WHAT’S HAPPENING DECEMBER 21-22 DECEMBER
XMAS @ HAKUBA GORYU Find Santa and engjoy choco fondu at Hakuba night of fireworks & food.
31 DECEMBER
NEW YEAR COUNTDOWN
At Happo, Goryu and Iwatake. Welcome 2014!!
JANUARY 11-13 JANUARY
Gelande Jack @ 47
Anime characters and costume riders at Hakuba 47.
15 JANUARY
Nozawa Fire Festival
1 FEBRUARY
Kashimayari Fireworks Participate in the annual Kashimayari. Take the Omachi-Go Bus.
Buses leave Hakuba in the early evening and return late at night.
7-15 FEBRUARY
18 JANUARY
We Love Snow Festival.
Minekata Fire Event
7 FEBRUARY
Fire torch skiing and sake at Minekata Ski Area.
FEBRUARY 1,8,15,22 FEBRUARY
Omachi Snow Festival
Take the Omachi-go bus to Omachi every Saturday in February for taiko drums,
fireworks and igloos.
Yuki-koi Festival
Iwatake Thanks Festival
Japanese taiko drummers, raffles and pounding mochi!
The Hakuba ski jump will be lit up with thousands of candles. Enjoy fireworks.
15 FEBRUARY
Happo Fire Festival
Happo-one Nakiayama slopes is the place to be for an evening of fun.
1 MARCH
Snow Splash
Don’t miss the party of the year at The Pub in Wadano.
6-7 MARCH
Riesen Slalom
22 FEBRUARY
68th Annual downhill race on Happo-one. Dare you enter?
Tsugaike Kogen Festival
8-9 MARCH
Snow and Ultra Thanksgiving festival at Tsugaike Kogen.
Snow Ball Fight
8 FEBRUARY
MARCH
The First annual Hakuba snowball fight competition. At Happo-one.
Happy Valentine Night
1 MARCH
8 MARCH
Red Bull in Hakuba
Goryu Snow Festival
Chocolate fondu at fireworks at Hakuba Goryu from 6pm.
9 FEBRUARY
Freestyle Snowboard contest at the Snow Jump Stadium
Fireworks, Japanese drums, torch lit skiing. A great event.
Snow Illuminations
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FULL RANGE OF IN RESORT SERVICES
Come and pick up your in resort guide at anytime at the Liquid Snow Tours office next door to the Hakuba Springs Hotel
Every visitor to Hakuba is welcome to join us for a weekly welcome event and information session at Jack's bar every Tuesday between 5 and 6pm + Apres house music evenings at the Marillen Hotel and Restaurant every Wednesday and Saturday.
EXCLUSIVE TO LIQUID CUSTOMERS: - Bus and train station pick up/drop off - Restaurant/bar shuttles to certain venues - Day tour bookings - Ski hire and lesson bookings - Tokyo accommodation and transfer bookings - Onsen shuttles from a range of hotels - Arrange packages to Nozawa Onsen, Myoko Kogen and Shiga Kogen
Call or email us for information and bookings. + 81 (0) 261 75 50 33, info@snowtour.com.au www.ski-resorts-japan.com Follow us on Facebook for daily snow and event updates + more www.facebook.com/liquidsnowtours
Retail Therapy For those of us who enjoy shopping as much being on the snow, there are some exciting new developments to report this season in Hakuba. While Hakuba has always had a range of gear shops, including the old favourites such as Yamatoya, the village has been somewhat lacking the retail experience that international guests are accustomed to when they visit a ski resort. This season should see that change for the better! A great addition to the retail menu is a new ski specialty retailer called Three Peaks. Three Peaks is based in the Springs Hotel arcade in the center of Happo village. They offer all the latest skis from Liberty, the Colorado based free-ski brand known for its range of backcountry and powder skis made from bamboo. Demo skis are available for those who want to try before they buy. Three Peaks also carries an extensive range of men’s, women’s and kid’s ski wear from Obemeyer, the world famous ski wear brand also from Colorado. They also stock big sizes for those struggling to find gear that fits in Japan and also a great range of fleeces, inners and other essential winter items.
First Snow in Japan Even though your vacation is short, don’t you wish your kids could stay longer on the slopes? Well now they can. My First Snow in Japan is aimed at kids from 10 to 17 and is based in a new refurbished lodge on the slopes of Iimori at Hakuba Goryu. This ski in-ski out location adjacent to beginner and intermediate slopes will get the kids skiing like champions in no time at all. Different groups from school trips to individuals with everything
taken care of by the First Snow in Japan’s firendly staff which includes airport to Hakuba transportation. Special evenings are planned such as ninja disguise, kimono dress up and sushi making. Children already in the resort are welcome to join the camp, and make new everlasting friends. More details can be found online at: http://myfirstsnowinjapan. weebly.com/
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apanese people love kitsch. Whether it’s frilly maids in Akihabara, grown women spending all of their holidays at Tokyo Disneyland, Pokemon or Hello Kitty painted fifteen feet high on the body of an airliner, … nothing can be too “kawaii” or cute. Such concept just does not exist. A new form of kawaii has developed in recent years in the shape of “Yuru Kyara”, literally “loose characters”. Yuru Kyara are mascot characters who promote businesses, local areas, or regional produce. Their “looseness” lies in the quirkiness that comes from the things they are trying to promote, which can be anything from towns to leeks to towels, and in their naivety and amateurishness compared to professional creations like Mickey Mouse and Miffy. The boom in mascot characters has been led by regional communities whose Yura Kyara often incorporate the area’s special product, culture, or history. The only rule is that the cuter, the better! Such mascots try to build a brand that a town can market through souvenirs like stationery, toys, and boxes of cookies. Life-size mascots also make appearances at events and festivals. Some of the more famous characters have become household names, rivaling Japanese television and sport stars in popularity. There are an estimated 1,000 mascots throughout Japan and a competition called the “Yuru Kyara Grand Prix” is held annually to select the most popular. King of the Yuru Kyara is Kumamon, a black bear with a stunned smile who represents the Kyushu town of Kumamoto. Despite being a cartoon, Kumamon is active on social media and has nearly 300,000 followers on Twitter. He has also made overseas trips promoting tourism to Japan. Not to be out-done, here in the Hakuba Valley the villages of Hakuba
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and Otari have taken the plunge and created their own characters, Victoire Cheval Blanc Murao 3rd and Tari Tari. Please take a look and make the big decision, which one is the most “kawaii”? Hakuba’s character, Victoire Cheval Blanc Murao 3rd, was born in September 2012. He was designed in a competition by a local eight-year-old and is a white horse reflecting the well-known Chinese characters in Hakuba’s name. His name was the winner in a further competition. The first part is “Victory White Horse” in French, “Murao” is a Japanese name that means “village boy”, and the “3rd” is, well we don’t really know! Maybe it’s a takeoff from the popular Japanese anime “Lupin the 3rd”. Though suitably cosmopolitan, his full name is a bit of a mouthful, so locals have taken to calling him simply “Murao”. Murao featured as part of Hakuba’s 100th anniversary as a ski town last year. He’s a proficient skier, but has also started
heard, throughout the Hakuba Valley. Tari Tari Kun changes his color with the seasons. In spring, he is pink to match the cherry blossoms. In summer, known here as the “green season”, he becomes light green. Like the leaves, he changes to orange in autumn, and then becomes blue in winter. I don’t think we would be able to see him if he were white. In winter, Tari Tari Kun sports a pair of goggles and is a great snowboarder. He can ski too, and last year ski-jumped through a ring of fire at the Tsugaike Fire Festival. After a hard day on the mountain, Tari Tari Kun likes nothing better than to relax in an onsen and then enjoy a drink of his favorite Japanese sake. Being a woodpecker, Tari Tari Kun also enjoys tweeting (in Japanese) on Twitter at @taritariotari. Keep your eyes open and you may see Murao and Tari Tari Kun on the slopes or out and about in town.
snowboarding. He once sat in an onsen for over two hours. He realized he was scared of heights when he visited the observation deck of the Hakuba Jump Stadium. One day, he is looking forward to becoming Hakuba mayor. Otari’s character, Tari Tari, or more affectionately “Tari Tari Kun” is a woodpecker. He was also designed by a local boy and named by a local girl. Woodpeckers are found, or should we say
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OUT OF BOUNDS EXPLORE THE BACKCOUNTRY SAFELY
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rental option in the upper Wadano area for all local visitors. With attentive service, excellent equipment and competitive prices Koharu are delighted to be able to make such a genuine recommendation to their guests. In-house Videographer: During the peak season months Koahru are excited to present to their guests their very own in-house videographer who will be available for private hire. Guests will have the opportunity to take home a personalized mini film from which to remember their Hakuba holiday. We all know how hard it is to capture those holiday highlights, so they are very excited to be able to offer this service option and hope it will provide happy memories for years to come. Restaurant: As with any trip to a foreign country, one of the big boxes to tick is the chance to sample some of the local cuisine. The onsite restaurant open throughout the season will be providing visitors with this opportunity. With a strong focus on Nagano produce including Hakuba pork customers will be presented
with a menu that combines the best of Japanese food and delicious local ingredients with a Western twist. In such a prime location near the slopes, the afternoon tea service will allow for a chance to refuel after a day on the mountain perhaps with a local Sake or beer as well! Hakuba: With the number of international ski resorts developing these days, as a new property Hakuba Connect asked “why Hakuba?” Abundant snowfall, incredible skiing terrain and slopes for all levels in the midst of a friendly, welcoming and humble Japanese community, the winters speak for themselves. But as a year round operation, here at Koharu Resort Hotel we wanted more and, as we soon found out, Hakuba does not fail to deliver. The spring, summer and autumn seasons each have their own unique charms and are, for many locals, a favored time of the year. As the winter air warms the beautiful Japanese cherry blossoms burst into life and the winter slopes transform as wild mountain flowers appear from beneath the snow. Spring turns
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Sales Direct
+81-(0)261-72-6133 +81-(0)80-1060-7070 Property Listings www.hakuba-real-estate.com E-mail sales@sakurarealestate.com
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M i s o r a n o
The Largest Izakaya in Hakuba Wide selection of great food Party and Karaoke rooms are available Good Variety of Japanese Sake
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Open everyday to end of February then closed on Tues/Wed
M i s o r a n o E c h o l a n d
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G O R Y U A R E A
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S K I A R E A D I N I N G
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Hakuba Sanosaka The prettiest ski area in the resort On the south border between Hakuba and neighbouring
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Omachi, Sanosaka is a small family resort with more than
initially meets the eye. In addition to the slope visible on approaching the resort, a further two areas are tucked away higher up. You’d never think the resort had 450m of vertical or five lifts.
Sanosaka also has SAJcertified mogul runs, but the bumps are kept off to the side for those who want to ride them.
For parents, Sanosaka has an adult and child ski all day for 5,500 yen with a 2,000 yen lunch coupon and a rental discount thrown in. The Lifts 5 resort’s restauCourses 10 rants have also updated their Elevation 460m menus, so you can now Beginner 40 make your own pizza Intermediate 40 or have a Advanced 20 Thai curry, or bakery Longest course 2100m goodies. For those with www.sanosaka.com toddlers, there is 0261-75-2452 a kids’ area at the base and a day room where you can have some The emphasis is on beginners fun inside away from the cold. with a number of a wide People who drive up to smooth pistes and none of Hakuba overnight should the traffic that can be found at note that Sanosaka offers a full Happo and Goryu. The resort breakfast buffet from 7:30am. overlooks the magnificent Lake Aoki and spectacular Still a good option if you want views can be enjoyed from to avoid the weekend crowds the higher slopes. A large at the larger resorts. or simply jump is normally built near want a quiet day with differthe resort base, and further up ent scenery. When high winds a number of beginner-level have stopped operation at the jumps, boxes and rails provide larger resorts, the more an easy and pressure-free sheltered lifts at Sanosaka will intro- duction to freestyle often stay open, meaning you skiing and snowboarding. don’t have to miss a day.
Hakuba 47 & Hakuba Goryu Big Mountain Skiing The linked resorts of Hakuba 47 and Goryu form Hakuba’s most popular hill in terms of visitor numbers. Both resorts can be ridden using the same lift ticket. Hakuba 47 is Hakuba’s newest resort and a young, snowboarder-friendly vibe emanates from its excellent terrain park. At the top, it links to Goryu, named after the four diamonds-in-adiamond peak of the majestic
Mt. Goryu in the distance. Goryu the resort has great views, wide intermediate slopes, and plenty of choice for beginners. With numerous events throughout the season and lots of customer-friendly touches (yes, cowgirls!), we think you’ll see why these resorts have grown in relative popularity even as the Japanese population as a whole has moved away from skiing.
Orientation Hakuba 47 – the name comes from “four Lifts 19 seasons, seven days Courses 23 a week” – has a single base area Elevation 926m with a large, free Beginner 35 car park. From Intermediate 40 here, the distinctive Advanced 25 dark-green Longest course: gondola takes Hakuba Goryu 5000m you on a short Hakuba 47 6400m journey alongside http://goryu47.com the kickers and Goryu 0261-75-2101 the half-pipe to Iimori 0261-75-2636 Hakuba 47 0261-75-3533 midmountain. A short run to skiers’ right takes you to the quad lift, Line C and from there, it’s a final
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Hakuba Norikura A great day out Hakuba Norikura is linked to its neighbouring resort, Hakuba Cortina, which can be ridden using the same pass if you buy the combined resort ticket. We think this is a must
as it doubles the terrain that you can enjoy. Make sure you ask for the combined ticket when purchasing. Hakuba Norikura has a good
foothills. There’s a great choice for beginners and those who may not have ridden fresh soft snow before. Hakuba Norikura is a weekend warrior kind of place, thus making the combination of lots of space, lots of snow, Lifts 10 and the lack Courses 14 of crowds that can Elevation 600m be found Beginner 30 at the Intermediate 50 larger resorts Advanced 20 providing Longest course 2500m a great www.hakubanorikura.jp stage for 0261-82-3187 building up confidence.
sized park for freestlyers and shred fashioners to strut their stuff. The park’s number one feature is the half pipe, which can get a little corwded and very colorful on the weekends.
Norikura shares Cortina’s mighty snowfall and extends for a very respectable 600 meters of vertical up the ridge it shares with Cortina. A number of shorter lifts are also aligned along the wide
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Many visitors to Hakuba do not give Norikura much of a thought, but we think it could be the valley’s most underrated resort. When combined with Cortina, it certainly offers a lot of different options.
Hakuba Cortina Steep, deep & one big hotel At the north end of the valley, Hakuba Cortina Ski resort rises behind the imposing Bavarian-style Green Plaza Hotel with its criss-crossed black beamwork and large red roof. You will never lose your bearings while skiing here! As the closest resort to the sea, Cortina regularly records the highest amount of snowfall in the valley. It doesn’t just snow at Cortina, it dumps! When Happo-One and Goryu up the valley will report 20cm of fresh snow, Cortina will probably receive about 50cm! Not content with having the valley’s largest hotel and heaviest snowfall, Cortina is also famous for having the steepest pistes, one of which averages 36 degrees and touches 42 degrees in places. Above the hotel itself extends a long central beginner run. However, steep slopes rise to encircle this run, making the upper part essentially a huge bowl. This is why you may have heard about the resort in hushed tones. The resort operates a self-responsibility code with
resort visitors riding the trees at their own risk. At Hakuba Connect, we applaud this progressive approach, we love riding their terrain, and we urge all readers to respect the few rules they have. If they mark an area as out-of-bounds or closed, it will be for a reason.
Lifts 7 Courses 16 Elevation 530m Beginner 40 Intermediate 30 Advanced 30 Longest course 3500m www.hakubacortina.jp
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For the more adventurous Cortina also has three gates to access the backcountry, though standard backcountry rules apply. For lunch, the mountain has five restaurants to choose from. Warabi dishes up large helpings to satisfy the hungriest of skiers and riders. Best known is the hotel’s ground floor restaurant where they give you a pizza base and let you pile on the toppings yourself to make your very own pizza. Kids will love it.
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Come and Enjoy H
For those of you who love Hakuba in the w needs to be seen to be believed.
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s the snow slowly recedes to higher altitude and the winter weather changes to spring sunshine, the cherry blossoms come out, the rivers  ow and the landscape begins to change and it’s time to enjoy some other adventures. Adventures and activities which will take your breath away as most of them enable you to take in the beautiful scenery, wildlife and the glorious views. Including; road cycling, mountain Biking, hiking, white water rafting, kayaking, canyoning and of course Paragliding from the peaks of Hakuba just to name a few. To help you get the best of your Hakuba adventure holiday there are a few excellent businesses in town that offer services to make the most of your time here including Evergreen
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Hakuba in Summer
nter there is another side to Hakuba which he locals call it the Green Season. Outdoor Centre, Lion Adventure and Sweet riders which specialise in Mountain biking. Of course you could also take it easier by just enjoy the towering alps, take a leisurely stroll or cycle around town, work on your photography skills or even just catch up on a book or two. With  ights to Japan being as cheap as they have ever been, Hakuba is the perfect place for your adventure holiday and once you are here Hakuba off ers a genuine adventure holiday experience at the right price. We look forward to seeing you in Hakuba over the warmer months to try your hand at some of the great adventures offer.
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Hakuba Tourism was formed in June 2005 by accommodation providers in the Wadano area. Following the Olympics in 1998, the number of Japanese skiers and snowboarders visiting Hakuba had been falling year-by-year, and our initial goal was to prevent this from causing a decline in ski and accommodation services. At that time, Hakuba was also starting to gain international attention as a ski destination. Helped by a weak yen, an increasing number of foreign skiers began visiting Hakuba every winter. Hotels in Wadano therefore decided to join together to actively promote the beauty of the Hakuba area. Since forming, Hakuba Tourism has appeared at trade shows in Australia, the UK, and Hong Kong to introduce Hakuba, and has made active use of local media and advertising in those countries to tell more people about our town. With the help of Hakuba-based travel agents, resort staff, and the Nagano Prefectural Government, we have made great progress in getting the name of Hakuba out to skiers in a great many countries.
Along with overseas promotion, Hakuba Tourism is committed to the stable development of Hakuba the resort. By introducing the “Genki-Go” night shuttle bus and “Hakuba Essential Guide” booklet, and employing staff who can speak English, we wish to develop Hakuba into a destination that international visitors can enjoy to the full. By improving their English capability, providing better Internet access, and running more shuttle services, the hotels that participate in Hakuba Tourism now offer overseas guests a comfortable and stress-free stay. Our hotels have a high reputation among travel agents throughout the world. With hotels in the Happo area also joining forces, a total of ten accommodation providers now work as Hakuba Tourism to make Hakuba a truly global resort. Though we still face many challenges, we will continue in our efforts to make Hakuba the best resort in the world!
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