The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps
Sentosa Staycation Itinerary Overview (October 2015) I remembered being scared during my first ride of cable car at Sentosa as a young girl. I was afraid of the leg-shaking heights. But after many years, I was excited to try it again! :) The iconic cable …
Sentosa Staycation Itinerary Overview (October 2015) There are Michelin star restaurants, fast food outlets and some popular food chains around Resorts World Sentosa (“RWS”). To get some affordable real food in RWS, we decided that the “local” hawker food at Malaysian Food Street (“Street”) was …
Niseko is a town located in Hokkaido, Japan. Famous for its ski resorts in Japan, there are endless light powder snow, spectacular backdrop, long ski runs, trail skis and many after-ski activities.
Niseko’s ski resorts are all located on Mount Annupuri. The three major resorts, Grand Hirafu (comprised of Hirafu and Hanazono), Niseko Village and Annupuri are connected on the mountain by ski lifts and their towns are connected by shuttle bus at the bases. A special combination ticket, Niseko All Mountain Pass, gives access to all three resorts for 6,900 yen per day: www.niseko.ne.jp/en/lift
Nominated for 2015 World’s Best New Ski Hotel, Ki Niseko is situated in the Grand Hirafu (Upper Hirafu) area. According to The Luxe Nomad, here are some of the hotel’s highlights:
A big plus point about Ki Niseko is the view from their rooms. Surrounded by powdery white snow and beautiful nature, it would be a waste not to wake up each morning with stunning views of Mt Yotei & Resort Mountain vista!
But what bought me over is their mineral-rich natural onsens. Imagine soaking in the hot springs after a cold and tiring day from skiing. I am not a big fan of the cold, so it would be sheer pleasure for my cold and aching muscles to dip in the hot water. And since I never had an onsen experience, it will be doubly awesome!
From the online reviews, it seemed that the hotel has excellent service and English.
Also, it is in a great location. Though in a quiet corner of Upper Hirafu, it is only still a walking distance to the main restaurants and amenities. If not, there is the shuttle bus in the winter. The hotel is also less than 100metres from the high-speed gondola.
And as a ski-in ski-out boutique hotel, Ki Niseko will make things much easier for us as beginners. I just have to carry my gears from the rack to the door. Not much walking, no buses, and thus no hassle. And I can simply ski straight to the door after a day on the slopes.
Lastly, it would be great to stay in style for my first skiing experience! I believe their valet and concierge services will make my nervous first experience better. :)
Website
Reviews @ Tripadvisor
Update: I actually won the contest and stayed at Ki Niseko! Read more about our Ki Niseko experience.
Nominated for World’s Best New Ski Chalet 2015, Terrazze is situated in the Grand Hirafu (Middle Hirafu) area. According to The Luxe Nomad, here are some of the apartment’s highlights:
Each apartment is tastefully and uniquely designed with stylish interior, high ceiling, modern facilities, fully equipped kitchen, and heated floors.
The best part? With floor-to-ceiling windows, all six apartments have the majestic view of Mount Yotei which would blow you away as you step into the room.
Location: It’s only a 5-minute stroll away from Hirafu’s popular attractions, restaurants and bars. The convenience store and supermarket is a mere 7-minutes walk away.
From the online reviews, many people were raving about their excellent concierge team!
Website
Reviews @ Tripadvisor
Winner of the World’s Best Ski Boutique Hotel in 2014 and 2015, The Vale Niseko is situated in the Grand Hirafu (Upper Hirafu) area. According to The Luxe Nomad, here are some of the apartment’s highlights:
The Vale is in a great location near to the gear and grocery shops, ski school, the Family Ace Chair Lift and shuttle bus stops.
It also has an excellent offering with its natural hot spring, in-house restaurant and ski rental shop.
As ski-in ski-out place, you can ski off from your apartment easily. The nearest ski lifts are only 30 seconds away on the ski run. There are also lockers at the basement for storing rented gears and other equipment. In this way, you can save the effort of lugging the stuff from your apartment. The living room would also not be cluttered.
Their full-fledged thermal experience also meant that for those afraid of cold like myself, we will be jumping in the heat of joy!
With various apartment sizes to choose from, one can pick the right one for the party size. Being an apartment, there is a living room, a kitchen and plenty of space. They have a fully equipped kitchen if I decided to whip up a meal, though I doubt I would.
According to online reviews, The Vale has good service – its internationally diverse team is friendly, helpful and knowledgeable.
Website
Reviews @ Tripadvisor
Related Posts: Overview Japan Itinerary: Hokkaido and Tokyo (Winter/Spring 2016) Ki Niseko Review (Ski-in Ski-out Hotel) Which Area to Stay in Niseko? Where to eat in Niseko? (Grand Hirafu)
Images Credit: theluxenomad.com, unless otherwise stated.
All Rights Reserved: All photos (unless credited) on travel.joogo.sg. Disclaimer: All data and information provided on this site is for informational purposes only. Travel.joogo.sg and/or the author shall not be held responsible for any injury, loss, expense or damage of any kind whatsoever suffered or incurred by any person who accesses or uses the information and external websites stated above. Full disclaimer here.
Fort Siloso is definitely for War buffs and history enthusiasts. It’s also good for Singaporeans to learn more about the history of our land. Also a place for nature lovers and introverts to take a respite from the bustling Sentosa that’s filled with tourists (almost) …
Update (6 June 2016): Underwater World Singapore will be closing on 26 June 2016. Sentosa RWS S.E.A. Aquarium is one of the two sea aquariums in Sentosa Singapore. The other one is UnderWater World. UnderWater World has been in Sentosa for the longest time. Mr …
▲ Transport Information |▲ Rental Car | ▲ Melbourne
Travels in 2013, updated 17 November 2015
Our Journey: Road trip to Great Ocean Road and Halls Gap.
We used: Spendless Car Rentals, spendlesscarrentals.com.au
Verdict: We chose Spendless because of its relatively affordable rates. Renting a car in Melbourne doesn’t come cheap! Anyway, this car rental is about 5-10minutes drive away from the airport. The employee will pick us up at the airport to the car rental shop. Not a fancy shop, but a small car garage.
We made our car reservation online and chose the GPS option. However, when we were there, they did not have any unit. There was another couple in the same predicament. It was a Sunday and the employee in the office is not a full time staff, but comes in only on Sunday. So they only know how to do simple procedures. They took a long while to contact the boss, and we still have to wait for the boss to travel to the supermarket to get GPS units for us. We were on a tight timeline for the great ocean road trip, so we were very behind time. In the end, we had to skip a few stops. :( But I will still give them a second chance because of their pricing and not too bad car condition.
Others: Avis, Budget, Europcar, Hertz, Thrifty, Redspot, Alpha Car Hire (we nearly went for this, but they ran out of our desired car size).
Car Sharing Options: Go Get, Flexi Car
*When we rented, it was free for Spendless Car Rentals!
www.vroomvroomvroom.com.au is a good tool to compare the rates among (big) car rental companies in Melbourne. You can usually book a car at a low rate. However, the website doesn’t include the ‘Other fees’ mentioned above.
As we didn’t want to shock ourselves with the many extras to top up when we collect our car, we reckoned it’s better to book straight from the car companies. At least the online quote (price + adds on) given to us is nearer to the actual price we are going to pay. And since we are on a budget, we went looking for smaller car companies. :)
www.alphacarhire.com.au/travel-guide/australia/top-10-car-hire-tips
www.spendlesscarrentals.com.au/rates-and-reservations.aspx
Citylink and Eastlink are the only toll roads in Melbourne. There are prominent signs, advising motorists that they are approaching, entering or leaving a toll road. Toll roads in Melbourne have blue signage with gold coloured lettering. This is in contrast to the green signage with white lettering used on roads that do not require the payment of tolls.
Pictures of toll road signs (Victorian roads): travelvictoria.com.au/victoria/tollroads
More information on Victoria’s Roads: travelvictoria.com.au/victoria/roads
Citylink Map: www.citylink.com.au/using-citylink/entries-and-exits
Eastlink: www.eastlink.com.au/interchanges/interchanges.asp
All toll roads in Melbourne are cashless – only electronic payments. You can
Your choice depends on where you are going and how often you will use the tolls. If you are going from Melbourne city to the Great Ocean Road, then you can get by without paying any tolls.
Updated 10 October 2013
Disclaimer: All data and information provided on this site is for informational purposes only. Travel.joogo.sg and/or the author shall not be held responsible for any injury, loss, expense or damage of any kind whatsoever suffered or incurred by any person who accesses or uses the information and external websites stated above. Full disclaimer here.
▲ Transport Information |▲ Rental Car | ▲ Perth Travels in 2013, updated 17 November 2015 Rental Car Companies in Perth Our Journey: To travel up North to Pinnacles, and down South to Margaret River region & around. We used: Bayswater, www.bayswatercarrental.com.au Verdict: We chose Bayswater because …
If you’re thinking of a day trip to Taroko National Park, here are a few modes of transportation from Taipei to Taroko National Park to consider. :) Step 1) From Taipei City to Xincheng Train Station Option One: Train To reach Taroko National Park, you …