Worst Snowfall year in decades for japan so we didn’t have any fresh overnight but the snow we did have wasn’t trekked out at all. First tracks through most of it. Just a couple days old so it wasn’t the light fluffy stuff they’re famous for. Reminded me a bit of the heavy wet snow typical of Whistler. Snowcats were fast, spacious and reliable. Our guides English was pretty poor but once they showed you the left and right boundary you didn’t really need to know what he was saying. Terrain was not steep at all but had a plethora of pillows in powder fields, some awesome tree sections and overall very fun, long, lines. We did the true backcountry cat skiing with Rising Sun 2 days later in 18+ inches of fresh snow and to be honest we had more fun on the pillows and longer runs here at Chisenupuri. Logged 11,600 vertical feet on 11 runs here, compared to 5,600 feet on 9 runs on the Rising Sun day. Food was better here too, hot beef or pork on rice with soup and beer. On our way to lunch he took us down a different face that had deeeeep, light, fluffy JaPOW which was amazing. But we only rode it that one time.
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Despite early season (still lots of bamboo) had a great time.
Brought a friend who was getting accustomed to powder skiing- perfect for him - not too steep.
Amazing pillows/features to launch off. Best lines seems to be to skiers left (open trees, fun kickers).
Nice CAT.
Amazing staff.
Delicious lunch.
Guides are great-there to facilitate but not get in your way.
Price increased from 2019 to 2020 season so value not as good as previous.
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Kyle, Chase, Hiro and the rest of the crew are amazing! These guys will make sure you have an amazing day of skiing starting by picking you up at your lodge. Make sure you follow your ski patrollers to get the lay of the land. Then have all the fun you can (no shortage of things to huck off of) before skiing to the onsen. This is a great company and I highly suggest booking your trip with them.
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The snow here was incredible. However, we had a really cold day (floating around 0 F) with gale force winds which made the snow difficult to work through. Additionally, the slopes are pretty mild so if you're looking for the steeps, this isn't the place for it. However, good tree skiing lines aplenty.
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Great snow. Fun for all levels. Good lunch. Not much guidance but they tell you that. Limited terrain but fresh tracks all day long. We did 11 runs.
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We had an amazing day at Chise! The day began with sun shine and ended with 15cm of snow falling in the afternoon. The operation is solid--you get the entire mountain to youself and a dozen others! It's not steep terrain--low angle love is the way for this cat trip but unless is hasn't snowed in a few days, you're guaranteed freshies all day long. There is a lot of terrain to explore. The hot springs are amazing. The guides are awesome. All in all, super great operation and tons of fun.
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The Chisenupuri cat skiing was amazing because relative to resort skiing at Niseko, there was very little competition for the fresh powder. However we couldn’t help but compare the cat skiing experience to several years ago when we skied at Chisenupuri when the chair lift was still operational and there were only 3 of us “fighting” for fresh tracks (instead of 24 with cat skiing). Of course no ski resort can economically survive with just a handful of lift ticket sales (and a decaying lift due to sulphurous emissions), and thankfully it was purchased for a higher calling!

The snow that we scored at Chisenpuri was potentially the best combination of quality and quantity for our whole 9 week ski trip in Japan. The powder was phenomenal. It wasn’t particularly deep yet it was a magic carpet in places! We had an absolute blast with The House of Powder.

Pros
- The Chisenupuri cat skiing is quasi guided so you’ve got the ultimate freedom to explore or shred as much or as fast as you like.
- One of the great reasons you want to go to cat skiing in Niseko is for the snow quality and quantity.
- Being based near Niseko is a bonus so that you can do a day or more of Chisenupuri cat skiing, and also enjoy everything else that Niseko has to offer.
- The House of Powder is ideal for intermediate powder skiers and snowboarders because there are mellow slopes and you have the flexibility to go at your own pace, without the fear of holding up experts.
- The warming hut at the base is a comfortable and cosy spot to have lunch, or to pop in to warm up or use the bathroom facilities (this may seem like an insignificant advantage, but for some it sure beats using the “powder room”).
- YukiChichibu Onsen at the base of Chisenupuri is up there as one of the nicest onsens I’ve had in Japan considering the water quality and the gorgeous views of the mountains, although the smell on my skin did take a couple of days to dissipate!

Cons
- It’s a small ski area so freshies won’t last for days.
- Many of the lines with decent pitch require a traverse out.
- Chisenupuri is mostly a very mellow ski area and there are lots of spots where you may find yourself straight lining it when there’s fresh powder (get your boards waxed).
- And as is common to most Japan cat skiing, there is very little in the way of expert or pro terrain.

Pro or Con Depending On Your Perspective
- The best side of the terrain requires a 5-10 minute walk back to the snowcat pick-up, so you’ve got to partially earn your turns if want to do laps of the onsen run.

See our full Chisenupuri Cat Skiing review for more information.
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We went to The House Of Powder on the last day of our trip. I was hesitant to go after reading the PH review but I'm so glad we did!

There were 5 of us; 4 snowboarders, all strong intermediate with plenty of days spent off piste and riding powder, and my wife, an intermediate skier, new to off-piste skiing. 20cm of new snow overnight.

Okay, so you're not going to get the massive runs you get heli skiing in New Zealand and anyone who has skied at Chisenupuri when it was a ski resort knows it is not the most challenging terrain, but it is man is it fun!

We spent the first couple of runs riding under the old chair lifts and, once our guides Gavin and Charlie were happy with everyones competence we hit the trees. There were loads of pillows and natural features for us to jump off and we even found an old kicker that was covered in powder and put that to good use too. The trees to skiers right of the main cat track are spaced nicely and the pitch is pretty mellow so it made for some great high speed party runs with the crew. Closer to lunch we moved to the trees on a steeper section above the thermal pools which feed the onsen at the base. This area had more natural features to play with and was a heap off fun. My wife even skied backward off a pillow by accident which was gold! The stoke was high all day.

Later in the afternoon the sun started to warm the snow up so we headed to more densely treed areas. We got good snow all day. I think all up we scored 12 runs which is pretty decent. It's not a huge area they're using but with only 12 people on the mountain each day we were finding fresh lines right up to the end.

A few other points; The cats are almost new and its a comfy ride for 12. It was a fine sunny day when we were there So Clayton fired up a 2nd cat with an open box on the back and we did a few laps back up the hill on that which was sick. The guides were pretty laid back but very safety conscious, I think they nailed the balance perfectly. Lunch at the restaurant at the base was good japanese food.

I'm pretty certain we'll be back!!
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