Chalet Yōtei

Chalet Yōtei rises in cedar and stone above the snowy streets of Niseko-Hirafu, and from its living room window you can see the perfect cone of Mount Yōtei itself. In deep winter the snow piles high around it, which makes coming in from the cold even better.

Inside, warm timber ceilings, soft sofas and a great stone fireplace stacked with logs set a relaxed mood. An Eames lounge chair sits by the window, and the dining table is a single slab of wood under copper pendants, long enough for everyone. The kitchen has a stone splashback and a bar with leather stools. As a luxury chalet rental in Kutchan, it's warm, sociable and well thought through.

Chalet Yōtei has five bedrooms. They're calm and cosy in cream and grey with fur throws, and one has a fireplace and a big window on the mountains. A bunk room with curtained timber bunks is a favourite with children. Bathrooms pair dark stone with timber vanities and oval tubs.

Downstairs, the den has leather chesterfields, a shuffleboard table and a bar with red stools and a wine fridge. Outside, a snowy courtyard holds a fire pit and a bench made from an old ski-lift chair. Hirafu is the heart of the Niseko ski area, one of the snowiest places in Japan. The chalet suits families and groups on a ski holiday.