After a 1970s boom that saw the area establish itself as a favorite among Japanese skiers, Niseko went into gradual decline, and the once fashionable hotels showed their age as skiers headed to newer destinations. In recent years, however, Niseko has risen again and it now boasts four interconnected resorts–Grand Hirafu, Hanazono, Niseko Village and Niseko Annupuri–that are up to international standards and finally do justice to the quality of the area’s snow. In the process, Niseko has also become one of the most foreigner-friendly destinations in the country, in large part thanks to an influx of Australian property developers and tourists from Southeast Asia and China. Almost all the hotels, restaurants and ski schools offer English service, still something of a rarity in Japan outside major urban centers and major destinations like Kyoto.
The area also offers diversity. Away from the resorts in Niseko there are prime backcountry powder and ample opportunities for ice climbing, telemark skiing and snowboarding through virgin snow. And when the ski season draws to a close in April (it starts in late November), the snow makes way for a summer season of whitewater rafting, mountain biking, hiking, golfing and kayaking. Add to that the year-round mineral-rich hot springs, perfect for soaking away your exertions, and it’s no wonder Niseko is going through a renaissance.
Getting There From Sapporo Station, take the JR Kaisoku Airport (Rapid Service) to Otaru Station (45 minutes), then the JR Hakodate Line to Niseko Station (1 hour 40 minutes). Alternatively, buses run direct from Sapporo (approximately 3 hours). Numerous daily flights connect Sapporo’s New Chitose Airport with Tokyo, Osaka and other major cities. Contact Niseko Promotion Board: nisekotourism.com/en
18 The Yaeyama Islands, Okinawa
Pristine nature and distinctive Ryukyuan culture
The Yaeyama Islands are as remote a place as you can find in Japan. At the southernmost and westernmost extremity of the country, this group of 10 islands is closer to Taiwan than to the main island of Okinawa, 450 kilometers (280 miles) to the northeast. Tokyo is 2,000 kilometers (1,243 miles) away. Given the geography, the islands have historically been so detached from Japan’s major islands that some of the islanders here speak a local Ryukyuan language, with Japanese as their second tongue. Spend a few days here and you begin to wonder if you’re still in Japan.
You easily could spend weeks slowly exploring the chain’s various islands, but most visitors tend to focus on Ishigaki-jima, the second largest island in the group. At picturesque Kabira Bay on its northern shore, dense vegetation and turquoise waters sandwich thin strips of virgin white sand to create hypnotically beautiful views. The island’s coastline also offers up numerous opportunities for snorkeling, diving and other water sports. From Ishigaki, boats run to Taketomi-jima, a great day-trip option just four kilometers southwest of Ishigaki, where visitors can soak up traditional Okinawan culture like nowhere else in the Ryukyus (Okinawan islands). Thanks to strict building regulations, the villages here are still defined by sandy roads, traditional red-roofed housing and stone walls; modern trappings keep a very low profile. On its southern end, Taketomi also has some of the best beaches in the Yaeyamas.
If time isn’t a concern, think about exploring farther afield. Boats run to the largest of the Yaeyamas, Iriomote-jima (30 kilometers; 18 miles) from Ishigaki, which is covered almost entirely in dense jungle and mangroves that provide the natural habitat for an incredible diversity of wildlife, including the critically endangered Iriomote Cat and a local variety of highly venomous pit viper. Not many foreign tourists make it out this far, but those who do take with them indelible subtropical memories.
Getting There Regular flights operate from Tokyo’s Haneda Airport to Ishigaki, taking 3 hours 25 minutes, and also from Naha, taking 30 minutes. Boat services run from Ishigaki to and between the other islands in the chain. Contact Okinawa Convention & Visitors Bureau: ocvb.or.jp/en
CHAPTER 2
EXPLORING JAPAN
From the thriving modern metropolis of Tokyo and the cultural heartland of Kyoto to the wilds of Hokkaido and Okinawa’s pristine beaches, Japan has something spectacular to offer every traveler. This chapter will help you get the best out of Japan no matter how brief your stay, with suggestions for three great days in Tokyo, four more wonderful days exploring Kyoto and Nara, and plenty of other accessible day trips and memorable journeys. Get out there and experience as much of it as you can!
A Day in Western Tokyo
A Day in Central Tokyo
Day Trips from Tokyo
A Day in Kamakura
A Day in Yokohama
Hakone and Mount Fuji
A Day in Nikko
Exploring Kanazawa and the Japan Alps
A Day in Kanazawa
The Kaga Hot Springs
A Visit to Shirakawa-go
Exploring Kyoto in Four Days
A Day in Central Kyoto
A Day in Eastern Kyoto
A Day in Western Kyoto
Southern Kyoto and Nara
Exploring Osaka and Kansai
A Day in Osaka
A Day in Kobe
Other Excursions in Kansai
Exploring Western Japan
Western Honshu Island
The Best of Shikoku Island
The Best of Kyushu Island
Exploring Hokkaido
A Day in Sapporo
Touring Hokkaido
Exploring Okinawa
A Day around Naha
Exploring Okinawa-honto
Other Okinawan Islands
EXPLORING
TOKYO IN THREE DAYS
Discover the energetic metropolis’s many faces
Tokyo, the “Eastern Capital,” is relatively young by Japanese standards. When shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu chose the then fishing village of Edo as the site for his new base of power in 1603 and began construction of Edo Castle, imperial Kyoto had already been thriving for almost a thousand years. It wasn’t until the Meiji Restoration