freeride camp

NISEKO AND SAPPORO AREA, JAPAN

freeride
camp

NISEKO AND
SAPPORO AREA
JAPAN

2890 EUR

8 or 9 Days of Skiing

80% Lift Access
20% Ski Touring

Free skis/snowboards and avalanche kit

Season from Dec 27th
to Mar 10th

RESERVE

Ride the best lines of Niseko and Sapporo area

Hokkaido island is world-famous for its dry powder and the southwest portion of the island gets the most of it. This trip is our bestseller. There will be 7-8 days of lift-accessed off-piste skiing (with occasional short hikes) and 1-2 days of backcountry ski touring (optional). Flexibility is key and skiing the best snow on any given day is our priority.

Highlights include long powder lines in Kokusai resort, a backcountry tour to Mount Yotei volcano, skiing our hidden gems in the back of Rusutsu resort, playing around Shirebetsu-dake and countless powder runs in Moiwa.

We want you to have the complete experience, so you will try different Japanese restaurants and our favorite onsens (hot pools). Skis, snowboards, and avalanche equipment are there free for your use in Japan.

Skiing powder in Niseko with Mt. Yotei in the background

FREERIDE CAMP

2890 EUR (8 ski days)
3090 EUR (9 ski days)

Guiding

Ski Passes

9/ 10 Nights of Accommodation

Breakfasts

Transportation in Japan

Avalanche Training Session

Ski Technique Coaching (optional)

Free Avalanche Equipment (Backpack, Beacon, Probe, Shovel)

Free rental of Skis and Boards (Kaestle skis, Nitro and Gara boards)

RESERVE

DATES

2024/25 season

New Year’s custom date

Jan 3 – Jan 12. (8 ski days)

Jan 12 – Jan 22 (9 ski days)

Jan 22 – Feb 1 (9 ski days)

Feb 1 – Feb 11 (9 ski days)

Feb 11 – Feb 20 (8 ski days)

Feb 20 – Mar 1 (8 ski days)

Mar 1 – Mar 10 (8 ski days)

EXTRA

not included

Lunch and Dinners

Flight ticket to Sapporo (Europe to Sapporo costs around 800 EUR)

Travel & Cancel Insurance (approx. 100 EUR)

Optional Cat Skiing (get in touch for more details)

We can help out with flight reservations and insurance.

Contact us if you have a group of people and prefer a private trip with tailor-made itinerary, private guide and van. Shorter trips are available.

Itinerary

Flexibility is the key and in this sample itinerary, you can find out what we do. We will adjust this itinerary according to weather conditions and requirements of our guests.

DAY 1 _ Arrival to Japan | Transfer to our house

We will privately transfer you to our house, set up the equipment, and take you to dinner.

DAY 2 _ Rusutsu | Evening: Avalanche Awareness Presentation

Ski-resort with best tree-skiing on the island with great backcountry options. After skiing, you will learn how to navigate safely through backcountry terrain so we can go ski touring in the upcoming days.

DAY 3 _ Moiwa & Avalanche Rescue Practice | Evening: Onsen

Powder skiing gem with one lift, where you can ski fresh lines until 2 pm.

We will practice beacon search after skiing.

DAY 4 _ Niseko Backbowls & North Face| Optional: Night skiing in Niseko

Niseko is famous for a reason — comprised of 4 resorts (Grand Hirafu, Hanazono, Niseko Village, and Annupurri). While very popular, if you know where to go, you can still score some of the best lines on Hokkaido especially from the peak of Annupuri.

DAY 5 _ Kiroro | Evening: Karaoke Night (optional)

Kiroro receives the same amount of white goods and is still relatively undiscovered.

Some of our guides have a history as ski-instructors too, so we can offer video analysis of your technique and give you tips for improving your skiing/riding in deep snow.

DAY 6 _ Day Off or Unguided Skiing Day

Our guests are asked to cover a one-day ski pass if they decide to ski on this day. You can enjoy the Niseko/Moiwa area unguided, take the day off and chill, or visit the Whiskey Distillery or Otaru.

For guests who choose a shorter camp and do not want to have a rest day, there are 2 options:
1) Unguided skiing day in a nearby ski resort (ski pass not covered)
2) If there are at least 5 people interested, we can arrange guided skiing with a supplement

DAY 7 _ Backcountry Day: Mount Yotei Volcano | Evening: Onsen

We will hike up Mt. Yotei volcano and get to ski inside the crater. 1500 vertical meter descent down Yotei will be the highlight of your Japanese trip. This tour takes from 4 – 6 hours and can be avoided by taking a resort day.

DAY 8 _ Sapporo Kokusai

Gondola serviced Kokusai is not in the scope of freeride crowds. It has some amazing off-piste and great access to the backcountry.

DAY 9 _ Sapporo Teine

Teine has the steepest terrain in Hokkaido and amazing ocean views.

DAY 10 _ Backcountry day: Touring in SW Hokkaido (secret location) / Evening: Party in Sapporo

We can hit one of our favourite backcountry options, go car lapping (using van instead of lift) or show you a line all the way to the ocean.

DAY 11 _ Fly back home OR Stay in Japan for more days in JAPOW

Please note that DAY 1 of each trip is your arrival to Japan. Flights to Japan from Europe take 2 days (due to time difference). If you need assistance with your flight booking, feel free to ask us.

Accommodation

Our Accommodation

FAMILY ATMOSPHERE

For our guests, we offer accommodations in the center of Kutchan (Niseko area) within walking distance to all local izakayas, restaurants, bars, and grocery stores.

We have 2 different accommodations, both are of equal quality and standard. The first option is a modern Japanese pension featuring a cool dining area with a fireplace, perfect for cozy evenings with fellow guests over a beer or local whiskey. The pension includes two bathrooms with a shower, and a fully equipped kitchen. Everyone can cook in the kitchen and you can store food in the fridge. There are 4 bedrooms. Breakfasts are prepared by our chef here.

The second accommodation is a small hotel, just a four-minute walk from the previous accommodation. Here, each room has an en-suite bathroom and you also have a small fridge and a kettle in the room. The hotel also features a small restaurant and is located right next to a 7/11 convenience store which often comes in handy. There is also a washing machine to use.
Guests staying here can also use facilities from the pension and hang out in the common area in the evening.

Guests are staying in twin rooms.

AUTHENTIC JAPAN

Unlike Hirafu (the main town for Niseko), Kutchan still feels like authentic Japan. However, if you fancy some more expensive restaurants and bars, we would be happy to take you out to Hirafu.

Check out full gallery of our accommodation.

Free skis/snowboards and avalanche kit

Free equipment

We provide top-level equipment for free use in Japan.

Skis:

Kastle BMX and FX (115mm and 105mm underfoot), Scott Scrapper (120mm underfoot) and Punisher (105mm – 110mm underfoot), Armada JJ (117mm underfoot) in various lengths for men and women

Snowboards:

Nitro Slash (powder specific), Gara Splitboards

Ski bindings:

Fritschi Tecton (tech binding) and Tyrolia Adrenalin (frame binding, classic binding with hiking option)

Avalanche equipment:

Shovel, probe, beacon from Pieps, Non-Avalanche backpacks from Pieps

plus telescopic poles and snowshoes for short hikes for snowboarders.

You can reserve all this in the booking form after you sign up for your trip.

We do not provide cartridges for ABS backpacks, please bring your cartridge with your backpack.

We do not provide ski boots, helmets, snowboard boots or snowboard bindings.

Details

Ski resorts

Freeride resorts options include Niseko (Grand Hirafu, Niseko Village, Annupuri, and Hanazono), Rusutsu, Moiwa, Kiroro, Kokusai, Tenguyama or Teine.

We can ski tour up Mt. Yotei, Mt. Shiribetsu or a number of peaks in Niseko range and secluded spots around Sapporo Area. Backcountry skiing is limitless.

Vertical meters

Downhill – Around 6,000 downhill vertical meters a day (resort dependent). Runs are from 500 to 900m in vertical drop.

Uphill – Hardest backcountry day (optional) will be on Mt. Yotei which takes 4 to 6 hours (1500 m vertical). Other tours take up to 3 hours (around 900m – a total of multiple runs). The pace is adjusted to the needs of the group.

Who is it for

Our trip is for both skiers and snowboarders and we have guides for both disciplines. We suggest a group for you based on your experience.

We have had folks who tried powder skiing for the first time as well as riders back-flipping pillows and hitting avalanche barriers.

Our trip is for individuals, couples or bigger groups. If you travel solo – don’t worry, you will get to know fellow skiers/riders and have a good time.

You should be able to ski/ride black slopes with control to attend our trip. Previous freeride experience helps but is not mandatory.

You should have a reasonable level of fitness to be able to follow the itinerary of the trip (no activities are mandatory, you can always take more days off.)

Group size

The group size is a maximum of 6 people. We often have 2 groups at a time, so you can choose between a faster and slower one (alternatively more freeride or ski touring/splitboarding orientated)

Thinking about the trip, but not ready to commit?

Leave us your email, and we will let you know when the trip is about to be sold out.

Check FAQs for more details

Extra options for:

Private trip

Do you want a private trip with a tailor-made itinerary, a private van a guide? Get in touch.

16100 EUR (max 6 people)

(i.e. 200 EUR per person discount)

Expert skiers and snowboarders

Our classic trip is already pretty packed and we can adjust it to different ski/snowboard levels.

However, do you want to take it further? Cover more vertical? Hit avalanche barriers or pillow lines? Ski all the way to the ocean or have your line filmed by the drone? We can put together an expert-level program for you. Ideally, get 5 or 6 friends together and get in touch. Alternatively, we can pair you with other expert skiers or snowboarders who are coming in a season.

Safety is the priority for us. If the conditions are not right, our guides will pursue more conservative options for each day.

GET IN TOUCH FOR EXTRA OPTIONS