BASI MEMBERS FEATURE
good access to cheap food – my school provided a weekly shopping trip. • Consider learning the two Japanese alphabets Hiragana and Katakana before you come out for a real head start towards your language skills. Kanji is not for the faint hearted though! • Take care with your equipment choice. In Europe I ride a cambered park board, which is fine on and off-piste. In Japan I often found myself wishing for something much floatier! • The season follows a similar pattern to Europe, with high periods over Christmas / New Year – Chinese New Year and then Easter. With a late Easter in 16/17 your serious earning potential could be over by the start of March. • The vast majority of lessons are delivered in English to Australians/Hong Kongese/Singaporean/South East Asians and Western expats living in those areas. Languages in demand are Mandarin and Cantonese. • When flying out, consider your luggage allowances carefully – it’s worth paying a bit extra for extra capacity. Flights tend not to be included in your contract. • There are great opportunities to travel at the end of season, but watch out for Golden Week which increases the air-fares and the crowds. • Take advantage of the ultra-cheap and reliable Black Cat (Takubin) service to send your winter luggage ahead of you. This avoids lugging too much around on domestic airlines during post-season travelling. incessant announcements from the on-mountain speakers. I’m already missing the ever-handy vending machines and convenience stores, the ridiculous amount of packaging that was then thoroughly sorted away and dispersed amongst 7 or 8 different recycling bins, the must-experience onsens, the food and my colleagues who all seemed to be having just as good a time as I was. Getting back to Japan is going to be hard – sponsored visas require 36 months of experience, which is a good 7-8 years when you consider that most instructors work only 5 months a season (something which should have been a consideration when voting in the EU referendum). However, I’m really happy to have made the most of my Hokkaido experience. I’m sure that this amazing island will feature again in my not-too-distant future.
Top Tips for prospective powder hounds:
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• Niseko is the coldest resort I’ve ever worked at – much colder than Europe. Bring some thick layers! Y
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• The teaching terrain is not ideal and is frequently very busy – get advice as to where to take each level of student in your training period. MY
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• Pay attention to where you live. Hirafu is the main resort, but is fairly spread out, with a lot of staff accommodation on the outskirts of town. Kutchan is the nearest large town, located down the mountain. Anyone living here will generally be provided with a van, but watch out for the quality of housing. Anyone offered accommodation between resorts should check very carefully that it is in a suitable location as the bus network is limited.
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• The only supermarkets are in Kutchan, a few miles down the mountain. Anyone living in Hirafu will need 26
BASI NEWS ISSUE 122
• Many of the ski school heads and senior instructors occupy high-up positions in Australian and New Zealand schools. With a bit of networking, Niseko can be a great choice for anyone looking to get into southern hemisphere winters. BASSPro-advert.pdf 1 23/09/2015 19:10
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