SHOULD I HIRE MY SKIS LOCALLY IN JAPAN? A PRACTICAL GUIDE

Unless, of course, you have your own outrageously expensive and utterly amazing powder skis or snowboard to which you are utterly beholden to. In this instance, feel free to bring your own kit and we’ll adapt the arrangements (transfers, trains…etc) to accommodate you. But unless the above is the case, hiring your equipment locally has many compelling advantages…

Before we go in to the reasons I make the above assertion, the assumption is for most that you’ll bring you own boots. For most people, with comfortable (are ski boots ever comfortable?), trusted and often custom-fitted boots at home, this is not something you want to leave to chance.

So, the reasons why we advise you to hire your skis locally in Japan?

The kit they have available locally is really very good. Of course we only contract the best ski equipment hire company in any given ski resort and top of our list is the quality and age of the stock – and only then we factor in location, service and cost. Consequently, our guests tend to get latest-model K2, Volkl, Faction, Salomon, Black Crows, Atomic and Armada skis, or premium boards from Capita, Lib Tech, Nitro, and Jones. In certain resorts, they also have some brands you may not have heard of in Europe or North America, but with kit which is ideally suited to Japanese terrain - Ogasaka, Phenix, Goldwin, ONYONE, ID ONE SKI, ROKO Ski, and Vector Glide.

If you hire locally (on the premium package, our default setting) you can swap your skis over as frequently as you like. Imagine you wake up in the morning and there is a fresh 50cm of powder blanketing the mountain, something which happens with wonderful regularity in Japan. This is the day for experimenting with those fat skis you’ve always wondered about, with a ridiculous 120cm plus underfoot. And you can give it a go, when in the deep stuff they deliver a game-changing sensation. But you don’t want to be stuck with these skis if there has not been any snow for several days (boo!) and a conventional all-mountain ski is now better suited to the conditions.

Let’s add an important caveat. The above only applies if you are basing yourself and skiing in Niseko, Furano, Iwanai, the Hakuba Valley, Nozawa Onsen, Arai, Appi Kogen and Myoko Kogen. Venture beyond these ski resorts and the equipment can get decidedly sketchy and we need to have a conversation.

Moving off the ski mountain, another compelling reason for leaving your skis at home is because of the simple inconvenience of ‘lugging it around’ with you. The trains in Japan are not ski bag friendly (both on the platforms and in the carriages), not all transfer vehicles will carry outsized luggage so we need to go for larger vehicles at more expense, Japanese domestic flights can charge additional fees locally at the airport which we can’t pay in advance and its very ‘sometimes they do  sometimes they don’t’ which can be unsettling. And, even beyond these pragmatic logistics, let’s just say it – carrying ski bags around is a pain in the backside. They sit there in your hotel room (and hotel rooms are on average smaller in Tokyo, Kyoto…etc than in most other cities of the world) taking up space, and then take the fun out of the journeys between places.

Japan does have a magnificent way of mitigating this inconvenience, the amazing TA Q BIN (Black Cat) luggage forwarding service and we will provide you with all the information you need to use this – with or without your ski bags. It is amazing, so convenient and utterly dependable. Great. But do be aware that they need 48 hours to guarantee delivery of large ski bag, especially when travelling between Hokkaido and Honshu Island. Therefore, if you come off the slopes on a Tuesday evening in Niseko and then the skis don’t get picked up by TA Q BIN until the Wednesday, then it could be Friday morning (worst-case scenario) before you have your kit.

The cost is ski or snowboard hire in Japan is not super-expensive. Indeed, it's good value when compared against Europe and North America. Just saying. But…book early with us and then you get an additional 20% to 30% off! Do not leave it to hire locally yourselves, as many of the best outlets simply do not accept walk-ins.

Okay, now for some good news if you do want to bring your own ski or snowboard bags. Most international airlines baggage restrictions for Japan (uniquely) usually operate a “two pieces of hold luggage” policy and your larger bags can ordinarily be accommodated within this might be a factor if you’ve booked a cheap airfare that doesn’t include a lot of baggage weight, although depending on how long you’re staying for, the cost of renting equipment might be greater than paying for additional baggage on your flight. There are companies that provide international shipping of ski/snowboard equipment such as Luggage Forward or Ship Skis, but this tends to be pretty expensive.

Avi Kit

If you want to head off-piste then you need to have avi kit – and in Japan this usually means shovel, probe and transceiver. Most importantly, you need to know how to use it. When we book ski guides for you, then this will ordinarily come with this included. We insist. If you are heading in to the side or backcoutry alone – first of all, why?  Are you sure? Secondly, make sure you hire avi kit locally.

Airbag technology is new to Japan and you will not see many about. There are a few specialist stores in Niseko and Hakuba which offer rental, but they have very limited stock and this then diminishes as the season progresses – to get cannisters refilled they need to send them on an 5-week return trip back to Europe (getting airbag cylinders filled in Japan, is a real challenge (read: almost impossible). And bringing your own is fraught with difficulty - airbag policies with airlines can be vague, advising the check-in desk and security personnel at the airport is crucial, and even with preparation your airline will likely need to inspect and approve the airbag components. If you are determined to ski with an airbag then get yourself Black Diamond or Arc’teryx Airbag with the fan system of deployment that’s easy to travel with, or the new version of the BCA electric airbag.