Niseko Cat Skiing

Niseko snowcat skiing is growing in popularity, in part because unlike the Niseko Ski Resort, it's easy to score the highly coveted Niseko untracked powder. There are four Niseko cat ski outfits located within easy driving distance of Niseko (transport from/to your accommodation included).

Weiss Cat Skiing is located at the former ski resort of Weisshorn which is adjacent to Hanazono. This Niseko snowcat skiing is absolutely perfect for strong intermediate riders or those fairly new to powder skiing. The terrain has lots of wide open mellow runs where you can let it rip as well as some generously spaced trees! Nothing is particularly steep. This provides a great opportunity to practise the art of powder riding in fresh snow and without the pressure of trying to keep up with experts.

Chisenupuri Snowcats operates at the former ski resort of Chisenupuri and is also good for those learning to ski or snowboard in powder in the trees or more open spaces. As the cat skiing is unguided, it's also great for advanced riders who want to explore and rip up the powder at their own pace.

Advanced and expert riders looking for steep terrain should check out Rising Sun Cat Skiing. The terrain offers short but very steep treed terrain that includes the option for leaping off small or big pillows. This is real backcountry terrain rather than an abandoned ski resort (as with the other Niseko cat skiing).

Iwanai Cat Skiing at the Iwanai Resort is a fantastic all-rounder. This Niseko cat ski outfit can cater to strong intermediates whereby they can ride old piste runs whilst other guides can take advanced riders to steeper pitches to play in the trees or big bowls.

Shimamaki Snowcat Adventures offer 2 and 4 day cat skiing trips. The terrain includes some steeps and a combination of trees and alpine, and plenty of Hokkaido powder. The cat skiing is 2 hours south of Niseko and transport from your Niseko accommodation is included as part of the package.

Comparison of Niseko Snowcat Skiing

The Niseko cat skiing outfits vary a lot but there are also some similarities such as small terrain size. The tables below outline some of the stats, you can check out our reviews of the Niseko cat skiing outfits, and you can also compare our Japan cat skiing ratings.

	Location	Type	Season	Min age	Max Guests Per Guide
Weiss	Weiss adjacent to Hanazono	Guided, single day	mid Dec to late Mar	10	4
Chisenupuri	Chisenupuri, adjacent to Moiwa	Unguided, single day	early Jan to late Mar	*	n/a
Rising Sun	30 min drive NE of Hirafu	Guided, single day	mid Dec to mid Mar	13	2.5
Iwanai	Iwanai, 45 min drive from Hirafu	Guided, single or multi day	mid Dec to late Mar	13	4-6
Shimamaki	Shimamaki, 2 hour drive SW of Niseko	Guided, mostly multi-day	early Jan to mid Mar	13	6

Price Comparison of Cat Skiing Near Niseko

	Price per day (yen)	Extra Inclusions
Weiss	129,000	n/a
Chisenupuri	96,800	onsen
Rising Sun	95,000	n/a
Iwanai	150,000	n/a
Shimamaki	153,120*	lodging, dinner, breakfast

Standard inclusions: avalanche safety equipment, lunch, accommodation pick-up & drop-off. 
Price for 2024-25 season
*based on 3 day trip in high season
Prices displayed including the 10% consumption tax

Terrain Type Comparison

	Terrain Type	Min Ability Level	Best  Suited To	Av Pitch	Max Pitch	Terrain Size
Weiss	Ex ski resort	Inter	Strong inter	20	30	Small to medium
Chisenupuri	Ex ski resort	Inter	Inter, advanced	27	33	Small
Rising Sun	Backcountry	Strong inter	Upper advanced, expert	35	47	Small to medium
Iwanai	Part ex ski resort	Inter	Strong inter to upper advanced	28	37	Small to medium
Shimamaki	Backcountry	Strong inter	Advanced to expert	?	?	Medium

Approximate Amount of Skiing/Snowboarding & Elevation

	Average Vertical/ Run (m)	Max Vertical/ Run (m)	Runs Per Day	Vertical/Day (m)	Max Elev (m) *
Weiss	450	450	6-7	2,750	930
Chisenupuri	280	280	7-15	3,360	831
Rising Sun	200	210	7-8	1,700	710
Iwanai	480	640	8-10	4,500	877
Shimamaki	400	550	7-10	3,000	1,520

* Max elevation without hiking

Our Reviews

You can check out our detailed reviews and videos of the Niseko cat ski outfits as well as the multi-day Shimamaki trips which commence in Niseko. These include our thoughts on the pros and cons of each operation and ratings for terrain, snow, snowcat, safety and other elements of snowcat skiing.

• Chisenupuri Cat Skiing review
• Iwanai Cat Skiing review
• Rising Sun Cat Skiing review
• Shimamaki Snowcat Skiing review
• Weiss Cat Skiing review