Niseko Grand Hirafu lit up for night skiing

Niseko Grand Hirafu Ski Resort will celebrate its 50th anniversary, and the 100th anniversary of skiing in Niseko in the 2011-2012 season with a new gondola lift and Ski Centre.

Accommodating eight passengers and traveling over the slopes at a speedy 6 metres per second, Grand Hirafu’s new gondola will provide a more comfortable means of transport for more enjoyable skiing. The new Ski Center will provide not only a ski school, shop and rentals, but also après ski restaurants, an open-air café and other facilities that will make your entire snow resort stay much more enjoyable.

The skiing potential of Niseko’s world class powder snow was first uncovered on April 15 1912, when Austro-Hungarian army Major Theodore Edler von Lerch visited the slopes of nearby Mt. Yotei. One of many overseas officers sent to survey the Japanese army after its stunning victory over the Russians in 1904-1905, Lerch’s trip also became the catalyst for the introduction of skiing to Japan.

Swanning around on short skis with only a single bamboo pole, Lerch’s original mission objective was soon accompanied by a request from the Japanese infantry to teach them skiing. The sport soon caught on, and fifty years after Lerch’s initial visit in 1911, ski lifts covering over a kilometre between them were completed at Hirafu for the 1961 All-Japan Alpine Ski Championships. It was the culmination of the snowballing popularity of ski events in the area, including ski mountaineering events held by Kutchan Junior High School students, and the All-Japan Intercollegiate Alpine Ski Championships.

An alpine lift followed this in 1965, and the pre-1972 Sapporo Winter Olympics ski boom led to a further increase in lift, lodge, and hotel facilities. Niseko Annupuri International Ski Resort opened in December 1972, and Niseko Higashiyama Ski Resort (now Niseko Village Ski Resort) followed in 1982 along with continuing construction of gondola lifts, high-speed quad chairlifts, and large-scale ski lodges.

The 1980s also saw the opening of inns in Niseko by local farmers, warmly welcoming skiers to the village. Some of the skiers also followed suit, living the dream of champagne powder in winter, and lush greenery in summer – forming the present pension and restaurant area in the process.

Image of the new gondola planned for Niseko Grand Hirafu

The popularity of skiing continued to increase in the 1990s with the arrival of snowboarding, new technology and techniques. The Niseko Hanazono run opened in 1992, and in 1997, the Niseko All-Mountain Pass system was introduced. Covering the same area as today, the system enables convenient access to the runs and consequently makes it possible for visitors to enjoy skiing in a wider area. In 2004, Niseko Highland Tours Co., Ltd. bought St. Moritz Co., Ltd, Niseko Grand Hirafu’s founding company. Around this time the popularity of Niseko among overseas visitors began to skyrocket, and construction of large-scale condominiums began.

With the upgrading of its facilities and consistent falls of powder snow, the future is looking bright for Grand Hirafu and winter sports lovers from around the world, as it moves into the next 100 years of Niseko tradition!