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Cain Nunns

Niseko, a once sleepy farming area in southwest Hokkaido, has gone through a series of booms and busts over the years. For now, in what is arguably Asia’s premier ski destination, it is all boom.
Millions of visitors from across the globe come to this part of Japan mainly for the winters at Niseko United – the term used for the linked ski areas above the villages of Niseko, Hirafu, Hanazono and Annupuri – and some of the driest, fluffiest, most consistent powder on offer anywhere. But it’s not all luxurious ski-in ski-out hotels, private-onsen stocked chalets in the woods and world-class snow.
The summers also offer a lot, as Kristian Lund, the managing editor of luxury bible Powderlife; Cezar Constantin, who owns the Niseko Pizza restaurant; and Henry Hockley, owner of ski and snowboard school Mountain Memories in nearby Rusutsu, know all too well.
“It’s all about lifestyle,” says Constantin, a Romanian who has called Japan home for 24 years, including the past 18 in Niseko. “And making the most of every season.”
What to do in the summer

“Everyone says they came for the winters but stayed for the summer, and that’s me as well,” says Lund, an Australian who grew up in Japan as the son of a diplomat and has lived in Niseko for 19 years. “It’s just a beautiful green, natural place to be.”
Last year, Canadian Hockley, a regular winter visitor, spent his first, non-pandemic summer here. “It was as if all the people and chaos of winter had faded away,” he says, “and left in their wake a concentrated pool of wonderful, impassioned community members who shared my love for this place.”
“Niseko in the summer is unreal,” says Constantin. “One of my favourite things about it is the fresh produce. The farms have the best berries, vegetables and dairy products in Hokkaido. You can even pick your own fruit.”
He recommends the Niseko Tada Farm, and Cherry Mountain Farm, an hour’s drive north, in Niki.
“Onsen hopping is another must do,” says Constantin. “Goshiki Onsen [about 25 minutes northwest of Niseko Village] is my favourite – rustic, steamy and surrounded by mountains.”

Lund recommends mountain biking. “There’s a group of 25 volunteers who have put together an incredible trail [the Twin Peaks Bike Park] that’s connected to Grand Hirafu [the largest of the Niseko United resorts],” he says. Bikes can be rented all over Hirafu, at shops such as Rhythm, a few minutes from the Ace Gondola, which has a selection of E- and hybrid bikes, mountain and road bikes and bicycles for children.
Hockley singles out Lake Toya – a volcanic caldera lake in Shikotsu-Toya National Park, a 45-minute drive southeast of Niseko Village – as a destination that should not be missed. Surrounded by walking trails and onsen with water views, Toya is the scene of a pyrotechnic show every night between April and October, the fireworks set off from a boat in the lake.
“Emotionally there is a charge from that volcano,” says Hockley. “In summer, not only is the water calm and warm, but the surrounding parks and island in the middle are home to sika deer that complete the experience.”
What to do in winter

“You have to go night skiing at Grand Hirafu – under the lights is pure magic,” says Constantin. “The trails are quieter, the snow stays fresh and the whole mountain just glows.
“If that is too sedate, then go snowmobiling; there’s nothing like tearing through snowy forests and open fields, feeling the rush of speed and cold air.”
Lund suggests heading to Lake Hangetsu, at the base of Mount Yotei. “It’s a volcanic crater, which erupted a few thousand years ago,” he says. “You can swim it in summer and autumn, but in winter you snowshoe up to the crater rim and then down to the crater. The lake is frozen and snow falls on top of that. You snowshoe this perfectly flat lake of snow in a spectacular location.”
Mount Yotei itself, a pint-sized Mount Fuji that looms over Niseko and is what the Japanese consider to be a “snow-catcher”, has also found favour with Hockley.

“During the pandemic, I was trapped in Rusutsu [a resort village about 30 minutes’ drive from Niseko] slowly going crazy,” he says. “To coax me out of my Minecraft marathon, my parents bribed me to ‘go on a little walk’. No one said this would take eight hours and almost 2km of elevation. I ended up sleeping on the path in the fetal position as tourists stepped over me.
“I have to admit it was one of the most spectacular views ever.”
Where to eat
Niseko is all about local produce served up by chefs who have trained all over the world. It would take more than a single season to eat through every worthy restaurant.
“Molière Montagne [French fine dining] in the Park Hyatt is owned by chef [Hiroshi] Nakamichi, who has three stars,” says Lund. “It is very good, but he has another spot, in Makkari village [about 20 minutes from Niseko Village], called Maccarina. It’s a very similar concept, but you have to get in a car and drive out there, which makes it more of an experience.”

For Constantin, whose Niseko Pizza is in Kutchan, a town about 20 minutes north of Niseko Village, “Iwanai [a small coastal town northwest of Niseko] is my go-to seafood spot. There are too many great places: Takezushi has high-quality sushi; Iwanai Banya Uoki is a cosy, fisherman’s hut-style restaurant with some of the best teppanyaki and seafood, and an excellent sake selection; Hokui 43-do Oshokujidokoro serves hands down the best yakizakana [grilled fish] in Hokkaido.”
Hockley prefers his eateries more low key, offering up as a suggestion the Green Farm Cafe, which is a few minutes’ walk from the ski lifts in Hirafu. “It kind of does everything; very much a coffee spot in the morning, then fancy drinks at night,” he says. “You meet loads of cool people from all over the world.”
Where to stay

“Shouya Grigg is a British artist and developer who makes impressive properties,” says Lund. “He brought a 150-year-old kominka, which is an old farm house, from Honshu. He moved it up here and has built four other villas,” all of which can be rented for the short term. The Shiguchi Villas complex is in the hills of Hanazono and also contains “a couple of really cool art galleries and a lot of old Jomon pottery and Ainu artefacts”, he says. “Jomon is 10,000 to 15,000 years old and some of the earliest pottery examples in the world.”
Asked for accommodation tips, Constantin rattles off a list of the usual five-star suspects before settling on Suiboku apartments, in Hirafu. “It’s well-designed loft-style accommodation that mixes industrial with traditional Japanese elements,” he says. “Each unit has great views of Mount Yotei, and it’s just a short walk to the Ace family chairlift.”

While there are dozens of upmarket ski-in ski-out chalets and hotels in the area, unique, more cost-friendly options include WabiSabi, an Airbnb about an eight-minute drive from the lifts in Rusutsu.
“It was where we used to stay with my dad when we were coming out here 10 years ago,” says Hockley. “It’s very warm and cosy. All of the furniture is from Bali, mostly teak; think, mix and match tiles and stone tubs.”


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Insiders’ guide to the summer - and winter - attractions of ski hub Niseko

Lake Toya in Shikotsu-Toya National Park, Hokkaido, Japan. Photo: Shutterstock

Visitors can swim in Lake Hangetsu in Niseko in summer, and walk on it’s frozen surface in snowshoes in the winter. Photo: Niseko Tourism

Mountain bikers tackle some of the cycling trails around Niseko. Photo: Niseko Area Mountain Bike Association/ Instagram

Night skiing under lights is “pure magic”. Photo: Niseko Tourism

A chairlift carries skiers up to Niseko’s slopes with snow-capped Mount Yotei in the background. Photo: Shutterstock 

Lamb chops served in the Moliere Montagne restaurant at the Park Hyatt Niseko Hanazono. Photo: Moliere Montagne

The Shiguchi Villas complex in the hills of Hanazono. Photo: Shiguchi Villas

Each of the apartments in Hirafu’s Suiboku complex features framed views of Mount Yotei. Photo: Suiboku Hotel

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Travel

What to do, see and eat in Japan’s skiing mecca – in summer as well as winter


What to do, see and eat in Japan’s skiing mecca – in summer as well as winter.


Insiders’ guide to the summer - and winter - attractions of ski hub Niseko

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}What to do, see and eat in Japan’s skiing mecca – in summer as well as winter

What to do, see and eat in Japan’s skiing mecca – in summer as well as winter