Rhythm Rides FAQ

Rhythm RIDES FAQ

The following outlines Rhythm Japan’s (owned and operated by Beats Snow Sports Pty Ltd.) Terms & Conditions for Rhythm Rides.

General FAQs

Up until 7 days prior, a full refund will be provided for any reason
From 7 days prior until 48 hours prior a 20% cancellation fee will be incurred
From 48 hours prior a 100% cancellation fee will occur
No compensation can be made for the loss of lesson time due to injury or illness if the lesson has commenced.
Upon receipt of a valid medical certificate. A reschedule or refund of future lessons can be made.
- We must be advised before your new lesson has commenced.
- We must receive the report within 24 hours of the canceled lesson
We reserve the right to cancel any reservations which do not meet our booking terms or have not been paid by the due date.

If your child has unfortunately suffered an injury the following procedure will be followed.

Depending on the injury & location your instructor will call ski patrol for assistance
Ski Patrol will recommend a form of treatment based on the seriousness of the injury these can include
- Immediate transfer to a local hospital or emergency service
- Recommendation for further medical advice (at a private clinic, physio, or hospital)
- Recommendation for rest

If your child is injured we will call you immediately to advise you and ask you to come to their location. This is why we ask you to have a working contact number on you at all times.

If the injury is deemed not an emergency we will wait for you to arrive in order to decide the best form of treatment for your child.

If the injury is deemed critical, your child will be taken to an emergency service deemed appropriate by the ambulance service. In this circumstance, we will endeavor to reach you & get you to your child as quickly as possible.

For Private Lessons, the lift pass you purchase will depend on your goals and ability level. For those who are new to the sport (Level 1-3), we would recommend a Grand Hirafu full day pass which will give you access to Grand Hirafu & Hanazono resort. If you are more experienced (Level 4-7) & you would like to explore more Annupuri or Niseko Village you will need an all-mountain lift pass.

For Resort Guiding, you will need an all-mountain lift pass

For Day Trip Products (Privates & Resort Guiding) visiting resorts outside of Niseko please contact our Guest Services team to confirm the correct lift pass for your day

As we are fortunate to be in a very snowy part of the world, it means that often the weather can be snowy & sometimes windy, or sometimes even rain. The good news is this does not mean that your lesson can not go ahead. We will generally run our lessons every day providing there are appropriate lifts for your skill level. Our team is also incredibly talented and experienced and can challenge you even when there are limited lifts operating.

Meeting locations

Your instructor can meet you at any location in Hirafu Village or Annupuri Village that is most convenient for you. However, please note that your lesson will start at the time you have scheduled – not the time you get to the resort on-snow. To get the most out of your lesson, we recommend an on-snow meeting location.

On-snow meeting locations

Dot Base – meet on the snow next to the ticket sales window
Family Base – on-snow next to the ticket window
Gondola Base – on-snow mountain centres

In-store meeting locations

Rhythm Main st. Store – Located here
Rhythm Base Store – Located here

Transport

Private Lessons

Children 7 and up are welcome to join the lesson with adults providing all participants are of a similar ability level.

For children 6 and under, we recommend that you book a separate private lesson, or split your lesson into a half-day adult class & half-day kids class. Younger children learn in a different way to adults, and progress at very different speeds & for this reason lessons with these challenges rarely meet expectations. Please feel free to contact our guest services team, should you want to discuss your family private goals

We are passionate about introducing kids to skiing and snowboarding young. However due to the physical & developmental differences between young children & adults we are unable to cater to a combined lesson. You are however welcome to watch your child enjoy their first day. We recommend that you do so at a distance. This will allow your little one to bond with their instructor and enjoy their day.

Yes! We are happy to take requests for instructors. Please note our Guest Services Team will check availability for your requested instructor at the time of booking and will let you know if they are available.

Please note that there are occasions outside of our control where an instructor who has been confirmed on your booking is no longer available.

These include:

Sickness & Injury
COVID precautionary measures
Visa Issuance & work eligibility (for bookings received prior to the season commencing & our team’s arrival in Japan)

DAY TRIP Private Lessons

Absolutely! And we highly recommend it! If you would like to visit an onsen, we recommend packing your onsen gear (towel, change of clothes & shoes, etc) and bring it with you on the day. Please then let your instructor know on the day, and they can recommend options to you & ensure it fits into the daily schedule which could involve finishing on the mountain a little earlier at the end of the day.

Resort Guiding & Backcountry General FAQ

Good question! Slackcountry – refers to the terrain which is accessed via a lift however it is out of the resort’s operational boundaries. Typically this means there are no or little avalanche control measures. So it is in actual fact easily accessed Backcountry.

Backcountry Terrain – This is usually referred to as terrain which is accessed without the use of lifts. This means you will need touring equipment or snowshoes to walk up the mountain and then ski down. There are also no avalanche control measures undertaken, which is why most people choose to hire a qualified Guide when venturing into the wilderness.

Generally, this will not be a problem. The major concern with mixing a group of skiers/boarders is the ability level of the group. In particular, for snowboarders in slack country terrain, the ability to hold a strong traverse and maintain speed on the flats can be concerning for skiers & if this is not an area of strength then appropriate terrain may need to be chosen which will not put a snowboarder in a tough spot. Please reach out to our Guest Services Team to discuss your group’s suitability for a mixed tour.

It is important to understand when venturing into any backcountry or slack-country terrain that conditions can never be 100% safe. Backcountry touring can be a hazardous activity and while all measures are taken to be informed & make good decisions accidents & avalanches can still occur.

With this in mind, we take a safety-first approach & have a number of daily procedures in place to be as informed on conditions & hazards as we can be. This information is then used along with your skill level & goals to form a trip plan.

Our safety procedures include (but are not limited to)

Daily review of local official forecasts – Niseko Avalanche Bulletin. We operate within the Niseko Rules, and will not Guide you outside the gates when they are closed.
Daily review of other global weather forecasting models
Ongoing assessment and recording of weather, temperature & snow conditions
Ongoing assessment of local hazards & changes in conditions
Daily Guide briefings to review all conditions and trip plans.
Actively involved in the local guiding community in which we encourage & receive open communication on conditions.

Resort Guiding

The big difference between the two is the terrain we will be riding. In-resort guiding will focus on the terrain inside the resort boundaries. This doesn’t mean just the groomers. There are plenty of tree runs to be found inside the resort boundaries.

As soon we step outside the resort boundaries, we will end up in the world of the backcountry. The main difference with backcountry terrain is that the resort does not maintain or control the conditions to mitigate risk to the users (like avalanches.) This is the reason is is highly recommended to always go with a guide who can assess these risks, and choose the safest and most enjoyable terrain for you. This is also the reason why we carry avalanche safety gear when we step outside the resort boundaries.

This is our most flexible tour, which opens up a range of possibilities with travel to surrounding resorts & accessible slack-country terrain.

Along with a flexible location, your tour includes:

5 guests included for trips that intended to access the backcountry
6 guests included for trips that will stay in the resort
7 hours duration including a 1 hour lunch break
Additional time for travel.
Free transport Avalanche safety gear, including beacon, shovel, probe & backpack if you have booked a BC Access tour

Yes, we highly recommend that you bring or hire Premium Powder Equipment to get the most out of your day. Powder in Japan is often deeper and drier than anywhere in the world. This is amazing but it can also be challenging. powder-specific equipment has really made leaps and bounds in recent years, & having the right equipment can take you from zero to hero in no time! If you are unsure what you should book, please contact our Guest Services Team.

Niseko Resort Guiding – In-Resort
Can access the terrain which is accessible within the four Niseko United Resorts but does not access the backcountry terrain.

Niseko Resort Guiding – BC Access
Can access the terrain which is accessible within the four Niseko Resorts & its backcountry terrain via the Niseko Gate System are limited to the terrain which is accessible by the Niseko lift system. But don’t worry, there are a lot of options available.

Day Trip Guiding – In-Resort
have the opportunity to visit a variety of resorts in the area. Please speak with our Guest Services Team to find out where your tour could take. The tours will not access any backcountry terrain. Please contact our guest services team to discuss what resorts we could take you too

Day Trip Guiding – BC Access
also have the opportunity to visit other resorts in our area and their accessible backcountry terrain via gate systems. Please contact our guest services team to discuss what resorts we could take you to.

BACKCOUNTRY TOURS

For our backcountry products we would recommend that you start with an Introduction to Backcountry product providing you are comfortable with the following;

Experienced & comfortable with powder riding
Minimum Intermediate Rider
A reasonable level of fitness to allow walking uphill & riding downhill a minimum of one time.

If you would really like to try touring equipment but are not ready to rely solely on uphill travel, we may be able to customise your experience to involve some lift-accessed backcountry with touring equipment.

If this sounds more like your experience please contact our guest services team to discuss your goals.

Our Backcountry Tours operate in a variety of terrain in the Niseko area. The terrain we will go to will depend on the snow safety conditions, your ability & fitness level & of course where the best snow is for the day. If you would like to discuss your tour goals or learn more about the backcountry terrain we could access please reach out to arrange a trip planning session with our guide team

We will provide an avalanche backpack which will include a beacon, shovel, and probe in it. Along with this, we recommend putting in your backpack.

Spare goggles- (nothing worse than foggy goggles at the top of a run)
Sunglasses
Sunscreen
1 Litre of Water
Energy bars & small packed lunch
Change of neck warmer & gloves
Thin gloves for hiking uphill
Light hat to hike in.
Helmet
A good night of sleep!

The aim here is to keep yourself warm and dry from snow and sweat.
We recommend wearing;

Merino wool base layers keep you warm while also remaining breathable
Over the base layer it’s recommended to wear a warm mid layer, that you can take off when you get too warm. For example a puffy jacket.
To protect you from the snow and the wind, we recommend you wear a shell jacket and pants.
To keep your feet warm and avoid blisters, it’s recommended to wear dedicated ski socks.
To protect your face from the snow, sun, and wind we recommend you wear a facemask,
Protect your eyes with sunglasses for the uphill travel and snow goggles for the downhill.

It is worth noting that backcountry touring can often be hot work! Walking uphill often requires you to take a layer off. This will stop you from overheating & sweating & then later getting cold when your gear is wet. It is also a great idea to bring some extra layers so you can adjust your layering during the day

Contact us: If you have any questions regarding the above terms and conditions, please contact us at info@rhythmjapan.com

Lessons

Guiding

Rhythm Futures

Resort Info

Resources

Learn More

Rentals

Services

Learn mOre

Retail

Services

Learn More

Resort Info

Japan Locations

International Locations

Why Rhythm

Media

TRUSTED PARTNERS

Community