…and Crawfish Madarao Lodge, too!!
How beautiful is this place?! Today Jake and I took a break to check out the activities and check with the main hotel and ski resort about discounts and other information for our guests. It was a beautiful day with lots of fresh snow and about half of the lifts running.
It was my first time to really see the mountain and understand the design. I think it is an excellent set-up for families and groups with all ski levels. At the main hotel (Madarao Kogen Hotel), there is childcare available and a free kids park which includes a gentle slope for sledding/tubing and a guard watching so that too many people don’t go at once. There is also an area that’s flatter for making snowmen and probably forts when there is more snow. From there, “big kids” can also ski/board down to the first lift. If you are a beginner like me, you will only use this lift and go up and down the modest hill all day (the hill is behind Jake and Fio in the photo above). The serious stuff starts from the bottom of that bunny hill (where Jake is gazing!). Today the higher lifts weren’t open, but apparently you can see the ocean from the peak!! There is also a tree course and a few other ungroomed courses for powder junkies. There is a half pipe for boarders that should be open this weekend as well. There are 25 courses in all and 17 lifts. An all day lift pass is only 4200 and kids under 11 can ride all the lifts for FREE! We asked about discounts and found that you can buy a meal and lift pass in advance by registering online. This is 4300 and includes 1000 yen cert for the restaurant (good soba! and beer is also available), so it’s like 900 yen off. You’ll have to “sign up” at the Madarao ski website by clicking the pink button on this page and sending an empty email (Japanese only). If you stay with us at Crawfish, we’ll help you sign up! 🙂
We are CRAZY busy putting on the final touches to be ready for open tomorrow. Everything is 90% for three rooms, but those last details seem like so much. All the big stuff is done though: heat and hot water, beds, toilets, jacuzzis, carpets and drapes. I am cleaning and doing laundry all day with the babe on my back, but it was nice to take a break at the mountain and see other people enjoying the beautiful surroundings today. We just put up the Crawfish sign out front and still have a lot of shoveling to do (the snow got too high for the snow blower, so we need to shovel once before we can really use it!).
We have rooms open from this weekend onward. Only one Jacuzzi room left on the 2nd and 3rd! If you are free at the beginning of the year and want a last-minute getaway, try Crawfish Madarao! You will NOT be disappointed!
For reservations email myself or my husband.
carol@crawfish.jp or jake@crawfish.com.
And check out the Crawfish Madarao English website for some more detail on pricing and services.
Also on FACEBOOK!
Minneapolis > Tokyo < Madarao 