Where to stay
Where to stay in Niseko
Niseko is one mountain, Niseko Annupuri, with four linked ski areas on its slopes facing Mount Yotei: Hirafu, the village with most of the bars and restaurants, Hanazono to its north, Niseko Village to the south, and Annupuri beyond, with hot-spring valleys such as Konbu Onsen in the back country. The choice that matters most is between Hirafu's lively village and the quieter, more self-contained places around it.
How to choose
Skiing and nightlife
Hirafu: the most restaurants and bars by the lifts
Quiet
Hanazono: few buildings, wide views of Yotei
With children
Niseko Village and Annupuri: a self-contained resort with ski-in stays
Hot springs
Konbu Onsen and the back country: old onsen valleys in the forest
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Have it reviewed for USD 85Hirafu
The main resort village below the Grand Hirafu slopes, a grid of apartments, chalets, restaurants and bars that is busy and international in the ski season. Lively at night in winter, much quieter in summer.
- Suits
- Restaurants and nightlife within a walk of the lifts
- Bear in mind
- Crowded and built-up in peak season, and many places close outside winter
- Getting about
- JR Kutchan station about 15 minutes by taxi; New Chitose Airport about two to three hours by road
Hanazono
The northern end of the ski area, with its own lifts and wide views of Mount Yotei, and birch and beech woods and farmland below. Few buildings and very quiet at night; Hirafu's restaurants are a short drive away.
- Suits
- Quiet, the views of Yotei, and staying where you ski
- Bear in mind
- Little to walk to in the evening; you need the shuttles or a car
- Getting about
- JR Kutchan station about 15 minutes by car; New Chitose Airport about two hours by road
Niseko Village and Annupuri
The southern and western slopes of the mountain: Niseko Village, a self-contained resort with its own lifts, golf and shops, and Annupuri beyond it, the quietest of the ski areas. Calm at night, with a few restaurants in the village itself.
- Suits
- Families, ski-in stays, and a calmer base than Hirafu
- Bear in mind
- Further from Hirafu's restaurants, and fewer places to eat out
- Getting about
- JR Niseko and Kutchan stations by car; New Chitose Airport about two hours by road
Konbu Onsen and the back country
Old hot-spring valleys on the far side of the Niseko range, west of Annupuri, in deep forest by rivers and waterfalls. Remote, snowbound in winter and silent at night.
- Suits
- Hot springs and forest rather than the ski villages
- Bear in mind
- Far from the lifts and restaurants; a car or the inn's transfer is essential
- Getting about
- JR Niseko station about 15 minutes by car; New Chitose Airport about two and a half hours by road
Q&A
Hirafu if you want restaurants and bars on foot; Hanazono or Niseko Village for a quieter stay on the slopes. Park Hyatt Niseko Hanazono is ski-in at Hanazono, and Higashiyama Niseko Village, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve, is at Niseko Village.
Yes, for hiking, cycling and rafting in summer and the colours in autumn, though many of Hirafu's restaurants close. Inns built around hot springs, such as Zaborin, Shiguchi and Niseko Konbu Onsen Tsuruga Besso Moku no Sho, suit the quieter seasons well.
By road, about two hours by car or longer by the seasonal airport buses, which are reserved ahead. By train it means changing at Otaru for Kutchan or Niseko stations and a taxi on, about three and a half hours in all.