Hakuba, Japan

• More about your Oliver Guide: Courtney Gerlich
• Trip type: Adult, City, Mountains
• Activity level: high
• Ideal length of trip: 4-5 DAYS FOR SKIING AND 2-3 DAYS IN THE CITY IS ENOUGH TIME HOWEVER IF YOU HAVE MORE VACATION THEN SPREAD IT OUT LONGER

to & from

• Flying from Seattle is extremely easy with a direct flight on Delta. Other airlines that fly direct from Seattle are ANA and United. If your final destination is Tokyo, it's more convenient and closer to the city flying through Haneda. San Francisco has a direct flight on Air China.
• When we fly into Narita we typically get in around 4pm and head straight to the mountains from there (and do city time in Tokyo on the tail end of our trip). We get reservations on a shuttle bus called Chuo Taxi Airport Direct which takes us directly to Hakuba from the Narita airport. With 2 stops, it takes 5 hours or so. It costs around $150 per person and they drop you off at your lodge or chalet. We book it directly through our accommodations in Hakuba but you can also go online yourself.
• Another option is to either stay a night in Tokyo and take the bullet train which only takes about an hour and a half to Narita (then a 30 min bus ride from there to Hakuba) or if your flight gets in early enough in the day you can take the train day of. You'll need to take the NEX Narita Express to Tokyo Station and then transfer there to the bullet train. If you want to spend some time in Tokyo before heading to the mountains, you can also arrange to have your ski luggage delivered through takkyubin (Japan wide luggage delivery service) service located right outside customs.

Where to Stay

• Our favorite place to stay in Hakuba is Morino Lodge - The owners Craig and Matt (along with the entire staff) are SO friendly, accommodating and knowledgable which makes our stay and experience as good as it can get! Their lounge/living area is super comfortable and relaxing not to mention the breakfasts are top notch.
• Our last trip to Hakuba we stayed at the Alps View Chalet that Morino Lodge manages. We had a group of 7 and with 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms it was plenty of space and provided a great home base for us all. Not to mention it's great location to Hakuba Gondola (5 min walk) and walking distance to tons of restaurants in town. There's also a free shuttle minutes away to the neighboring ski resorts, the furthest being no more than 20 minutes away.
• In Tokyo we always stay at the Park Hyatt Tokyo (if you've seen Lost in Translation you know the spot) - The views are to die for and the service is remarkable!