We just returned from an eight day shred fest in Japan and it was absolutely incredible! The food was amazing, the landscape is beautiful, and the snow is truly as good as it gets. If you’re into skiing or snowboarding then Japan should absolutely be at the top of your travel list. Here’s a quick glimpse at the itinerary and gear list we used to get the most out of this vacation. This will be a brief overview. If you want every single nitty gritty detail of the trip then keep an eye out for our full blog post that will cover everything from cost to a full packing checklist.

Travel Breakdown

• Day 1: Reno → Tokyo

  • This day started with a 3am wake up call to make it to our 6am flight. Our flight path was Reno → LA → Tokyo → Sapporo, but as luck would have it our Sapporo leg was cancelled due to heavy snow. We got rebooked on another 6am flight for the following morning.

• Day 2: Tokyo → Sapporo → Otaru

  • We caught the first flight out in the morning to Sapporo and our friend Kelby (@the_adventureaddicts) picked us up from the New Chitose airport. We drove 1.5 hrs back to the oceanside house we rented, unpacked, and immediately went back out the door for a short day at Asari Ski Resort. This is a tiny resort 25 minutes out of town and it was the perfect outing to shake the inevitable jet lag.

• Day 3: Otaru

  • Finally, on day three, we got our first full resort day in at Kiroro. We left the house early to get on mountain as fast as possible, which is necessary to get good parking at this popular resort. There was 17” of jaPOW in the forecast and it didn’t stop snowing the entire day. No doubt one of the best resort powder days of my life!

• Day 4: Otaru → Niseko

  • Just like that our time in Otaru was up and it was time to head south to Higashiyama. Our new home was located in this small community that put us within walking distance to the Niseko United resort. However, on this day we chased powder in the backcountry at the base of Mt. Nitonupuri. If you’re looking to chase backcountry lines then this website is a great resource!

• Day 5: Niseko

  • After the final member of our crew arrived we set out bright and early for another day in the backcountry. The avy ratings had increased on this day (3-3-2) so we started the day a bit conservative, climbing just a few hundred feet past our high point on Mt. Nitonupuri. After that lap we set out on a mission to ski the taller neighboring peak, Mt. Chisenupuri. A challenging climb led us into white out conditions, so just shy of the summit we decided to transition and head down. The long powder ride down was one to remember.

• Day 6: Niseko

  • The crew split on this day with half going into the backcountry and Isabel and I going to Niseko United for some resort laps on Mt. Annupuri. We purchased an “All Mountain Pass“ that gave access to all four resorts on the mountain (Niseko Annupuri, Niseko Village, Niseko Grand Hirafu, and Niseko Hanazono). Once you reach the top you just pick a direction to drop into any of the neighboring resorts on the mountain. This was my favorite resort day of the trip. Snow fell all day long and there were plenty of fresh stashes to be found!

• Day 7: Niseko

  • For our last day the whole crew did a resort day in similar fashion to the previous day. This was the first day it hadn’t snowed since we arrived so the powder did get somewhat skied through, however, it was still a blast to rip around with the whole crew.

• Day 8: Niseko → Sapporo → Tokyo

  • We said our goodbyes to our friends the night before because they were going for a HUGE mission on Mt. Yotei this morning. We unfortunately were packing up and headed to Tokyo for the night.

• Day 9: Tokyo → Reno

  • We had a half day to burn in Tokyo and decided to check out the TeamLabs Planets interactive art museum. This was a unique experience that I would recommend to those who like photogenic art pieces or those traveling with kids. Finally, it was time to navigate our way back to the airport for the long journey home.

Gear List