www.seejapan.co.uk  By Jeremy Lemer Hokkaido is  famously frosty, with average January temperatures of around minus 4 degrees and snow falls reaching more than five meters annually in the prefectural capital, Sapporo. But for skiers from around the world, that makes the northern island the hottest destination around, and they are flocking to the slopes in greater numbers every year.

A tour around Niseko, the best known of Hokkaido's ski areas and a 2 1/2 hour ride from Sapporo, tells the story. On all sides of the mountain, construction of luxury condominiums is under way, with four big projects scheduled for completion just in time for this year's ski season.

Typical is the Youtei Tracks complex developed by Australian - owned property company Hokkaido Tracks. All of the 36 apartments have already been sold, with prices ranging from 31.2 million yen for a two-bedroom, fully-furnished condominium to 78 million yen for the deluxe penthouse. The building is scheduled for completion in January.

Underpinning these new foundations are the overseas visitor numbers in recent years. According to the Hokkaido government, around 189,300 foreign tourists visited the prefecture last winter, compared with 78,900 five years before--lured by tales of great banks of fresh snow, regular direct flights from Taiwan, Hong Kong, China, South Korea and Cairns, Australia, and several below-par seasons in the United States and Canada.

Figures from the Japan National Tourist Organization (JNTO) for Australian visitors make the speed of growth look even more dramatic. In 2002, Australian tourists stayed a total of 4,843 nights in Niseko. Last year the number was 72,771 nights.

Explaining the trend, Ashley Nicholls, the managing director of Niseko Powder Holidays, an Australian-owned Niseko-based accommodation provider, pointed to the great snow, the welcoming locals and also to the efforts of the Japanese government and local tour operators to promote these points abroad.

"These advantages have always been there," Nicholls said, "but before people just didn't know about them."

Now, the word is out, and the influx of foreign tourists means that it has never been easier to ski in Hokkaido. Most of the major resorts have developed English-language Web sites, allowing guests to check out their destination before departure, and for those who have yet to catch up, the winter sports Web site Snow Japan can fill in the blanks.

For the English-speaking visitor, the road has been smoothed by waves of Australian tourists and investment. English-speaking drivers will whisk you to your hotel doorstep, English signs, maps and menus are widely available. 

  This season ski resorts elsewhere in Hokkaido are making a bid for the new tourist dollars, says Glenn Goulding of Deep Powder Tours, a Niseko-based Australian-owned tour operator. In particular, Furano, located roughly in the center of Hokkaido, has reached out to tour operators and ramped up its programs and services for foreign visitors.

The local tourism association offers free volunteer mountain guides who show guests the slopes and a warm welcome in return for a chance to practice their English and make friends.

Although Furano doesn't get as much powder snow as resorts closer to the coast, backcountry skiing tours are widely available in the area. An English-language child-care center and a bar built in an igloo round out the package.

Hoping to cash in on the success of Hokkaido, Honshu-based resorts are starting to borrow from their playbook. Assisted by JNTO, Shiga Kogen, Hakuba and Nozawa Onsen in Nagano Perfecture along with other areas are improving their English-language Web sites and beginning to promote themselves abroad.

"Capacity in Niseko is now reaching its upper limits," said Jotaro Horiuchi, the executive director of JNTO's Sydney office, "so we are trying to distribute capacity to other resorts."

In line with that plan, JNTO will promote Nagano and Niigata in particular in the 2006-2007 season, and in 2007-8 the focus will move toward the Tohoku region, including resorts such as Zao in Yamagata Prefecture.

IF YOU GO...

Getting to Hokkaido once in Japan is relatively easy. The 90-minute air-route between Tokyo's Haneda Airport and Sapporo's New Chitose Airport is among the world's busiest, and with volume comes discounts. Japan Airlines and All Nippon Airways both offer discount air passes, which can only be purchased abroad.

Budget airlines, Air Do and Skymark Airlines, also offer cheaper tickets to customers who book in advance. Air Do prices between Tokyo and Sapporo start from 9,800 yen one way (regular price 24,800 yen), if booked 28 days in advance. Skymark Airlines prices start at 10,000 yen one way (down from 22,800 yen) if booked two months in advance. Both JAL and ANA also offer similar discounts.

Shinkansen lines (the trip is covered by the Japan Rail pass), night trains and long-distance ferries also offer routes from Honshu to Hokkaido, and prices vary according to class and season.