Le Bocage - Hakuba Echoland Chalets

We were here for a week in July, during the green season. Hakuba is peaceful and lovely to walk around and enjoy the scenery, but it gets very hot, so bring a hat, and take an umbrella since it can rain at any time. I hadn’t researched the buses properly and assumed there’d be regular service around town in summer. There isn’t, the buses only run in winter, so we walked or took taxis whenever we went out. Our original room was nice, but it was upstairs on the second floor and the stairs were very steep, especially with luggage. It wasn’t wheelchair accessible. We asked to move to the ground floor and luckily another room was available. Most nearby restaurants were closed or only open at night. It was good that the room had a cooktop, so we could make food. Happo Bus Terminal is about a 20-minute walk away, Big supermarket is 15-20 minutes, and 7/11 is around 20 minutes. There’s coin laundry at the hotel, wash and dry for ¥300. There was no staff onsite, and since I booked through booking.com, everything was handled by email. Taxi numbers were posted on the desk inside the ground-floor dry room.

Le Bocage made our white Christmas unforgettable, and we can’t wait to return. We booked a ground-level one-bedroom apartment in Ecoland Hakuba for my husband, our daughters aged 12 and 8, and me. It was a peaceful, character-filled spot just off the Main Street. The girls had a great time building snow forts and igloos right outside while we stayed cosy inside. We were welcomed at the train station by a friendly driver, then walked through snow-covered streets and beautiful surroundings to the apartment. It felt like arriving in a winter fairy tale. The place was spacious and thoughtfully laid out. The main bedroom had a large wardrobe, drawers, and two comfortable single beds that we pushed together. The girls were happy on the pull-out sofa, which made into a queen bed. The fully equipped kitchen was a game changer, since Ecoland doesn’t have many takeaway options and after skiing we didn’t want to go out again. It had a fridge, microwave, mini grill, stovetop, and all the utensils we needed. There’s a supermarket nearby and a great convenience store with ready-made meals, about a five-minute walk away. The Main Street is only steps away, with a free shuttle to the slopes. After skiing, we could use the ski drying room and racks for boots and gear. There was also a washer and dryer, which helped after wet days in the snow. The vending machine had delicious hot chocolate for warming up before heading out. The staff were wonderful. Before we left, the team at Le Bocage arranged for Black Cat to collect our luggage and send it to the airport for $70 AUD. That made the rest of our trip much easier, as we didn’t have to carry around 40kg of bags. I can’t recommend Le Bocage highly enough. Comfortable rooms, a great location, useful facilities, and lovely service made for a stress-free family trip. It was a dream stay.

There’s a ski drying room downstairs, coin laundry, free parking, and towels, soap, tissues and other basics you can take yourself. The apartment feels fairly new and is kept clean, with no grimy corners or walls. It’s simple but has what you need, including a living room with TV, a small kitchen and a roomy bathroom. I’d stay again.

After a day on the slopes, those really comfortable beds were a treat. The chalet was warm throughout and had free Wi-Fi, plus everything we needed for a family stay where we could cook most meals and eat out locally now and then. It’s right in the middle of Echoland, and Hakuba base camp is just a minute away on foot for the free resort buses. Nothing we asked for seemed like too much trouble. We had a brilliant week and will be back.