Hokkaido Backcountry Club
Guidefrom ¥40,000English spokenSplitboard friendly
Hokkaido Backcountry Club guides touring days around the Niseko range and runs the snowcats at Chisenupuri.
Photo ShakyIsles · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0 and others, credited in the gallery
Offerings and prices
What they offerプラン
| Offering | Duration | From |
|---|---|---|
| Lift-assisted backcountry day (private) Up to 5 guests per guide; groups of 6–10 pay a second ¥184,000. Includes tax, 4WD pickup and drop-off, and beacon, shovel, probe and pack. Lift tickets for guests and guide are extra, and touring gear is not included. Season is not printed on the page (checked October 2026). | full day | ¥184,000 / group/day |
| Mt Yotei summit tour (private) Up to 10 guests, 5 per guide. Advanced riders with backcountry experience only. Runs off a standby list for weather windows. Includes tax, guide, transport and avalanche kit. | full day | ¥368,000 / group/day |
| Chisenupuri cat skiing, shared seat Minimum 6 guests. Listed as unguided riding on the old ski area runs with patrollers on duty. Includes tax, lunch, a Yukichichibu onsen ticket and Niseko transfers. Powderhounds lists the same rate for 2026/27. See the chisenupuri-snowcats entry. | full day, 08:15 pickup to 16:00 return | ¥175,000 / person/day |
| Shimamaki snowcats, private 3-day trip Up to 8 guests in the Kariba range. Includes tax, all meals, avalanche kit with airbag, Niseko–Shimamaki transport and ryokan lodging. Availability shown for 2026/27. | 3 days, 3 nights | ¥6,300,000 / group/trip |
| AST 1 avalanche course 2026/27 dates 5–6 Dec (Japanese), 7–8, 9–10, 12–13 Dec, 14–15 Dec (Japanese), 20–21 Dec and 14–15 Mar. Avalanche Canada curriculum. Hokkaido residents ¥35,000. Includes avalanche kit and one cat ride at Chisenupuri; touring gear rental ¥5,000. Minimum 4 people. | 2 days | ¥40,000 / person |
| Heli skiing (6-run, semi-private, private charter) Prices on request. | full day | Ask |
Hokkaido Backcountry Club works out of Higashiyama on the Niseko Village side, and more than twenty guides appear on its roster. Six of them hold full IFMGA mountain guide status. Four more are AMGA splitboard guides, so a board crew can ask for a guide who skins on one too. The lift-assisted day costs ¥184,000 for up to five riders and starts with a 4WD pickup at your door, and the guide chooses the resort from the morning report anywhere within two hours of Niseko.
Rankoshi town's old ski area at Chisenupuri now belongs to the club's snowcats. A shared seat lists at ¥175,000 with lunch and a Yukichichibu onsen ticket included, and patrollers watch the old runs while you ride them without a guide. Yotei summit days sit on a standby list because calm, clear windows on that cone come and go fast. The two-day AST 1 course follows the Avalanche Canada curriculum for ¥40,000, and two of the 2026/27 sessions are taught in Japanese.
Quick answers about Hokkaido Backcountry Clubよくある質問
How much does Hokkaido Backcountry Club charge?
Hokkaido Backcountry Club lists AST 1 avalanche course from ¥40,000 per person (2026) (2 days).
Does Hokkaido Backcountry Club speak English?
Yes. Hokkaido Backcountry Club works in English and Japanese.
