Suggestions for a winter visit to Japan

mosswings wrote:

One of the reasons to go the very long way to Hokkaido at all is to venture beyond Sapporo. We considered it in the summer but were told to do it right we'd need to dedicate a good week to visit all the mountain splendors of the island. We went to Kamikochi (between Matsumoto and Takayama in the Northern Japanese Alps) instead. Unfortunately, it is closed between mid-November and mid-March. We have plans to take a cross-country skiing vacation on Hokkaido one of these years, but exchange rates will have to become more favorable.

Thanks for your response.  I'll be  visiting the annual Snow Festival in Sapporo which is the only reason I'm going all the way up there.  It's something I've wanted to do since I was 17 so I guess it's a bit of a dream filler for me, and unfortunately doesn't correspond with the best time of year to go, or a time when I can take more annual leave so I'll just have to make of it what I can.  I think I'd need 6 months (or more!) to really do justice to everything I'd like to see but that ain't gonna happen sadly enough