Rusutsu Resortルスツリゾート

Rusutsu is Niseko's quieter, arguably better-treed cousin, an hour down the road. Three linked peaks — West Mountain, East Mountain and Mt Isola — offer up the same bottomless Hokkaido powder with a fraction of the crowds, and tree runs so good that plenty of Niseko regulars sneak over here on the deepest days.

The terrain fans out generously: mellow groomers for the family, long ridge runs on Isola, and gladed forest between the pistes that seems to hold snow forever. Because the three mountains share their storms but not their lift queues, first tracks last well into the morning here in a way they rarely do next door.

The whole thing is anchored by one enormous integrated resort — a hotel with a monorail running through its lobby and a summer amusement park (yes, a ferris wheel) outside the window. It's a self-contained bubble rather than a town, which makes it brilliantly easy with kids. Powder by day, waterslides and onsen by night. Nobody leaves Rusutsu grumpy.