What other travelers are saying about Kiroro Resort
Kiroro ski resort is a bucket list destination, arrived at the resort with 20cm of fresh snow but it rode like 35cm once in the trees. Continued to snow all throughout the day which made the afternoon amazing. Great value lift ticket, never waited for a lift, food on the more expensive side compared to smaller resorts.
Favourite zone was at the back of the resort in the trees under the Asari Number 2 lift.
Kiroro is my ski hometown. Since 7 years I have been here for ski. The snow is perfect and I love ski in the snow storm! If I have to say one negative thing, it's the food price is increasing so much... But it's still my No1 ski resort in Hokkaido 🤍 and I recommend it to all my ski friends.
On my first visit to this mountain my general impression was "What a disappointing mountain". We went on a day when only a few lifts of the lower mountain were open and they seemed to have so many trees but they don’t let you ride 98% of the off piste terrain. So keep that in mind that on good pow days they don't have much to offer as the wind is too high for most of the mountain. On my second visit the mountain was fully open and I did enjoy some of the official powder fields you can ride off piste in. However many of the official fields such as zone 1 were still roped off and the exit of this area was the flattest cat track I have ever been on. If you plan well, you can carry enough speed to make it out without walking but you will be going very slow. However they only have a small portion of the mountain developed for tree riding and I do see gullies and challenges to the exit points in the other no-go zones, but this is where it could be developed. I now see the value in what they created at Niseko where ALL of the trees are accessible with clear gates and even wooden arrows in the trees to direct you to the exit points. I think most of us would be ok with a small hike out of a gully if it was clear which direction to go. So a guide is a good idea to get the best out of this mountain. But even with a guide you are ducking ropes which is disappointing. I spoke to a few guides and ski instructors... Overall, Kiroro is a missed opportunity for what could be an epic mountain. The trees on below Yoichi No. 1 express lift are a great example. They have very few bad lines and it's not hard to get in and out of but its all roped off. No one pays attention to the ropes, but again, it would be great if they had clear gates to access what is a no stress, amazing set of trees...
Good powdery snow but runs are generally shorter compared to the American/European ones. There is hardly any village experience for after ski apres or restaurants unless you are staying at either of the 2 Club Med. If one were to put up at the service apartment Yu Kiroro, just be mindful to stock up or you can have the limited choices around Kiroro center.
