Hit the Slopes
In a valley somewhere between the majestic, mist-shrouded Mount Yotei and the undulating peaks of Niseko Annupuri in Hokkaido is a quaint Japanese hamlet and ski resort called Niseko Village. Elaine Kim discovers
Niseko has been a fixture on my family holiday calendar for years. I first visited the town in Hokkaido, Japan when I was still expecting my first child, Kyan, back in 2011. I have been visiting almost every winter season since, and now six years after my inaugural trip, I am back on the familiar powdery slopes the ski region is famous for— with three children in tow. It is also my first time outside Hirafu, the busy centre of Niseko. With the abundance of hotels, ski condominiums and restaurants in Hirafu, I have never thought to venture to the neighbouring ski resorts such as Niseko Village. But when I came across pictures of the beautiful townhouses at Kasara Niseko Village, I was drawn to the idea of spending my next family vacation in an elegant and spacious two-storey luxury villa, where there would be large but cosy common areas for my friends and I to relax and our kids to run about. I had initially assumed that size and seclusion made for a necessary trade-off for the convenience of a ski-in/ski-out location, a ski concierge and access to a ski school, but my stay at Kasara proved me wrong. When we arrived, we were greeted by a row of beautiful townhouses that architecturally melded traditional and modern Japanese design, set against a picturesque backdrop of the snow-cloaked Mount Yotei. Within seconds, we were warmly welcomed by a friendly private concierge who guided us through what would be our home for the next few days. On the first floor of the villa was a kitchenette and bar equipped with the accoutrements of a modern kitchen, as well as an eight-seater dining room with a tatami-lined floor and paper-screen sliding doors. Up the gleaming dark-wood staircase was an inviting living area
with corridors leading to the plush bedrooms. The master suite featured a lavish walk-in wardrobe and dressing room, but the main draw for me was the stunning wooden Hinoki bathtub in the bathroom. The entire Niseko Village development, of which Kasara is a part of, is owned and managed by the Malaysia-based YTL Hotels. What this means is that guests at Kasara have access to the services and facilities of the hotels within the area, such as The Green Leaf Niseko Village, which is just minutes away. There, we rented our ski gear and hopped onto the ski lifts located right at its doorstep. On our first day at the resort, our concierge booked us ski lessons upon our request. My five and six-year-old sons had just developed a love for skiing this past season, and the green runs here were perfect for them with long, wide pistes they could speed down. A series of ski lifts led us to different novice-friendly routes that criss-crossed the gently undulating mountain base. There are also ski lifts that would bring ski experts to the top of the mountain, where they can have serious and more challenging fun with the powdery snow.
GOURMET ESCAPE
Every day, when we were done with our ski runs, we would head down to Niseko Village, plant our equipment on the racks and head for lunch at one of the area’s many restaurants. On the quaint Niseko village street, there is excellent shabu-shabu featuring marbled A5 Wagyu beef at Yang Shu Ten; hearty yakitori, ramen and beer at Two Sticks izakaya; seafood hotpots with succulent Hokkaido snow crabs at Crab Shack; and local Hokkaido milk soft serve ice cream on a delightfully crisp cone at the Patisserie. We were spoilt for choice. For one meal, we visited Pirka at the Hilton Niseko Village, where we watched a chef cook up a storm at the teppanyaki counter. We enjoyed an exquisite dish of toro sashimi at the fine-dining Japanese restaurant Sisam; stacked our dishes with never-ending ingredients for our hotpot at Yotei, the buffet restaurant with a view; and ate all the sushi we could stomach during the all-you-can-eat-buffet lunch hour at sushi restaurant Ren.
RELAXATION MODE
While food was a major highlight for us, the spas beckoned our ski-fatigued bodies. Staying at Kasara gives you access to the tranquil spas and healing hot springs of both The Green Leaf and Hilton hotels. So, when us adults went on to knead and unknot our tired muscles in the peaceful treatment rooms, the friendly sitters at the Kids Club happily took our little ones off our hands for an hour to play. At both The Green Leaf and Hilton, there are indoor and outdoor onsens, with the latter set against the backdrop of a natural pool of steamy water surrounded by rocks and snow. It becomes all the more magical when it starts to snow, and you sit soaking in the hot spring waters, looking through the mist at the white snowflakes, falling softly on the dark clear waters beyond. At the end of each day, there is nothing like retreating to the townhouse, curling up under a fur blanket with the kids on the comfortable living room sofa, sipping on cups of hot chocolate while watching television. The townhouse almost feels like home, except that it also comes with a personal butler, a ski resort right at my doorstep and a picturesque view of a snow-capped mountain from my bed. I can see my family returning year after year, a holiday abode where we will create more precious memories together.