’s etc??
Any guidance would be great as I haven’t been to Japan before, but I do speak pretty decent Japanese! (seriously! - studied 6 years of it at School)
Early or late march? If late you might get early cherry blossom season which is apparently pretty special.
I don’t think 3 days in Tokyo is near enough (I love that place) but it’s certainly better than nothing. I would recommend basing yourself in Shinjuku. I could give you heaps of things to do and places to stay when you are ready.
Hakone is lovely but it’s going to be a very rushed trip. You would head there straight from Shinjuku either via train or bus. In that time you would pretty much check into your Ryokan (will attach photos of the traditional one we stayed at) be fed and treated like a king. Ryokans aren’t cheap but a must do experience and when you factor in what that standard of meal + breakfast + service would cost you it’s not bad. The one we stayed at was at the cheaper end of the spectrum (certainly not in the multiple 1000’s per night category) and I have zero complaints. Get off to an early start and do the standard loop of the sights which you can fit in a day if you don’t muck around. I can’t really recommend the effort of going to Mt Fuji unless you absolutely know it’s going to be a clear day (we spent a day getting there and back and it was completely fogged out, still a good experience but just made Hakone a time rush)
From there you would catch the shink to Kyoto. I enjoyed Kyoto but prefer Tokyo and Osaka as it’s a bit more lively (although my travel partner enjoyed the relative calm of Kyoto). Kyoto has some very important/historical temples and sites (which aren’t really my thing) but are worth seeing at least once. You can also get a nice feed in Kyoto and some of the markets/side streets are good fun (more my kind of thing) Once again I can recommend accommodation/siteseeing based on my experience there if you need. You will need to catch trains/busses whilst in Kyoto as the main sites are spread out in different corners of the city.
Traditional Ryokan Sleeping (we actually had 3 rooms and a private shower/toilet)
Ryokan Outdoor Onsen by the creek great way to end the night and start the morning.
Just one of the 10 course dinner.
The kind of views you get all day in Hakone
Kyoto traditional style
Osaka bright lights style!
Shinjuku Sightseeing =D
we will be there late March so hoping to see some Cherry Blossom action! There are plenty in Tokyo right?
Yes I’ve been told Shinjuku is the place to be. I’m starting to look into things now so it would be great if you can recommend some hotels and things to do and we can go from there.
Hakone would be great just to visit onsen and stay in a Traditional Ryokan and head off to Kyoto the next day maybe?
Can probably work out to fly home from Kyoto that way we’d get an extra day in Tokyo at the start.
We aren’t really party types (just my wife and I) but we are keen to do anything really!
Any recommendations re hotels and sightseeing would be awesome.
we will be there late March so hoping to see some Cherry Blossom action! There are plenty in Tokyo right?
Yes I’ve been told Shinjuku is the place to be. I’m starting to look into things now so it would be great if you can recommend some hotels and things to do and we can go from there.
Hakone would be great just to visit onsen and stay in a Traditional Ryokan and head off to Kyoto the next day maybe?
Can probably work out to fly home from Kyoto that way we’d get an extra day in Tokyo at the start.
We aren’t really party types (just my wife and I) but we are keen to do anything really!Any recommendations re hotels and sightseeing would be awesome.
Yep I’ve never been there at that time of year (my parents went April but got unlucky with an early season so only got the leftover blossoms) off the top of my head the big Shinjuku park has heaps of trees and there’s also a line of them near the skytree. Basically any of the parks and you will see them. Kyoto also has heaps of places to check them out as well.
I’m definitely not the hard partying type either. When I’m in Japan I do my best to live/eat like a Japanese person, trying most things at least once and absorbing as much of the culture/experience as possible.
So you wouldn’t bother doing the hakone loop while you were there? Pirate ships and cablecars do sound kind of meh but it was a pretty spectacular day with some awesome views. Also pretty cool eating the sulfuric water cooked black eggs at Owakudani.
As special as the Ryokan experience was I don’t know if on that time schedule I could recommend heading out to Hakone if it’s simply to stay in a Ryokan as you could find some nice Ryokans in Kyoto/Tokyo if you want that experience.
My two go to hotels in Shinkuku are The Washington Shinjuku for a very affordable nice enough place. It’s about a 10min walk to central Shinjuku (has a underground tunnel the whole way if the weather is bad)
If you want to stay in the heart of the action (Kabukicho area) I can recommend the Shinjuku Prince Hotel. My parents ended up with an amazing view straight over the city and they really didn’t pay that much. You walk out the door and you have the station on one side and Kabukicho/Shopping/Eating district on the other. Added bonus of being really close to one of my favourite meal spots “piss alley”
If you can make it to a night baseball game I’d recommend that (even if you don’t like baseball) worth it for the food/crowd/chanting and singing along. I got my tickets from one of the little cash convertor style ticket shops (there’s a whole bunch of them in a row behind piss alley) for about a 3rd of the price (even better as I couldn’t get any elsewhere as it was sold out)
I could rattle off a whole bunch of other must visits, Harajuku, Shibuya, Asakusa etc but we’ll wait until you need an itinerary for that. Robot Restaurant is a must!! Ask around as I managed to get a 2 for 1 voucher from the hotels concierge but for the fun I had I’d pay full price.
The Ryokan we stayed at in Hakone was Kijitei Hoeiso. I recommend checking out http://www.japaneseguesthouses.com/ who will recommend/book something for you.
In Kyoto we stayed at the Hotel Monterey. Highly recommend it, Very nice room/service and central location for a great price. Some of the standard go to sites are Golden Temple, Silver Temple, Gion, Nishiki Markets, Nijo Castle, Sanjusangendo (1001 highly detailed statues) if you are an animal lover Nara is a short train away where you hand feed deer.
You can’t fly from Kyoto but you can from Osaka which is only a short train trip away.
great info - cheers
I’ll add a couple of things in and hope not to double up with Dave’s excellent posts!!!!!
Firstly I agree with Shinjuku as a base for Tokyo too, as it’s easy to get to most highlights that Tokyo has to offer in a short period!!!!!
Shinjuku West is a quieter area to stay, as opposed to the East, so if your after accommodation that’s in a more relaxed area then west is where it’s at!!!!! Within a shirt walk you’ll be in the thick of it whenever you want though!!!!! * We stayed in the Hilton here, and the location was excellent, with fast subway access to the Maranouchi Line at the door when we needed to train it through to Nagano from Tokyo Station!!!!! A little but dearer, but the breakfast in that joint was worth it alone!!!!! Hahahaaaa!!!!!
Use the JR Yamanote Line when navigating Tokyo which is basically a loop that covers most of the main highlights of the area!!!!! * Just look for the Green signs!!!!
Along the way places such as Harajuku (shopping/people watching/Meiji Park), Shibuya (Famous Crossing/Love Hotels/Hachiko Shrine/food/shopping), and Shinjuku itself with endless things to wander around and be amazed!!!!! The train station at Shinjuku is the busiest in the world, so try and avoid during peak times, unless you want to feel like bein in a penguin march!!!!!
Kyoto, we stayed at Granvia which is the hotel that sits above the super modern, and super big, Kyoto Train Station!!!!!
Again this was a bit pricey, but the location to access Kyoto’s transport hub was nothin short of a walk out the door!!!!!
In Kyoto, a visit to Higashiyama (Kyomizudera Temple/ninen-zaka sanen-zaka), Arashiyama hire a pushy near the train station and do the temple route, and have lunch down by the river as if the blossoms are out, there’s a nice Forrest that will put on a good show!!!!! I think you can even hire/charter a boat????? Visit the Giant Bamboo Forrest, and stop and sample food, and buy souvenirs in a few of the little random shops around the area!!!!!)
I’d definitely try and squeeze a Ryokan stay in somewhere too, as it’s a buzz!!!!! * ask them for an extra mattress on ya futon as it’ll make it that much more comfy to sleep on!!!!! And try the Japanese Breakfast at least once while in the Ryokan, and as most Ryokans do, try the Kaiseki for a romantic type dinner one night!!!!! And wear the Yukata whenever you’re in the building!!!!!
If I think of any more ill post it up!!!!!
Ohh, and from Kyoto you can get a connecting flight to Tokyo from Kansai (close prox to Osaka) Itami Airport, which is a ~ 1 hour bus trip that leaves near the train station!!!!!
On the trip from Tokyo to Kyoto, I recommend doin a Shinkansen (bullet train), and maybe do a ryokan around the Nagano region????? Nozawa Onsen has a multitude of Ryokan and at that time of the year you’ll have the place all to yaself!!!!! Plus you could go up and see the Snow Monkeys at Jigokudani while ya there!!!!!
Or even Hakuba Valley????? There’s a Ryokan there that I’ve got earmarked myself for one day, that has Rotenburo Baths on private balconies in select rooms!!!!! * I’ll post a link when I get the chance!!!!!
Only just re-read, and you’re riding!!!!!
Which resort/s ?????
Awesome tips Dave and Miz! I’ll be taking some of them on board too, I have to stop going to Japan just for the pow!!
I’d love to go to Kyoto…
Kyoto is cool, Billy!!!!!
Especially if ya like pottery and little knick nacks!!!!!
Mrs Miz had a field day around Higashiyama and Arashiyama!!!!!