Setsu Niseko (雪ニセコ) — Hotel in Kutchan

Long review warning

In the spirit of trying to help others make an informed decision of where to stay, we feel compelled to share a very detailed review of our stay at Setsu.

My husband and I are frequent travelers, and are lucky enough to take annual ski trips for our wedding anniversary at world renowned destinations. This year, we elected to come to Japan and, specifically, to Setsu after hearing about the fantastic skiing conditions. While the snow conditions live up to the expectations, this is where our positive review stops. Our expectations based on stays in Zermatt and Jackson Hole had us hoping for flawless service, next level accommodation, wonderful resort environments and transit, and the magic of being in a ski village; yet, were far from being met. Specifically, we found the service, transit, and willingness to put the customer first to be severely lacking. While the hotel and rooms are nicely designed, if that is all you are looking for, you can & should easily book a self-catering chalet in the area.

Examples of this come in the form of:

1. Disorganization: -Breakfast waiting times - For a 5 star resort, it is purely unacceptable to have a line queue for up to an hour for breakfast (particularly at a ski resort where the intent is to get out the door early to hit the slopes). The alternative option to have a to-go box is not sufficient (as other reviews have noted), and there should be a much better operational management system. (Setsu could pre-book time slots, could open additional spaces, could sort by party size - the options to improve this are abundant.) Further, while we appreciate that the resort is family friend, the chaos of children running around, touching things on the buffet to then put them back, etc. was absolute madness. -Lift passes - In reading many reviews about weather conditions cancelling certain lift routes, we elected to forgo savings and book a day by day pass. We were told by concierge and by Rhythm that we could always add additional time or days to our pass; yet when it came time to do so, despite being the "Best New Ski Hotel" Setsu's concierge was confused and told us we had to go to buy new tickets at the lift ourselves. (Reading online, had they kept the login for us, we could reload online...) There was no apology, no suggested alternative, and it is confounding how a ski resort can't help you book lift passes unless you request them a week in advance. -Reservations - We reached out to book a dinner reservation over two months in advance to then have to chase and follow up with Setsu to help us get the reservation, to then be told by Setsu that no transit was going to be possible because we were too late to secure the reservation.

2. Lack of remediation -Transit- We were told that we could take the shuttle to Hirafu station (10min drive). Yet, due to the weather conditions, upon arrival, we were told that the shuttle unfortunately can no longer run. Instead of offering to find alternative transit for us, or even book a taxi on our behalf and cover the cost due to the hotel's shuttle being inadequate, we were required to book a taxi and pay for this ourselves. Comically, we then found out that they do in fact have a private shuttle (as they had to deploy this for us when the taxi they booked failed to show) and that the train we were taking could also have been caught at Kutchan. Again, all things that could have been proactively shared. -Dinner booking & Lift pass issues - Despite being polite, after conveying frustration that this was not proactively shared or resolved, the only remediation offered was an apology. It then took us writing a very frustrated email to have the hotel manager write a hand written letter and offer a bottle of champagne (which was appreciated but still left us frustrated at the entirety of the situation). While I appreciate this is not any single individual's fault, this approach is not at the level of other 5 star resorts we've stayed at (ski-based or not).

Hope this helps others...

BEWARE

Although this has to be one of the nicest looking hotels I have seen, their policy of being non-refundable in the way they are shows that what this hotel is truly all about. Despite reaching out a MONTH in advance, they did not provide a refund of any kind.

If you are looking for a really nice hotel to stay at, I would never recommend one with this type of policy. To spend that type of money and have a policy of not being able to be refunded 30 days out is not one you will see with many hotels worth your time.

Their customer support was less than supportive and understanding. An apology is nice, but I went through a car accident and had COVID, stating I would like to come back as soon as possible. They said I could reschedule within a month or two. That’s not very understanding. They offered zero refund whatsoever.

Not wanting to lose the money, we decided to go to Japan anyway. It’s been very hard. During our time in Kyoto before Niseko, my girlfriend got sick on top of all of that. I know, I am a lucky guy. I let them know we would not be staying with them because we can’t travel with her being bedridden. They decided to take that moment to say a one sentence apology and restate their no refund policy. I didn’t even ask. All they care about is your money. There are places that will value the customer more I assure you.

UPDATE 2/18/2024- As you can see they replied. They try to make it sound like they were generous in their offer to change the dates. That’s part of what they offer. It was no extension of kindness because they “empathised with our situation”. They make it sound like they were so sorry for us, but they gave a one sentence response to my situation multiple times. Offering to rebook in the same winter season wasn’t an offer at all for my situation.

They do not budge, they offered for me to come back within about a month of a car accident injury. That isn’t hospitality or understanding. That’s rude to even suggest. I had to do exhaustive physical therapy to even be able to get to traveling and the pain has been immense and draining. I decided to do this, because although I begged and pleaded with them, you can see they don’t care as they more than likely spent the same amount of time reading my emails as they did responding to them.

In your response Setsu, yes, I did decide to keep the reservation, because you were unhelpful in your support and I couldn’t afford to pay for this trip again when I actually would be better. You didn’t give me another choice other than losing the money for the reservation. And yes, I did try to make it to your resort, but my body is riddled with pain even trying. Even as of now. And my girlfriend is sick which is why we don’t even know if we could have. But I wouldn’t have been able to ski, snowboard or do any activities other than being in the room if we did get there due to my injuries.

You, as a response to me informing you we would not be coming to your resort the day of, was very rudely responding by saying you couldn’t refund when I didn’t ask. Your level of attention to detail is poor. You are trying to save face, and people need only look at the reviews that have any out of ordinary situation to see that this is not a safe place to book.

I do have travel insurance. But those apply in very specific circumstances which you probably already know. It’s not quite so simple to get a refund when the hotel could clearly make the same money having you refunded and book later. That would probably get you more business.

Take ownership for your lack of hospitality and don’t blame the fact that you have the ability to do something about this. Because you are the one in charge of refunds. Not some foreign entity you can’t...

My wife and I stayed at the Setsu Niseko in a studio room for 3 nights in January 2025 for a ski trip. After reading many reviews and now having experienced the hotel myself here are my thoughts/takeaways: While very nice the Setsu isn’t a 5-star hotel experience. It felt more like serviced apartments associated with hotel amenities and concierge services. Don’t stay here expecting the level of service you would receive at a 5-star Japanese hotel even if the nightly price might lead you to believe the Setsu would be in this category (it’s more just ski town pricing). Examples of things it lacks: no room service, no minibar, no toiletries in the room (they are at the front desk to take as needed), no daily full room cleaning though they did take out trash/replace towels/make the bed, and no “higher” level of service where the staff seems to know your name/use it when you’re a guest. All that being said, the facilities, amenities that are offered, and location are all excellent in my opinion. Our studio was spacious, had great views of the Grand Hirafu slopes, had a combo washer/dryer and drying rack, as well as a reasonably well stocked kitchenette. The on site ski shop, ski lockers, and very frequent shuttles to King/Ace Gondolas at Grand Hirafu made the ski experience excellent. While not ski-in, ski-out you could be on the slopes within 5 min. Nice gym facilities and daily yoga classes in a studio. Also has public onsen as well as 4 private onsen available to reserve. The private onsen were great to relax with my wife after a day on the slopes. The hotel includes many restaurants and bars. We only dined at Afuri and enjoyed it. We had no issues with breakfast. You could choose from a Japanese and western buffet (good but not great in my opinion, ie not to the level of 5-star Tokyo property’s breakfast buffets but still a large spread and good food), Afuri for ramen or congee, or a premade takeaway breakfast. I would highly recommend dinner reservations made well in advance while in the Niseko area. We didn’t utilize the concierge for this, but they were responsive to multiple other enquiries I had in the months leading up to our stay (they helped me book my ski rental and transportation to/from CTS). The location of the Setsu is ideal. There is a Lawson directly across the street and it’s a short (5-10 min) walk to everything else in Hirafu. We chose this location so we could walk to restaurants/bars without having to deal with shuttle/bus schedules or finding taxis. There are other, perhaps fancier, hotel options in the Niseko United area but they seemed to be in locations where it would be much more cumbersome to leave the property for dinner/drinks at night. I think the Setsu’s location is better for those who don’t want to just dine on property every evening.

Overall we really enjoyed our stay at the Setsu and I would stay here again if we return to Niseko. I think perhaps the price point gives people the impression it’s a 5-star property in the mold of the Park Hyatt, Four Seasons, Mandarin Oriental, etc. and while very nice it’s not in the same league. But for the choices on offer in the Niseko United area we feel...