 |
 |
skijay's Journal
An Update on Resort Inn Alupu - Hakuba
By skijay 1 Mar 2009We went to Hakuba after Nozawa Onsen and stayed at Resort Inn Alupu again. Quite a lot has changed, and I am writing this as an update!
Obachan is still there but there is new management staff as well - two guys who speak a little English but with less charm than Obachan. It looks like Arupu has had a bit of a website makeover, with an English website, and THE BREAKFAST HAS CHANGED - it's not very good. It's a pseudo-Western breakfast which is so much less satisfying than the traditional Japanese breakfast they used to serve. There is now coffee or tea, not green tea, and some kind of bakery offering in the morning with jam (mine was an unappetising bagel-cross-hamburger bun affair). We had mini pizzas one morning, and an uninspired omelette filled with some kind of mystery meat. I thought the coffee was fine but the coffee conisseurs in our group thought otherwise ("undrinkable" was one comment, i think).
As for accomodation, I think we might have got lucky the first time. We were put in a massive three person room with sitting area. This time we were squeezed into a tiny twin room, no space to put luggage or clothes. Japanese style rooms have no more space but look nicer - so I would recommend these as much as possible.
Perhaps as a result of the website makeover (or my blog???) the pension was filled to bursting - with only one Japanese family in sight. The last time we stayed it was just us, a few Japanese skiiers, and a bunch of Koreans on the weekend! Hakuba is certainly gaining increasing popularity amongst Westerners, who are probably tiring of Niseko.
Internet is still available, and you can access it from the lounge as well. Vending machine prices appear to have increased - get your drinks from the Yamazaki down the road instead. And, when you get to the bus stop, for heavens sake get the station people to ring Arupu and they will pick you up - We didnt know this, and walked the gruelling 20-30 minutes there, dragging our snowboard bags - and some of us (I wont mention who) decided to call a taxi half way because we had got lost.
Obachan is still there but there is new management staff as well - two guys who speak a little English but with less charm than Obachan. It looks like Arupu has had a bit of a website makeover, with an English website, and THE BREAKFAST HAS CHANGED - it's not very good. It's a pseudo-Western breakfast which is so much less satisfying than the traditional Japanese breakfast they used to serve. There is now coffee or tea, not green tea, and some kind of bakery offering in the morning with jam (mine was an unappetising bagel-cross-hamburger bun affair). We had mini pizzas one morning, and an uninspired omelette filled with some kind of mystery meat. I thought the coffee was fine but the coffee conisseurs in our group thought otherwise ("undrinkable" was one comment, i think).
As for accomodation, I think we might have got lucky the first time. We were put in a massive three person room with sitting area. This time we were squeezed into a tiny twin room, no space to put luggage or clothes. Japanese style rooms have no more space but look nicer - so I would recommend these as much as possible.
Perhaps as a result of the website makeover (or my blog???) the pension was filled to bursting - with only one Japanese family in sight. The last time we stayed it was just us, a few Japanese skiiers, and a bunch of Koreans on the weekend! Hakuba is certainly gaining increasing popularity amongst Westerners, who are probably tiring of Niseko.
Internet is still available, and you can access it from the lounge as well. Vending machine prices appear to have increased - get your drinks from the Yamazaki down the road instead. And, when you get to the bus stop, for heavens sake get the station people to ring Arupu and they will pick you up - We didnt know this, and walked the gruelling 20-30 minutes there, dragging our snowboard bags - and some of us (I wont mention who) decided to call a taxi half way because we had got lost.
| Tags | None defined |
|---|
0 Comments
Like to comment?
SIGN UP for a free account!
skijay's Posts
Rain stopped play - Plus a blizzard - Hakuba GoryuBy skijay on 20 Feb 2009
An Update on Resort Inn Alupu - Hakuba
By skijay on 1 Mar 2009
Day 4 Nozawa Onsen - Paradise
By skijay on 18 Feb 2009
