Niseko is located in the SW part of Hokkaido, in the hilly district surrounded by Mt. Yōtei (羊蹄山 Yōtei-zan) to the east and Mt Niseko Annupuri (quasi-national park) to the N.
The town is only about 100 kms away from Sapporo, the center of Hokkaido, and has earned a worldwide reputation as an ideal ski resort in winter called Niseko Mt. Resort Grand Hirafu or Niseko united.
Niseko is also known as a summer resort. The magnificent beauty of its rich nature appears in TV commercials, drawing great attention to this area, and making it well known as a leading all-season resort in Japan. In recent years, Niseko has welcomed many visitors not only from Japan but also from all over the world.
The name “Niseko” means “sheer cliff” in the language of Ainu, an ethnic group indigenous to Hokkaido, while “Niseko Annupuri” means “‘mountain with a river that runs around the bottom of a sheer cliff.” It has typical inland weather, with an annual average temperature at 6.3 degrees Celsius, while the deepest snow in winter can sometimes reach 200cm in depth.
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Tokyu Resort
Niseko Mt. Resort Grand Hirafu (ニセコマウンテンリゾート グラン・ヒラフ) or Niseko united is a ski resort located in the Hirafu area of Kutchan, Abuta District, Hokkaidō, Japan. It is a vast snow resort stretching from Mt Niseko Annupuri’s summit (elevation 1308,5 m) to its base, and it is famous for its fine-quality powder snow, one of the best in the world. Because of this, Niseko town, Hirafu village and Kutchan town are frequented by many non-Japanese snow sporters from all over the world.
For a long time, 2 companies operated the mountain, but in June 2004 it was arranged that the three ski resorts of the Niseko Hirafu area would be administered by the Tokyu Resort Service; Tokyu Real Estate Company, the parent company of the Tokyu Resort Service, wished to consolidate ownership to one organisation, Niseko united was born.
In August 2004, it was announced that an Australian company called Japan Harmony Resort purchased the Hanazono ski area from Tokyu Real Estate. However, so far the 2 have jointly administered such services as lift tickets. Because of this relationship and the subsequent development of the whole resort, the mountain attracts a large number Australian tourists every winter.
Niseko Higashiyama Ski Ground and Niseko Annupuri international Ski Ground are connected with Grand Hirafu at the top of the mountain, and it is possible to access all 3 of the slopes by using an all mountain ski pass.
The resort has a great potential to grow and might get really busy over the next few years as it’s just now getting famous in the ears of all were dreaming of the “champagne powder” but never looked further.
(taken from wikipedia)
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Mt. Yōtei
Mt. Yōtei (羊蹄山 Yōtei-zan) is an active stratovolcano located in Shikotsu-Toya National Park, Hokkaidō, Japan and forms together with Mt. Niseko Annupuri the landscape. It is also called ‘Yezo Fuji or Ezo Fuji (蝦夷富士?), because it resembles the more famous Mount Fuji. The mountain is also known as Makkari Nupuri (マツカリヌプリ) and Mount Shiribeshi (後方羊蹄山 Shiribeshi-yama). It is one of the 100 famous mountains in Japan.
(taken from wikipedia)
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