One of the worst kept secrets of Niseko is the "Locals Season", this is the time from when first lifts spin around Nov 23 to when the season's main influx of visitors start around December 16. Depending on the season this can be the best two weeks of the year. The people who call Niseko home year round love this short period of time and days riding slopes with just you and a few friends is a pretty common experience. An empty untracked resort open and ready is not uncommon just like the shot above of Moiwa Dec 9, 2017. If you have not spent a early December in Niseko it's really something to put on the list.
If it's a snow heavy year these first two seeks of December will see a good base down and very consistent snowfall topping up that base each day, Often those two weeks of December in Niseko will eclipse the seasonal totals of places like Australia or New Zealand. The real kicker though and it's a huge one, is the lack of crowds. Lift lines are non-existent, the terrain still has clear fun exciting features at every turn in the landscape and the bottomless pow that will soon fill in those same features hammers down.
The restaurants and bars in Hirafu will welcome you with vacant seats and open arms. All the staff are bright eyed and bushy-tailed and the build up to the season kicking off leads to an air of excitement across all parts of the region.
We have plenty of availability at our lowest rates of the year during this period and would love to see you join us for this amazing couple of weeks so if riding uncrowded powder snow, dining where you choose and a total lack of crowds is your idea of fun just hit the link below to speak to reservations.
If you are interested to come to Niseko for a Winter Ski Holiday, please see our Niseko Accommodation Page to reserve your luxury accommodation.
You can also choose to reserve your Niseko accommodation and winter activities at the same time.