Furano

Furano is a quaint countryside town, with a population of around 25,000 friendly locals, that happens to have an amazing ski area on its door step.

Furano is the geographical center of Hokkaido, so when the area is described as central Hokkaido this couldn't be more true. This special location means the temperatures are very very cold (even for Hokkaido) in winter. This cold weather combined with the central location means that the snow that falls is extremely light and almost devoid of any moisture ? in simple terms light dry powder, probably the lightest and driest you will ever experience.

Furano's weather is very stable with little wind in winter. Testament to this is the fact that hot air balloon flights are able to operate on 80% of days during February and March.

Furano has the bonus of being able to offer a special cultural dimension to your ski holiday. Go downtown and explore the restaurants, bars and shops that the locals go to…take the chance and wander down a narrow alleyway and slide open a rice paper door to a tiny restaurant run by someone's Grandma and Grandpa. In the surrounding area popular spots included Furano Winery, Goto Sumio Museum of Art and hot springs on the smoking volcano of Asahidake across the valley.

Nearby is Asahikawa City which offers the opportunity to jump on a local bus and do the big city shopping thing, or experience the Asahikawa Winter Festival which holds the Guinness record for the

world's largest snow sculpture. Asahiyama Zoo is another favorite with resident penguins and Polar bears.

Furano Ski Area is divided into two zones. The Kitanomine Zone and Furano zone. The ski area is well known within Japan for its powder quality and for being the host of a total of 12 FIS World Cup's. New Furano Prince Hotel is located in the Furano Zone and other accommodations are over in the resort area of Kitanomine, along with restaurants and bars.

The ski area offers long beautifully groomed runs, along with powder runs that are left ungroomed after heavy snowfalls. Furano is an excellent location to base yourself and spend a few days taking day trips to the powder of nearby Kamui Ski Links or Tomamu Resort. If you are looking for the ultimate powder try skiing the live volcano of Asahidake.

Furano Ski Area offers a ski host system whereby local volunteers guide guests around the mountain and answer any questions that they may have. A 100 page Dining and Entertainment Guide is printed in English by Furano Tourism and is a total guidebook for a winter holiday in Furano.

Locals are making the effort to welcome and cater to international guest while at the same time preserving the uniqueness and charm of a small Japanese town that makes Furano what it is. It is the hope of the locals that visitors will be able to come back year after year and recognize Furano as the magical place they first fell in love with on their initial trip.

Skiers	Snowboarders
50%	50%

Beginner	Intermediate	Advanced
40%	40%	20 %

Ropeway	Gondola	Quad	Triple	Double	Single	Other
1	1	2	0	5	1	0