7-Day Hokkaido Snow Tow Logistics

This page is dedicated to where to meet, what flights to book, what to bring, and details about money on the 7-day Hokkaido Snow Tow.

1. Where to meet

You will be meeting the group at Sapporo's Chitose Airport (CTS) at 2pm.

Meeting at CTS

If you're arriving in the domestic terminal (which you will be unless your flight arrives directly to CTS without stopping in Tokyo or Kansai first), walk to Domestic Arrivals Gate 2 which is adjacent to the Mos Burger.

If arriving in the international terminal (rare unless arriving from Asia), walk over to the domestic terminal, head down to the first floor and walk to Domestic Arrivals Gate 2.

The pictures to the left show exactly what the meeting point looks like.

*An Optional Niseko pick up at the Niseko Grand Hirafu Welcome Center is also available. Meet up time here is set for 5:00 pm, directions for the Niseko Grand can be found here

2. What flights to book

Coming to Japan:

You will need to book your international flights to/from Sapporo's CTS Airport. You need to be at CTS in time to be at the meeting point by 2pm. If you can't make it to the meeting point by 2pm, you'll need to arrive before day 1 and arrange your own accommodation. If arriving before day 1 and staying in Sapporo, just take the train out to CTS to meet us at our meeting point by 2pm. CTS airport is a short 30 minute train ride from Sapporo Station. Sapporo is a really great city with lots to do so it'll be worth it to spend a night here!

If you plan on being in Niseko before the tour starts, no worries. This is quite common and we will arrange for a pick up at the Niseko Grand Hirafu Welcome Center at 5:00 p.m. on day 1 of the tour.

Money saving tip!
If you're interested in saving a bit of money, you can usually get a cheaper ticket to CTS (Sapporo) if you book it separately from your international round trip. For example, get your international round trip to Tokyo's NRT airport, then book a separate flight on a Low Cost Carrier such as Jetstar Japan, Peach, or Vanilla Air.

Leaving Japan:

Final day drop off schedule

A few options at the end of the trip; you can get dropped off at CTS airport, Sapporo Station, or Sapporo's Teine Ski Resort on the final day of the trip.

CTS drop off: we'll arrive at CTS by 11am on the final day of the trip. When considering your flight back, you should plan on getting a flight no earlier than 1pm in case there are any delays.
Sapporo Teine Ski Resort drop off: If you want to get a half day of skiing in, you can opt to get dropped off at Sapporo Teine Ski Resort on the final day of your trip (lift tickets not included). We'll drop you off there, but note that you'll be on your own for transportation from Teine to your next destination. There are buses that run hourly from Sapporo Teine to Teine Station, a 10 minute train ride to Sapporo Station.
Sapporo Station drop off: we can also drop you off at Sapporo Station. We usually arrive at Sapporo Station between 1-2pm.

3. What to bring

Ski Gear

Ski/Snowboard
Ski bag/ Snowboard bag
Boots, poles
Shovel, beacon, probe if going off-piste (mandatory for joining guided off-piste tours)
Goggles, gloves, helmet
Ski jacket, ski pants
Long Johns top and bottom
Ski socks
Toe warmers (if you struggle with cold feet these are life changing)
Mid-layer insulation (fleece, etc)

General Gear

A day pack. Very useful to bring a change of clothes when we stop by a Onsen Hot Springs on our way back from a day of skiing.
Winter coat. In the ski towns, you can expect temperatures of -10c with high humidity
Pants/trousers, T-shirts
Insulating fleece-type layers
Underwear, toiletries, socks, sunglasses
Call your bank before you leave and make sure they know you're going to be purchasing items in Japan using your debit/credit card abroad
Money (more on this below)

4. Money

The currency in Japan is the Japanese Yen which is denoted by "JPY" or as "¥".

Credit Cards

First, you should know that Japan doesn't really like credit cards. While they are getting to be more accepted, you should only count on your credit card for 20% of your transactions. The rest of the time you'll be dependent on cash.

Getting Cash in Japan

As a tourist, there are two main ways of getting cash in Japan: 1) bring your home currency with you and exchange it at the currency exchange window, or 2) use ATM's within Japan to withdraw your funds.

Currency exchange window. You can exchange your home currency into JPY after arriving in Japan. This is a very simple option as there is no bank to get in the way and decline your currency conversion. The simplicity has a price though because the exchange window doesn't give you the most advantageous rate.

Withdraw funds from ATM's. You should be able to withdraw funds from any Seven Eleven ATM in Japan. The conversion rate is great but sometimes banks have issues with Japanese ATM's which can cause them to block your transactions. Be sure to check with your bank before coming to see if they have a ATM withdrawal fee or currency conversion fee. If they do, it may be cheaper to just convert cash at a currency exchange window.

The best idea is to show up in Japan with a few hundred dollars of your own currency, convert it in to JPY, then use ATM's after that. Be sure to call your bank and let them know you'll be making withdrawals from Japanese ATM's so they don't block your account!

What you can expect to spend

Looking at the What's Included page is a good starting point to get an idea of what you'll need to spend money on. Other then that, the amount of money you spend in Japan largely depends on your preferences. Do you want to eat sushi every day? Are you going for the most expensive sake? Will you be buying lots of souvenirs or electronics?

Below is a cost estimate based on how much is spent daily on each item. Prices are in JPY. Over the 7-day trip, you can expect to spend ¥46,400 on the low end or ¥91,700 on the high end. Keep in mind that results will vary depending on your personal spending.

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