FlyerTalk Forums - Ski-in/out resort

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I’d believe it. Rentals can be slow as anything, if a good number need gear when a train appears then it could easily take an hour.

I’ve never been to the resort in question though, just my general rental experience.

Quote:

Originally Posted by evergrn (Post 31844197)

Hey 5khours
Is it true that, because a whole bunch of people get off shinkansen at the Gala station all at once, there could be literally an hour difference in the rental queue time between the first off the shinkansen to get down the stairs to rental and the last? Have you experienced this to be true, or is that an exaggeration by the blogger?

I can figure things out and research which train car would be the best. I'm using the Kanto rail pass this time (ie, can't use the machine) and I'm just wondering if it's worth even asking and looking like a pain in the a** at the JR office.
(Usually JR tix office people are totally cool when I tell them I want to be in this particular part of the train on this compartment and here's why. But in this case, I'm landing at NRT the evening before and so I've gotta do it at NRT. Some of the JR ticket staff at NRT have short fuse and they get annoyed pretty quick.)

I usually get a green car seat which is the furthest from stairs/exit.
I always rent at the shop at the top of the gondola and there is never a line.
I'm not sure about the rental counter at the base station. It sometimes appears very crowded. Probably a good idea to move quickly
There can be lines at the lift ticket counter, so I usually get off the train quickly and walk briskly to the ticket counters.
On weekends, at the stop before Gala I move to the car closest to the exit to to get to the the ticket counter a little quicker.
If you're renting at the base station, it's probably quicker to rent first and then buy your lift ticket. (Ticket lines usually thin out in 10 or 15 minutes.)
Not sure if you have kids or how old they are, but if you split up and load as singles, you can generally walk straight to the front of the Gondola line and never wait.
This year, I'm buying a season ticket and leaving a pair of skis at Gala to save myself a few minutes.

If anyone is interested in weekday trips to Gala, PM me. Morning only also works for those who need to show up at the office for at least part of the day.

On the subject of rentals ... myoko snowsports at myoko kogen (akakura onsen) allows you to pick up your rentals the evening before. It was surprisingly refreshing being able to wake up for day 1 of ski'ing with the equipment already all sorted.

Hey those are great tips.
Okay we'll hit the rental first and then the tickets.
We've got kids, so we won't be nimble enough to move from car to car and such. Will have to bother the JR ticket person at NRT with specific seat requirements for the Gala bullet train seats (on top of the NEx seats). Hopefully they won't cop an attitude.

It's been a few years since we've been to Gala, and so I just don't remember all the details. But I appreciate all the tips, and I'm sure it'll all work out.

Will likely hit you up for skiing one of these days, once the kids are older and starting to do their own thing.

10 more days. Damn forecast not looking good:(
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...8b94fe83bc.jpg

Current condition... what do you think? I think I can ski that!
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...dd35762f07.jpg

Backup plan is either ski Tanbara or Kawaba (or Disney, or Yokohama Chinatown )

Tanbara seems like a nice resort except Id imagine 80% of people just flock to their sole quad that serves the entire mtn, which worries me.

Quote:

Originally Posted by evergrn (Post 31851723)

10 more days. Damn forecast not looking good:(

Don't despair. I skied Nigata one year in December. Arrived on the 24th and the ground was bare. Got over 3 meters of snow in the next 6 days.

Thanks. I won't worry about it for a few days and then will reassess the situation next Monday and then decide on what to do.

Quote:

Originally Posted by evergrn (Post 31855571)

Thanks. I won't worry about it for a few days and then will reassess the situation next Monday and then decide on what to do.

Meanwhile maybe pray to the snow gods!

Quote:

Originally Posted by quirrow (Post 31865302)

Meanwhile maybe pray to the snow gods!

I have just about given up on skiing this time around. 90% certain we'll end up doing something else.
Gala Yuzawa is still not even close with no forecast for heavy snowfall in the next week. Even if they miraculously manage to open by next weekend, there's no way it's going to be a full operation.
Even high-altitude areas like Tanbara are doing bare-bone operation with just one course open.

Will go back again in Feb for the real ski vacation. So I'm not really too bummed out, but I do really feel for the ski resorts and all their employees.

Indeed, Christmas holidays used to be a great time for skiing in the past, though nowadays it depends on the weather really, with mid January to February being the better time for snow in ski resorts. Have a trip planned for end February to Niseko so hopefully the snow will be bountiful then!

Quote:

Originally Posted by quirrow (Post 31865594)

Oh there will be heaps of snow by then!
But you're right about skiing in Xmas time. Look at these stats from Nozawa Onsen and Gala Yuzawa. Thought 15-16 would be the rock-bottom, but this year is just the worst.
https://www.snowjapan.com/japan-ski-...onsen/snowfall
https://www.snowjapan.com/japan-ski-...uzawa/snowfall

And one can't even say Hokkaido should be safe during Xmas either, because Rusutsu's been really struggling with snow and I think a lot of their runs are still closed.

I would always say by New Years it should be skiable in Hokkaido but other years have been as sparse as this too.
Feb will have a base but last year it was all ice all around in Niseko- 3 weeks with no snow!!
It’s always just the luck of the weather.

Looks like Gala got 10 or 15 cm of snow overnight. Supposed to get another 40 or 50 cm on the 27th. Skiing might be pretty good on the 28th

Quote:

Originally Posted by 5khours (Post 31871070)

Looks like Gala got 10 or 15 cm of snow overnight. Supposed to get another 40 or 50 cm on the 27th. Skiing might be pretty good on the 28th

Thanks, yeah I'm keeping an eye on it.
I was actually planning to go on Dec 28th, but then rearranged all our other plans to change that to Friday since I feared that the first ski weekend of the year might be brutally crowded. Maybe I shouldn't have done that.
Web cam pics look encouraging. Forecast does call for a huge dump on the 27th.
It's supposed to be snowing there as we speak. I'll see how things end up by tomorrow morning and then go from there.
Like I said up above, I won't be too devastated if I don't get to ski this month because this was meant to be a warm-up for bigger ski trips later. But since you have season pass, I sure hope for your sake that things get going there quick.