International (Europe/Japan/Southern Hemisphere) Japan - Ski bag on the Shinkansen & local trains?

[Even_Stevens]

Hello all,

Do any of you who have skied Japan have any practical experience taking a ski bag on the Shinkansen/bullet train as well as the local trains?

Here’s the situation. My wife and I and two other relatives are going to Niseko. We have our flights and lodging secured, but the group wanted to take the bullet train out of Tokyo to Hakodate, and transfer to local trains to get to Kutchan station, and bus or taxi to our accommodation in Hirafu.

We’re arriving in Japan on the evening of 2/10, and we check into our lodging in Niseko (Hirafu) on 2/12 - less than 48 hours later. Would like to ski on the morning of the 13th. Unfortunately, that time frame doesn’t appear to work for Yamato/Black Cat luggage shipping to get from Tokyo Haneda airport to Hokkaido reliably, so that’s out of the question. My wife and I want to bring our personal skis, as we have 108s and 112s respectively for powder and I’d rather not ski a demo binding on a wide ski. The people we are going with have decided to rent and just bring their boots and ski clothing.

So has anyone here taken a ski bag on the bullet trains & local trains? What was your experience doing so? I’ve heard it’s possible, but not sure how much of a pain it would be.

 

[Rainbow Jenny]

Are you doing this for the sake of taking the Shinkansen? Tons of domestic airline flights available.

I’ve taken my roller ski bag on local train, it’s ok. But cannot comment on taking the Shinkansen. Let us know how it goes.

I don’t plan to try that Shinkansen route until it reaches Kutchan/Sapporo, slated for around 2030.

 

[Even_Stevens]

Are you doing this for the sake of taking the Shinkansen? Tons of domestic airline flights available.

I’ve taken my roller ski bag on local train, it’s ok. But cannot comment on taking the Shinkansen. Let us know how it goes.

I don’t plan to try that Shinkansen route until it reaches Kutchan/Sapporo, slated for around 2030.

Spot on - the group would really like to take the Shinkansen and book Gran Class if available (I know, spendy - flying would make more financial sense).

I was most worried about a ski bag on local trains. It sounds like the Shinkansen does have some space for large items, and a 190 cm ski bag should fit.

We are breaking up the train trip by spending a night in Hakodate at the JR Hotel right by the main Hakodate station (which we have to take a local train to, from the terminus of the Shinkansen line at Shin-Hakodate). Then we’ll catch the local train to Kutchan the next day.

My initial thought was to take a domestic flight up to Chitose Airport and take the Hokkaido Resort Liner bus from the airport to the Hirafu base in Niseko.

JAL doesn’t seem to have an issue with ski bags and the resort liner bus has plenty of space for them. We are actually doing that on our return trip back to fly out of Tokyo - Resort Liner to Chitose Airport; spending a night in an airport hotel and then flying down to Tokyo in the morning.

 

[Rainbow Jenny]

Sounds like you’ve booked everything already? I’d love to see the snow monkeys at Hakodate zoo…
How about just flying to CTS round trip and take a day Shinkansen sightseeing trip from Tokyo without all your gear?

 

[Even_Stevens]

I had no idea snow monkeys were at the Hakodate zoo! I think you just found something for us to do in Hakodate.

The group wants to take the Shinkansen up to Hakodate and then go to Niseko from there on the trip up. I will let SkiTalk know how the trip goes..

 

[Rainbow Jenny]

Correction, they’re at the botanical garden, not zoo.

'Ah, just right': Snow monkeys bask in hot springs at northern Japan botanical garden - The Mainichi

HAKODATE, Hokkaido -- Amid gently falling flakes of pure white snow, Japanese macaques with Zen-like expressions relax in an open-air hot spring bath,

mainichi.jp

 

[Rainbow Jenny]

https://hako-eco.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/saruzentai-1.jpg

 

[Mattadvproject]

Sounds like you’ve booked everything already? I’d love to see the snow monkeys at Hakodate zoo…
How about just flying to CTS round trip and take a day Shinkansen sightseeing trip from Tokyo without all your gear?

The snow monkey enclosure at the Hakodate zoo is one of the saddest things I have ever seen. It's just an outdoor concrete enclosure with limited enrichment opportunities for the monkey's. Many of them are losing their fur (allegedly that's a normal thing but I've never seen a monkey in the wild like that). I felt terrible for them, I would never go back and I would not recommend it to anyone else. I don't have any photos (they were on the laptop stolen in Chile a couple of years ago) so I can't show you, but it depressed the heck out of me. Sorry to have to say it, but I'd skip that one. Otherwise Hakodate is awesome and there are plenty of other things to see....

 

[Mattadvproject]

Hello all,

Do any of you who have skied Japan have any practical experience taking a ski bag on the Shinkansen/bullet train as well as the local trains?

Here’s the situation. My wife and I and two other relatives are going to Niseko. We have our flights and lodging secured, but the group wanted to take the bullet train out of Tokyo to Hakodate, and transfer to local trains to get to Kutchan station, and bus or taxi to our accommodation in Hirafu.

We’re arriving in Japan on the evening of 2/10, and we check into our lodging in Niseko (Hirafu) on 2/12 - less than 48 hours later. Would like to ski on the morning of the 13th. Unfortunately, that time frame doesn’t appear to work for Yamato/Black Cat luggage shipping to get from Tokyo Haneda airport to Hokkaido reliably, so that’s out of the question. My wife and I want to bring our personal skis, as we have 108s and 112s respectively for powder and I’d rather not ski a demo binding on a wide ski. The people we are going with have decided to rent and just bring their boots and ski clothing.

So has anyone here taken a ski bag on the bullet trains & local trains? What was your experience doing so? I’ve heard it’s possible, but not sure how much of a pain it would be.

Yes, I've taken the shinkansen several times to and from Tokyo via Hakodate. I'm honestly surprised that you can't have the bags shipped by Yamato in time for skiing on the 13th Feb if you are arriving in Haneda on the PM of the 10th. You can send them straight from the Yamato counter near arrivals at Haneda, when you get in on the 10th. I would have thought that they would arrive by the evening of the 12th at the latest, but they can better tell you that. You can travel with bags, but it's a pain in the butt. I have to do it at least one-way every year, but it's doable, especially if there are a group of you to help out, but if you have the option, it's definitely a more enjoyable experience to do it without big bags.

I wouldn't recommend Gran Class if traveling with ski bags. Whilst it's super plush, the overhead storage area is not open, it's in closed compartments that do not fit ski bags. Green Class is a better bet as the overhead bins are all open and you can fit ski bags in them. Regular economy is the same, but it's normally busier. In Green Class, I'd recommend reserving seats at the rear end of the cabin as there is a decent amount of storage behind the seats. You can get ski bags and suitcases in there, plus in the overhead racks. Green Class is normally quieter than regular class if you book outside of rush hour times.

Tokyo Station is always busy, but I'd stay away from rush hour times, I prefer travel in the late AM myself. Allow plenty of time to make it to the train, I'd say 1.5 hours for a first time shinkansen user to get to the correct platform without any stress. You want to be well prepared to get on the train itself, they don't hang around and normally there is no one there to help you. You need your group to help with that. Make sure you are first inline when queing at the platform for the respective carriage/door number. Then you can make a chain and get all the bags onboard quickly, then everyone can take their seats. If you have the end seats, then it's going to be a lot easier.

Happy to answer any questions you may have.

- Matt

 

[Even_Stevens]

@Mattadvproject thanks for the super detailed information!

You may have convinced me to just ship our ski bag on Yamato. We’ll still each take a large spinner suitcase plus a backpack or similar bag on the Shinkansen & local train, and I guess if we wanted insurance against the ski bag not being there on the morning of the 13th we could just plan to rent some premium skis for a day from Rhythm or another shop. Any that you particularly prefer?

As far as getting from Kutchan Station to our accommodation that’s another question. I understand that there are taxis, which can work as long as you have your destination written out in Japanese characters for the taxi driver. What’s your take on the best way to get to Hirafu from Kutchan?

 

[Mattadvproject]

@Mattadvproject thanks for the super detailed information!

You may have convinced me to just ship our ski bag on Yamato. We’ll still each take a large spinner suitcase plus a backpack or similar bag on the Shinkansen & local train, and I guess if we wanted insurance against the ski bag not being there on the morning of the 13th we could just plan to rent some premium skis for a day from Rhythm or another shop. Any that you particularly prefer?

As far as getting from Kutchan Station to our accommodation that’s another question. I understand that there are taxis, which can work as long as you have your destination written out in Japanese characters for the taxi driver. What’s your take on the best way to get to Hirafu from Kutchan?

If you can get rid of the ski bags, then you'll be much better off. If you have wheeled suitcases, then they will be fine to travel with around the station. I've only been to Niseko once and that was back in 2016, so it's not my area of expertise, so to speak (I go to Furano and Otaru and the Tohoku region), so my knowledge of that particular area is limited. I remember we were staying in Moiwa (at Moiwa Lodge) and we took the bus direct from the airport (I think it was the White Liner service). It stopped at a hotel in Moiwa and then we had a lift to the lodge from there. https://www.niseko.ne.jp/en/news/getting-in-and-around-niseko/ has a good overview of the transportation options.

I'd say Rhythm Sports has the best range of fat skis, so I'd start there. I think taking a taxi to Hirafu is going to be the quickest and most convenient way of getting from the station to your accommodation. There are buses, but they won't necessarily be as convenient for you - https://nisekotourism.com/resorts/local-transport/#local-bus. I saw prices of around $20 for a taxi and yes, if you have the name of your hotel in Japanese then there should be no problem.

 

[skidrew]

I'd say 1.5 hours for a first time shinkansen user to get to the correct platform without any stress.

The right platform was the least stressful - finding your way around Tokyo Station much more so.

 

[Mattadvproject]

The right platform was the least stressful - finding your way around Tokyo Station much more so.

Yes, it's a huge place and very confusing for the first time..... I have some guests there right now but one of them has done it before, so they seem to be cruising along nicely and I'm standing by on WhatsApp to help them if required.

 

[Drahtguy Kevin]

Yes, it's a huge place and very confusing for the first time..... I have some guests there right now but one of them has done it before, so they seem to be cruising along nicely and I'm standing by on WhatsApp to help them if required.

The signage is excellent in Tokyo Station. It’s quite the experience. F’n people everywhere and lots of them scurrying. No issues navigating for me. Little food stands everywhere. I ate way more there than I planned on. A tip from me is download the Suica app and load yen up. Super easy and convenient to use. It’s my first time in Japan. I’m loving it so far. Gordo, my travel compadre is experienced. He spends a lot of his time trying to find the spot to smoke cigars.

 

[Even_Stevens]

Hello from Japan! On board the Shinkansen en route for Hokkaido.

While we chose to ship our ski bag with Yamato, there were plenty of tourists lugging ski bags through Tokyo Station. We took Gran Class and our 190 cm ski roller bag would have definitely fit in the luggage section.

I am glad we didn’t have to deal with the PITA factor of lugging a ski bag, as long as Yamato gets our ski bag up to Niseko in a reasonable amount of time. That having been said it is definitely doable. You just need to be one of the first on the train to ensure you get baggage space.

edit: I should mention that Yamato said our ski bag we dropped off at around 6 pm on Saturday the 10th would likely arrive on Monday the 12th but could be delayed until Thursday the 15th due to “heavy snow and severe weather”. Hopefully Yamato is just under promising to not disappoint.

 

[Mattadvproject]

Hello from Japan! On board the Shinkansen en route for Hokkaido.

While we chose to ship our ski bag with Yamato, there were plenty of tourists lugging ski bags through Tokyo Station. We took Gran Class and our 190 cm ski roller bag would have definitely fit in the luggage section.

I am glad we didn’t have to deal with the PITA factor of lugging a ski bag, as long as Yamato gets our ski bag up to Niseko in a reasonable amount of time. That having been said it is definitely doable. You just need to be one of the first on the train to ensure you get baggage space.

edit: I should mention that Yamato said our ski bag we dropped off at around 6 pm on Saturday the 10th would likely arrive on Monday the 12th but could be delayed until Thursday the 15th due to “heavy snow and severe weather”. Hopefully Yamato is just under promising to not disappoint.

I think Black Cat like to give the old "under promise and over deliver" service, so I think their worst case scenario is unlikely to happen. That storm in Tokyo cleared up quickly. I was on the Shinkansen yesterday and that was fine, there was no disruptions in Tokyo that I could see. I shipped a ski bag from Chitose to Aomori in the evening of the 28th of Jan and it was at the hotel in Aomori by the early afternoon of the 29th. You'll get a tracking number so you should be able to see exactly where your bags are.

 

[Even_Stevens]

You’re absolutely correct; that’s what happened. We arrived at Niseko (aka Northern Australia) at 330 pm; Yamato had our ski bag there at 430 pm.

I think shipping our ski bag was about $20; it took about 46 hours to get from Tokyo Haneda to Niseko which is fine because due to our leisurely trip up north through Japan, it took us 45 hours.

Landed at Haneda Airport -> overnight in Hamamatsucho, Tokyo near the end of the Monorail line -> Yamanote subway to Tokyo station -> Shinkansen bullet train to Hakodate -> overnight in Hakodate -> Limited Express train to Oshamambe -> layover in Oshamambe station which is probably 75% passengers who were clearly going to Niseko to ski judging by the crazy amount of ski bags -> very local train (just a self propelled railcar) to Kutchan station -> taxi to our rented condo in Hirafu.

I’ll post more impressions but for all the excellence of Japan Airlines I am glad we ended up taking the Shinkansen to Hakodate. That was an experience. I’m also glad we shipped our ski bag with Yamato. Not doing so and taking the train would have been a huge pain in the rear; but plenty of skier tourists did so anyway and made it work.