Three houses in a wood below Mt. Yotei. Sauna first, then the snow — or the river.

Ask about datesSee the three houses
House

Dates

Guests

Ask about dates
Whole houseSauna in every houseSleeps eightWood stoveSki storageWindow on Mt. YoteiFull kitchenParking for twoFrom two nightsWe clear the snow

You get the whole house. There is one set of keys.

Yukiato Villas is three rental houses in Niseko, and nothing else. You take one house whole, so the entrance, the kitchen and the sauna belong to your group alone. In winter you can leave your skis standing in the earth-floored hall; in summer you can walk back wet from the Shiribetsu River. Lighting the wood stove and warming the sauna before you arrive is our part of the work.

A lit wood stove with firewood stacked beside it

Come for the snow

In the snow months the road and the roof are both under it. We clear the drive in the morning, so your car can leave as it stands.

Skis and boots can stay in the earth-floored hall. Hang anything wet in the drying room. Tell us when you expect to be back and the sauna will be warm.

Come for the river

Once the snow goes, the Shiribetsu River is the sound you hear. Come back from the water and dry everything on the deck.

The outdoor sauna at Karamatsu House burns wood, and we show you how to light it on the day you arrive. Sit with the fire, then step out into the air. In summer that is the best hour of the day.

Stay a while

The kitchen has pots, a chopping board and basic seasonings. Buy what you want in town and cook it yourselves. Each house has a washing machine.

Ask us about stays of a week or more. The longer people stay, the more they split into those who walk before breakfast and those who sleep until noon.

Blue ridges rising out of a sea of fog

Before you come

Nobody from the house lives on site. The key waits in a code box by the door, and we email you the code the day before.

Please arrive between 16:00 and 20:00. We come by soon after you arrive to show you the wood stove and the sauna. After that, call us any time during your stay.

Every house has its own bath and sauna. The sauna takes about an hour to warm up once you switch it on. There is no cold plunge, though in winter stepping outside does the same work.

We clean after you leave. Please sort your rubbish into the bags in the kitchen.

Read the questions
A home-cooked breakfast laid out along a long table
A snowy cabin with a lantern lit at dusk

A day here

The day starts at the wood stove. Push newspaper into the logs you stacked the night before, leave the door open a crack, and it catches. By the time the water boils the room is warm.
Winter morning
Afternoons are for skiing. Skis and boots can stay in the earth-floored hall. Hang the wet things in the drying room and they are dry by evening.
Winter afternoon
The sauna is warm by early evening. It is already dark outside and only the snow is still white. Most people sit on the step afterwards and say nothing for a while.
Winter night
In summer you come back from the river and dry off on the deck. The outdoor sauna burns wood, so you change while the fire settles.
Summer afternoon
Evenings belong to the kitchen. Lay out what you bought in town; the table takes eight. The washing up can wait until morning.
Any season
15

The three houses

Ask about dates
A timber cabin with deep snow on the roof, its windows lit
Whole house, per night¥72,000 and up

Wood-fired saunaWood stoveNara House

Niseko-cho, Hokkaido

Up to 83 bedrooms1 sauna
A bright log living room lined with tall windows
Whole house, per night¥58,000 and up

Window facing Mt. YoteiElectric saunaShirakaba House

Niseko-cho, Hokkaido

Up to 82 bedrooms + loft1 sauna
A snow-covered timber house with a stone-stepped terrace
Whole house, per night¥66,000 and up

Outdoor sauna hutWide deckKaramatsu House

Niseko-cho, Hokkaido

Up to 83 bedrooms1 sauna

 Ask about all three houses

Availability and booking

We take bookings by phone and by email. Tell us the dates, how many of you there are and which house you would like, and we will write back with what is open.

Name
Yukiato Villas (fictional)
What we do
Whole-house rentals — three houses, eight guests each, a sauna in every house
Where
0-0 Niseko-cho, Abuta-gun, Hokkaido, Japan
Phone
0136-00-0000 (9:00–18:00)
Email
yoyaku@yukiato-villas.example
Arrival and departure
Arrive 16:00–20:00 / leave by 10:00
Price
From ¥58,000 per house per night (up to eight people, tax included)
Minimum stay
Two nights
Parking
Two cars per house
Languages
Japanese and English
Call usWrite to us
Tyre tracks on a snow-covered forest road

Questions we are asked

Booking

Two nights. Single nights are sometimes possible on open dates — please ask.

You pay for the whole house, and the price is the same for up to eight people. Nara House from ¥72,000 a night, Shirakaba House from ¥58,000, Karamatsu House from ¥66,000. Tax included; the rate moves with the date.

On the day you arrive, in cash or by card. We do not take payment in advance.

Free up to fourteen days before. After that, half the room charge; the day before and the day itself, the full amount.

Your stay

Between 16:00 and 20:00. If you will be later, tell us by phone or email the day before. Checkout is 10:00.

Eight in any of the three houses. Bedding is set out for eight.

Any time during your stay. It takes about an hour to warm up once you switch it on. The outdoor sauna at Karamatsu House burns wood; we show you how on the day you arrive.

No. The kitchen has pots, dishes and basic seasonings, so you can cook what you buy in town.

No. We are about ten minutes by car from Niseko Station. Each house has parking for two cars. Come on winter tyres.

We cannot take dogs. Smoking is outdoors only.

We email you when a house comes free.

Only when one of the three opens up — once a month at most.

A corner of a room with a wood stove and a window