18
to 21 Dec 2013 - Kiroro Resort
From Otaru Bus Terminal, Platform 6 ... its a 40 mins ride and cost ¥900 one way to Kiroro Resort. We took the earliest bus at 08:10 so that we can maximize our time in the resort.
Try not to sleep on the bus. It passes one of the most scenic route offering a panoramic view of the Otaru from high above
Arriving at Kiroro Resort Piano Hotel
View from our hotel room ...
Lunch was usually at Luminance (the cafe at the ski center of the Kiroro mountain hotel resort). Most ski canteen serves crabby sub-standard food but I must say that the food here was above average for a ski center ... where usually ski is priority and food is second.
The other lunch option is at the top of the mountain, the Asari cafe. Choices are a lot more limited compared to Luminance but food was still general tasty.
For dinner, we tried the grand buffet which was so-so at best. The buffet cost additional ¥700 per pax. There was apparently a premium buffet which cost ¥2200 but was only available on Saturday. So no chance for us to try it.
Dinner at Syunsai
Stick to Japanese food as one of the better meals we had in Kiroro was at Syunsai. Could not get a reservation for Fuga, the other japanese restaurant in the resort. Tried the Italian restaurant once, but was not impressed.
Snow crab tempura was tasty and most importantly SHELLED. No messing around with crab shell :>
Corn vanilla flavoured ice cream encased in a corn-shaped biscuit waffle crust. Post dinner snack from the gift stall in the adjoined Kiroro Town.
Snowboarding matters ...
- Roland and I got the 3 day ski pass for ¥12,900 each
- Sock got the 15 ticket pass for ¥3500 and decided to "relax" on the last morning session.
What we LIKED
- Rental equipment were in good condition and we were issued Burton snowboard and boots.
- The rental center was well operated and staff were very organized, efficient and pro-active.
- Most importantly the slopes were wonderful with long rides of 2-3km even for beginners.
- Slopes were well marked
- Lift operations / operators were also very vigilant and polite.
What we felt could be better ( not big things but still did not make sense to me )
- As paying guest of the hotel, it did not make sense that we had to spend ¥300 on locker to lock up our shoes after renting the gear on the first day. And again another ¥300 on the last day to lock our shoes ... so that we have our shoes to wear after returning the gear.
- For those that are staying at Piano hotel, there was no locker space at the mountain hotel for guest to lock up the rental snowboard/boots. We had to lug the board in the shuttle bus daily. Its a short ride but still there must be a better way to do it. A lot of other ski places has buses with purpose built racks which you can put the boards / skis on the external of the bus so that you don't have to go knocking the boards within the confines of a bus.
Mountain hotel only has 1 restaurant but is a ski-in hotel. The rest of the facilities are at the Piano hotel, e.g. onsen, 5 restaurant and the Kiroro town ... weigh your choices and priorities :>
Having said that ... its still very much a place that I will consider coming back again :>
The advance snowboarder among us :P
Ride up the Gondola to Asari Cafe at the top ... was a totally cloud day so views were some what limited compared to a bright clear day just the day before.
When it was time to leave, we took the Hokkaido Resort Liner from Kiroro to Sapporo (2.5hrs ¥2000 per pax). The bus was at 15:00hrs which allowed us to snowboard till about 12:30hrs on the final day after we checked-out. The bus however did not stop at the JR Sapporo Station. The nearest stop for us was Sapporo Keizo Hotel with was a 850m walk to our Hotel (Best Western Fino) . Took quite a well as the roads were slushy and icy in Sapporo.
From Otaru Bus Terminal, Platform 6 ... its a 40 mins ride and cost ¥900 one way to Kiroro Resort. We took the earliest bus at 08:10 so that we can maximize our time in the resort.
Try not to sleep on the bus. It passes one of the most scenic route offering a panoramic view of the Otaru from high above
Arriving at Kiroro Resort Piano Hotel
View from our hotel room ...
Lunch was usually at Luminance (the cafe at the ski center of the Kiroro mountain hotel resort). Most ski canteen serves crabby sub-standard food but I must say that the food here was above average for a ski center ... where usually ski is priority and food is second.
The other lunch option is at the top of the mountain, the Asari cafe. Choices are a lot more limited compared to Luminance but food was still general tasty.
For dinner, we tried the grand buffet which was so-so at best. The buffet cost additional ¥700 per pax. There was apparently a premium buffet which cost ¥2200 but was only available on Saturday. So no chance for us to try it.
Dinner at Syunsai
Stick to Japanese food as one of the better meals we had in Kiroro was at Syunsai. Could not get a reservation for Fuga, the other japanese restaurant in the resort. Tried the Italian restaurant once, but was not impressed.
Snow crab tempura was tasty and most importantly SHELLED. No messing around with crab shell :>
Corn vanilla flavoured ice cream encased in a corn-shaped biscuit waffle crust. Post dinner snack from the gift stall in the adjoined Kiroro Town.
Snowboarding matters ...
- Roland and I got the 3 day ski pass for ¥12,900 each
- Sock got the 15 ticket pass for ¥3500 and decided to "relax" on the last morning session.
What we LIKED
- Rental equipment were in good condition and we were issued Burton snowboard and boots.
- The rental center was well operated and staff were very organized, efficient and pro-active.
- Most importantly the slopes were wonderful with long rides of 2-3km even for beginners.
- Slopes were well marked
- Lift operations / operators were also very vigilant and polite.
What we felt could be better ( not big things but still did not make sense to me )
- As paying guest of the hotel, it did not make sense that we had to spend ¥300 on locker to lock up our shoes after renting the gear on the first day. And again another ¥300 on the last day to lock our shoes ... so that we have our shoes to wear after returning the gear.
- For those that are staying at Piano hotel, there was no locker space at the mountain hotel for guest to lock up the rental snowboard/boots. We had to lug the board in the shuttle bus daily. Its a short ride but still there must be a better way to do it. A lot of other ski places has buses with purpose built racks which you can put the boards / skis on the external of the bus so that you don't have to go knocking the boards within the confines of a bus.
Mountain hotel only has 1 restaurant but is a ski-in hotel. The rest of the facilities are at the Piano hotel, e.g. onsen, 5 restaurant and the Kiroro town ... weigh your choices and priorities :>
Having said that ... its still very much a place that I will consider coming back again :>
The advance snowboarder among us :P
Ride up the Gondola to Asari Cafe at the top ... was a totally cloud day so views were some what limited compared to a bright clear day just the day before.
When it was time to leave, we took the Hokkaido Resort Liner from Kiroro to Sapporo (2.5hrs ¥2000 per pax). The bus was at 15:00hrs which allowed us to snowboard till about 12:30hrs on the final day after we checked-out. The bus however did not stop at the JR Sapporo Station. The nearest stop for us was Sapporo Keizo Hotel with was a 850m walk to our Hotel (Best Western Fino) . Took quite a well as the roads were slushy and icy in Sapporo.
Snowboarding in Kiroro Resort
Bus terminal in Otaru
