Bankei ski area — Attraction in Sapporo

Bankei ski area also known as Ban.K has a huge area of ski slopes. Even though the place is crawling with skiers and tourists alike, there is ample space for everyone to move in a comfortable pace. The club house provides a cafe, lockers, restrooms and rest lounge. The rent rate for the ski equipment is at Yen5000 per person. The staff are very friendly and accomodating and assist us in putting on the ski shoes. As beginners, we are confined to the beginners' ski slope which is slightly slanted and not steep. Once there, we tried to ski, fell down and got up again. It was a joy to watch the accomplished skiers, from children to adults, gliding down the slopes, gracefully and efforlessly. There are also snow boarders and the skilled ones are just amazing to watch. There is a children's ski area where adults are allowed to glide down with a tube/glider at Yen200 per person. From below, the top station is too small indicating the enormous height of the ski slope. I believe that skiing is a fantastic sport and with enough training and practice, anyone can be a good skier, provided you have grit and brave enough to take the glide down. It is just amazing to watch the small, young kids gliding down as if, without a care in the world. I did not spend much time practicing my skiing, but watching in amazement the skills of the skiers and...

Quiet and cozy ski resort good for beginners. There are a number beginner slopes at the bottom, where a lot of children lessons take place. The tallest main run is a nice straightforward intermediate. There's an alternative beginner run that takes you down a winding path that is very picturesque. The middle two lifts open until 10pm for night skiing.

Convenient proximity close to downtown Sapporo. Take the Tozai Line to Maruyama Koen Station. Go upstairs to the Bus Station and wait at Door 4 for Ban.K Line every 30 minutes. The ride takes about 15 minutes and gets you to the front of the ski resort.

You don't have to bring anything with you. They offer equipment and/or clothing packages to go with your ski lift. I bought the ski+lift+meal package for ¥9000.

The only downside is the lifts are slow. They don't have the faster...

Great place for beginners in Sapporo looking for a close option that is reasonably priced. Just to be clear, this is not a ski resort destination. It’s a relatively small area with a couple lifts and a lodge offering beginner to intermediate runs. It’s close to downtown Sapporo (about 30 minutes by taxi) and has good rental equipment and full clothing rental options.

The total cost for my daughter and I to snowboard (we rented the boards, boots, and one set of winter wear, and opted for the 6 hr lift ticket) was under $150 USD given the very favorable exchange rate. It’s hard to find one lift ticket alone in the states for that price these days.

Overall the staff is friendly with adequate English , snow conditions were good, it was busy but not too crowded, and there was enough variety in the runs to...