As you probably know, I’m a HUGE fan of Hyatt. It’s the program where you can get a ton of value. However, you like to travel. Whether that’s Hyatt Place or House on the road, or an Andaz or Park Hyatt somewhere remote. It’s also the program that (usually) likes to upgrade elite members, especially if you have Globalist status.

For our trip to Niseko, we stayed at what many consider to be the best Hyatt in the world. Ironically, many of the other contenders for the throne are also in Japan.

Let’s review everything you can expect from this stay. If you like snow, Niseko is a must-visit destination!
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How to Use Points for a Hyatt Category 8 Hotel

The Park Hyatt Niseko Hanazono is a Category 8 property under the World of Hyatt program.

In peak season, rooms can cost around 45,000 points per night—a substantial figure, but still an incredible deal compared to the cash rates. Availability can be limited, so planning early is essential. Standard room availability is your best bet for snagging the 45,000-points-per-night rate.

If you plan to stay three nights, you’re looking at 135,000 points total, rather than $6,200 out of pocket. That’s a remarkable tradeoff if you can secure those award nights.

How to Transfer Points from Chase to Hyatt

To book the Park Hyatt Niseko using points, you’ll need a decent balance in your World of Hyatt account. One of the fastest ways to accumulate those points is through certain Chase credit cards that earn Ultimate Rewards® points. From there, you can transfer directly to Hyatt at a 1:1 ratio. This effectively makes the Hyatt program one of the best redemption options within the Chase travel ecosystem.

The cards that allow you to transfer points to Hyatt include the:

• Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
• Chase Sapphire Reserve®
• Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card

If you have one of these cards, you can move your Ultimate Rewards® points into your Hyatt account. Once the transfer is complete, the points usually appear almost instantly. You can then log in to your Hyatt profile, search for availability at the Park Hyatt Niseko, and book your award stay. Be sure to select “Use Points” when searching for your dates.

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Getting to the Park Hyatt Niseko

From the New Chitose Airport (CTS) in Sapporo, you have a few choices. If you want to keep it simple, the Park Hyatt has a free shuttle for Globalist members. Without status, the shuttle fee is 9,856 JPY per person, per way.

If you don’t have status, I would probably opt for the numerous other bus services. Tons of options in the airport (and you can even book online). Most will run you 5,000 JPY roundtrip, and some might even include a free 1-day lift ticket!

Either way, it’s about a 2.5-hour bus ride with a rest stop in the middle.
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Niseko Area

The Niseko ski area (”Niseko United”) is divided into 4 resort areas: Annupuri, Niseko Village, Hirafu, and Hanazono.

The Park Hyatt Niseko is at the foot of Hanazono and is a great ski-in/ski-out option with access to two lifts. This means that you don’t need to rent a car for this trip, and you’re minutes from getting skiing!

If your focus is just skiing, you can access any of the other resorts via the ski lifts. You can get to Hirafu as a beginner (via Green runs). Annupuri and Niseko Village are a lot tougher and would require you to be at least an intermediate (via Red runs).

You can also take a bus from Hanazono to Hirafu. The Hyatt has a free shuttle bus that does a loop every hour or so. If you miss that, there are also local buses. If you have a ski ticket, then the local bus is free!
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Food

We ended up trying a bunch of options at the Hyatt, including:

• French: Moliere Montaigne (2nd outpost by 3-Michelin Star Chef)
• Japanese: Sushi Mitsukawa (3rd outpost by 1-Michelin Star Chef)
• French-Japanese: Teppan

Moliere Montaigne is our “must-visit” if you want something memorable and unique 😋

If you’re looking for budget options, you can also get a personal pizza for ~$25 USD.

Alternatively, head into Hirafu, which is the main “town” and busy area. There you’ll find bars, food trucks, burgers, sushi, ramen, and pretty much everything/anything you would reasonably expect.

Hyatt has like <10 food options. Hirafu has over 130 bars and restaurants.
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Rooms

One awesome thing about the Park Hyatt is the room. Even the basic standard rooms are huge!

You have a sofa area (with a pull-out couch), a dining room, and even a 2nd bathroom.

We did end up getting upgraded to a suite due to Globalist status, which had a separate dining room.

Both rooms work pretty well whether you’re just 2 people or you’re a family of 4 (or you’re bringing friends).

Although the site says the maximum room capacity is 4 people, there is a 10,000 JPY fee per day, per additional guest after two people, so factor that into your math!
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Amenities

There are many activities and amenities at the hotel outside of skiing and snowboarding. This includes:

• Onsen
• Pool / Hot Tub = amazing!
• Gym = mid-sized but pretty good
• Karaoke Room = We looked inside, and it was surprisingly big

In addition to a bunch of fireplaces, live music, and just areas you can relax.

If you’re staying in during the daytime, there are plenty of windows to sit by to daydream or people watch.

For #teamsnow, each room gets its own locker for skis/snowboards. This makes it really easy to get out there vs. having to lug things from your room.
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Overall

This is one of the best hotels I’ve ever stayed at.

You have an amazing hard product that feels new and modern. You also have a great soft product with a great staff that goes above and beyond what you would expect.

This, plus the outsized value with Hyatt points and awesome “JAPOW” (definitely some of the driest and softest powder I’ve ever skied on!), makes it a memorable trip.

I usually don’t like to repeat trips after a review (there are too many other places in the world to visit / review), but this place is good enough to be worth an exception.

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