one of my favorite places in Japan! last season was a bit warm so you're right when saying the snow quality wasn't great. the hotel is an amazing place to stay.
Definitely. The day we went it was really packed in the morning since everyone was waiting for that day, but by the afternoon, the resort was completely empty since all the good snow was gone.
What time during you record this video? I want go to lotte arai on 9-10 dec this year, will i see the snow powder? Thx u for your video, i really enjoy it 😍
Which one do you like better? Lotte Arai or Shiga Kogen? What were some of the differences between the two resorts and the surrounding areas? I'm an advanced snowboarder. I've been to Happo One. And planning to come back to Japan (4th trip) in a couple years and tryung to decide which mountain I should visit Thanks in advance.
If there's a lot of fresh powder snow and decent visibility Lotte Arai. Otherwise Shiga (or actually Hakuba). Shiga is very large, but doesn't necessarily have the most difficult runs, but since it's larger there's probably some decent runs with slightly worse conditions.
Hey! Thanks for the report! So I was wondering how much do you "miss" if you choose not to climb up the ridge (btw, how long is the hike time-wise?)? Also, you mentioned it's not extremely beginners and intermediate oriented in terms of trails, but wonder if beginners/intermediate would still have enough fun? We're planning to visit there very soon, but I kind of start getting second thoughts :) How would you compare it to Madarao if you've even been there (and which also have pretty nice powder pockets and stuff, but also has pretty nice trails for intermediate/beginners). Too bad this year there's STILL very little resorts with enough snow, so beggars can't be choosers situation but hey… 🤷♂
It took us about 30 min to hike up to the top. You would miss out on a bit and if you look at the resort map here: www.snow-forecast.com/pistemaps/ARAIMountainandSpa_pistemap.jpg?1601557384 the hike gives you access to the big bowl off piste area. There's just not a lot of beginner or intermediate runs. If you look at the map again, there's only a couple runs so beginners may get bored.
@@didibryanthanks! 30 mins is quite a hike, I was thinking about some time in line of 15 mins of hard work, not half-an-hour :)) Still… guess we'll still try it tomorrow! Gifu/Nagano are all out of proper snow right now :( 4 hours drive, but I feel like it still should worth it! Cheers!
How many pairs of undies should i take with me? Would one pair of socks be enough for a week? Should i eat before i go to the mountain, or while im there? Do you recommend I breathe while snowboarding powder or will i drown if i dont hold my breath for long enough ? Thanks
hello where is good to stay if you don't want to sleep at the resort and don't have a car? any cool town close by with cheap transport to the resort? domo arigato
Ah that's a tricky question. The closest ski resort area is probably Myoko (Akakura town) and there looks like there is a bus from near Myoko Kogen station, but it doesn't run frequently. A better more flexible option might be to find an accommodation that offers rides to Lotte Arai.
@@didibryan thanks and if I stay at the Toyoko inn at Joetsu train station can I take the Lotte bus if I am only going to ski and not sleep at the resort? If you know... it seems tricky "muzukashi ne"
It looks like you're looking at the free shuttle service from joetsu? It says it's only available for hotel visitors and guests, which is a bit vague if riding at the resort counts as a visitor. If that doesn't work, you can always take a taxi as well
I noticed a camera on top of your helmet. Is that the Insta360 you mentioned in your previous video? How did you attach it so it's secure with all the skiing vibration?
The thing on my helmet is a mount for cameras, but I actually tend not to use it since the footage for snowboarders isn't very good. I'm actually holding the insta360 in my hand with a selfie stick.
No one like to explore things on there own anymore. Need to be told everything. So all the sheep end up in the same places as each other at the same time. Quite concerning
