Black Pine lodge Hakuba

[Paul Oberin]

I recently stayed at Black pine lodge at Hakuba, this was my 4th trip to Hakuba and we certainly had good snow this trip.

Black pine is run and owned by a few Aussies that live in the Jindabyne area, as such I found no problem at all with the language, that was a small problem for me at other lodges I had used at Hakuba.

I caught the Nagano shuttle bus up to Hakuba and enjoyed the scenery that you don't get to see when going by train, when I arrived at Hakuba I was picked up by one of the Black pine owners and taken to the lodge, when I left after 14 days I was dropped off back at the bus depot, a free service I appreciated.

My room at Black pine had a very comfortable western style bed, I managed to get a good nights sleep every night, the room was quiet and warm and very clean, with plenty of space for my clothing and a couch to sit on.

The lodge has excellent free WiFi, which I made use of for calling home on Skype and collecting emails.

Breakfast was offered everyday, and it was a great breakfast that varied each day, Jen asked us each night what we would prefer for breakfast the next day, and ensured we got a good variety, we managed to have enough to eat to not feel hungry until we stopped for a late lunch each day.

With a bus stop out the front and up the road about 100 metres, we didn't have far to go to get to the slopes each day on the free shuttle bus, some days the lodge staff would take us out in the lodge bus and give us a guided tour of the various resorts, their local knowledge was invaluable, as even though I had been to Hakuba 3 times before, the guided tour took me places I would not have found by myself.

The lodge does offer Japanese style beds if you want, I preferred the western style myself, you have an option of a room with a full ensuite, or a room with a shared bathroom.

We found plenty of very good places to eat out of a night time, all within a very short walk from the lodge, also a public Onsen just down the road.

Some of the guests required rental equipment, so they were taken to Rhythm snow sports who had on offer very good quality equipment, and free pick up from the lodge when it is time to head home.

I know if I go back to Hakuba, I will certainly stay at Black pine lodge next time.

http://www.blackpinelodge.com

[Paul Oberin]

I did return to Hakuba again this year, and I did choose to stay at Black Pine lodge again, as expected the management was great in looking after us, we had a twin share room with an ensuite, very clean, warm and comfortable, it was quiet at night so we managed to get a good nights sleep.

A change of staff this year saw Mick looking after us for breakfast, as well as coming out for a ski with us most days.

One of the lodge owners also came out with us most days and this added his local knowledge of which resort and which tree run to do, most of the other guests staying at Black pine were exceptionally good skiers, so when we all went out together, a lot of fun was had pushing each other to go that little bit harder, and of course when there are ex ski instructors in the group, a few ski tips were always welcome.

Value for money, Black Pine is a great choice when staying at Hakuba.



The guys from the lodge skiing near Kashimayari resort.