Midtown Niseko

Staff were really helpful, and the location is handy for the price, close to central Hirafu. The rooms look good and are practical, but a bit cramped. Even after I changed the temperature and airflow, the air-con still felt a little cold. A wind deflector would help in small rooms where the air-conditioning faces the beds. Breakfast came with lots of fruit, though the choices got repetitive. The hot food could be better.

The hotel staff were excellent and very accommodating, and we really enjoyed our stay. The rooms are small but functional, with drying racks for gear and ski and snowboard storage on the ground floor. There are plenty of power outlets and USB ports. It would be nice to have Netflix or another streaming service. Buses to Hanazono run regularly, and the Niseko United bus runs hourly in peak season, making it fairly easy to get to Hirafu and other resort areas. Central Hirafu is about a 15-minute walk, which is very doable. Breakfast was included and a great bonus, but dinner at Midtown Diner left a lot to be desired. Improving that would make this a top choice for Niseko. We’d definitely consider coming back for our next ski trip.

The staff were kind and happy to answer our questions, and the rooms were nice. For the price, it was great, much cheaper than other Hirafu places. There’s snow gear storage, lots of shuttles to get around, breakfast, easy rental returns onsite through Rythm, luggage storage, Yamato shipping, and more. We’ll stay here again when we return.

The staff gave excellent service before and during our stay, and the fully automated coffee machines made good espresso and frothed drinks. The buffet breakfast was okay, better than the premade, straight-from-a-mix kind at Holiday Inn, but pretty average for a freshly made breakfast. The small rooms are functional, and I thought it was solid value. The worst part was the bus situation. The free Hanazono buses picked up at the hotel, but never ran on schedule and never came to the ski slopes. We had to take the city bus back every time, and it wasn’t free unless you had a Niseko All Mountain pass lift ticket. The common rooms on each floor had usable kitchen appliances, but so few utensils and similar items that you had to plan carefully to make them useful for a meal. I’d consider returning, though if the buses haven’t improved, I might pay more to stay on the slopes during a ski trip.