u/DanglingDerrick

We're headed to Central Hokkaido next February, and we're continuing to waffle between spending more time in one of these two onsen villages for some BC skiing (Yes, we have our Avy certs and will bring all avy gear) Is there one area that's better than the other? Is it worth it to split time between? We generally do BC stuff in VT but have done self-guided excursions in Cooke City, MT and up in the Chic Chocs in northern Quebec. Looking for some reviews on both the skiing accessible but also the onsens to definitely not miss, or better yet the ones to avoid!

Thanks in advance.

Hey everyone! My wife and I are planning to make it over to Hokkaido next year in Jan/Feb and we've been debating on two different travel styles we employ and what would be best for Japan. First would be a flexible schedule, where we have our flights in/out and our lodging in Sapporo when we arrive/depart, and then try to follow the snow/recommendations of folks we meet and talk with, kind of like an Bourdain-esque travel style. The other is more my mentality, to book everything in advance to not worry about it, but that inevitably leads to missed opportunities we didn't learn of until we're there. A seemingly middleground is to book a RV, but I'm 6'4" so I'm skeptical if I'll be comfortable in a Japanese RV for a week+.

I've read a variety of trip reports that in years past, the flexible style was super suitable for northern Japan ski trips, but has increasingly been harder to get those last-minute bookings. We're looking to go to Indy Pass and other smaller resorts and avoid Niseko, but would love to see if y'all have any experiences one way or the other?