Pilates for Sports Conference, 2009, Niseko, Japan

Feb 14 to 23, 2009

What an amazing group and time. Have a look at our photos from last time on Facebook.

Facebook Photos

Places are limited to 21 in total, and bookings close on 27th September 2010.

The overall cost is made up of two parts, the Travel Package paid to Travel Managers Australia, and the Conference attendance fee paid to Physiotherapy Healing Solutions.

1. Travel Package

All travel packages include:

Return economy class airfare to Japan (Sydney/Tokyo/Sapporo/Tokyo/Sydney) by Qantas and Japan Airlines, Airfare related taxes and charges (approximately $277 per person included),

Meet and greet at Chitose Airport

Shuttle bus transfer from Chitose Airport to Sapporo

1 night accommodation at Sapporo Grand Hotel with breakfast. This is where the Snow Festival will be held that we get to enjoy for the day. 

Return transfer from Sapporo or Chitose Airport to the hotel by charter bus

9 nights accommodation at The Freshwater Niseko (room only)

1 day Niseko All Mountain Lift Pass

The cost of this package is $4,295.00 twin/double share per person
Inclusive of airfare related taxes and charges (approximately $277 per person)

Superior twin supplement + $ 170.00 per person
Triple room supplement + $ 254.00 per person (1BR apartment)
Quad share supplement + $1,357.00 per person (2 BR apartment)
Single room supplement + $1,357.00 per person
Upgrade to 1 BR apartment +1,041.00 per person - twin share

* The above supplements and upgrades are based on bookings made prior to 31 July 2010, and will significantly increase after this time. The regular package will remain approximately ISQ until 27th September

Not included : Admissions, tours, insurance, meals, ski passes and conference fees not mentioned above.

The tour cost and airfare related taxes and charges are subject to change until the final payment is received, and depends on such conditions as supplier pricing policy, exchange rate fluctuation, best available airfare and government charges.

The current exchange rate is based on 76JPY = 1AUD

The above airfare is based on the current best available airfare and subject to change

Full payment with Visa or Mastercard attracts a 1% surcharge, and 3% for Amex.

If you are flying in from countries outside Australia, a package is available includes all of the above except flights. Please contact This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it for information on this package.

Travel Booking

A $1000 non-refundable deposit is payable to Travel Managers Australia at the time of booking. The full costs are payable by 5th December 2010.

2. Conference Booking:

Includes attendance at the entire conference

Course notes

A non-refundable Conference fee of $440AUD (incl GST) is payable at the time of booking. No Visa/Mastercard surcharge for this aspect.

Non-conference attendees do NOT have to pay any conference fees or surcharge to attend - they won't get to attend the conference, which they will probably be disappointed about, but that's how it rolls...

The only people able to attend the Mountain Sports Conference in Niseko are people that are booking their travel with Travel Managers Australia ie part of the travel group.

Travel Insurance:

We strongly recommend that every person takes out extensive travel insurance at the time of booking for the duration of the trip. You can organise your own travel insurance or the Travel Agent can arrange your travel insurance, through QBE International Travel Insurance company.

Physiotherapy Healing Solutions will not be held responsible for illness or injury arising during, or due to, any travel or activity before, during or after the entire trip.

Mountain Sports Conference, Niseko skifields, Japan

Imagine snowboarding in beautiful light powder, cutting fresh tracks down the mountain, whilst feeling your board floating in thigh deep powder. You bank in bottomless powder to check your speed, as you decide whether to continue your fresh tracks down a long natural halfpipe, through the trees or into a clear run down to the gondola for your next ride. 

After a day full of amazing snow conditions, you snowboard down to your luxury accommodation only 100m from the chairlift, have a quick onsen (Japanese bath), and head in to enjoy some fantastic education on mountain sports related topics.

You can start to feel your stomach telling you that you have done loads of exercise, and need to refuel, so decide to head with the group for some Ramen (noodles) and Sake.

Does this sound like your ultimate holiday? It does to us! We had such a good time with the Pilates for Sports Conference organised by Physiotherapy Healing Solutions in February 2009, that we had to head back to this amazing place for round 2. Check out our photos of the last trip....

 The Mountain Sports Conference, to be held in Niseko, Hokkaido, Japan in 2011 promises to be the trip of a lifetime. We have a passion for adventure, and love education, so combined the two for this Physiotherapy conference right on the skifields.

Presented by Physiotherapists Russell Wright and David Pope, with a number of guest lecturers, the Mountain Sports Conference will dive right into totally practical education focused on (amazingly enough) Mountain Sports! Not only will you finish the conference a brilliant snowboarder or skiier, but will have assessment and treatment tools you can apply with all sorts of mountain and non-mountain related sports injuries. 

Bring your education onto the slopes, with practical on-snow sessions of  "Snowboarding Motor Control for the pelvis and hip", "Video analysis of snowboarding/skiing", "Visual analysis of snowboarding and skiing control patterns" and "Lower Limb Biomechanics on the Snow". Learn practical assessment and treatment of conditions commonly seen on and off the snow, including sports such as mountain biking and hill running, skiing injuries, new techniques in ACL reconstruction and mountainitis (ok, we made that one up). If that's not enough, we will also have sessions related to building "Mountains of clients".

Flights leave Sydney, and arrive in Sapporo, Hokkaido via Tokyo, where we will spend our first night in Japan enjoying the Sapporo Snow Festival . This annual event, which lasts seven days, turns Sapporo into a winter wonderland of artistic ice and snow sculptures. After spending the night here, we catch an early bus directly to Grand Hirafu, Niseko, where we alight at our luxury accommodation and course venue, The Freshwater Apartments , only a few minutes walk from the ski lifts.

We now get to spend the next 9 days and 9 nights here, enjoying the snow and the conference, before flying via Tokyo to Sydney for the conclusion of the Mountain Sports Conference. If you feel like some sightseeing in Tokyo, you are also able to stopover there and enjoy some more of the Japanese culture, cuisine and Sake.

As you will notice, conference attendance fees have been priced very low, basically covering conference costs. We have chosen this conference to be about fantastic education while having a great time; and for your money to go towards the experience on and off  the snow, making it achievable for all (or most) budgets. On our last trip we had such a fantastic and friendly group experience, and this time we want it to be the same - so enjoyable you won't be able to wait to tell all of your friends all of your stories. Because of this, we have limited the total group numbers to 21 people. Due to the high demand for this accommodation, the resort requires that all bookings  close on September 27, 2010. Booking now will ensure your place on this fantastic adventure.

Once you register for the conference, your details will be forwarded to Rika Rosewarne at Travel Managers Australia immediately so you can confirm your travel arrangements. Unfortunately it is not possible to organise your own travel arrangements and travel separately to the group, because the package rate entitles the whole group to discounts on flights and accommodation. The package is a great deal, with lots of inclusions and fantastic accommodation.

Conference fees are payable through www.physiohealing.com.au at the time of booking, and all travel and accommodation payments will be made to Travel Managers Australia.  A deposit of $1000 is payable to Travel Managers Australia at the time of booking, and the remainder of your travel package is due 60 days prior to the trip ie 5 December 2010. The conference fee is $440, and includes the entire 9 days of the conference. If your partner or friends want to join you on the trip, bring them along, we would love for them to come. We think it would be unfair to charge them any conference  fees when they just want to come along for a good time with friends and familiy - their place is totally free, with the same accommodation and travel price as yours.

All accommodation will be in Studio rooms but should your wish to upgrade, this is possible for a small upgrade fee, (subject to availability, and organised directly with Rika) but we strongly recommend you do this prior to 31st July 2010, when prices to do this will increase substantially - hotel rules, nothing to do with us....   

So I want to enrol, now what?

1. Register as a Conference attendee or non-attendee on www.physiohealing.com.au

2. Rika will call you on the same or next business day to confirm your booking and organise the deposit

3. Get yourself some Travel Insurance, through Rika, or on your own

4. Kick back and picture yourself in natural half pipes covered in thigh deep powder. Even watch some Warren Miller films if you are so inclined.....

5. Pay the remainder of your travel fee to Travel Managers Australia by 5th December, 2010

6. Tell all your friends on Facebook that you are going snowboarding in Japan, and watch them go green with envy

6. Blast off to the snow on 6th February

Full costs and inclusions of the travel package can be found by clicking on this picture

You seem to have covered most of the good stuff in the other sections, but I've got a couple of questions....

See if the answers to your questions are here:

1. Am I going to have a good time?

No promises, but if you don't, it is possible that you aren't human.

2. How good is the education at the conference?

It is going to be brilliant. The speakers are passionate, love their topics, have loads of experience in these areas, and just can't wait to get over there and present.

3. When do I have to register?

The absolute latest you can register is 27th September. After this time, the hotel closes bookings and it is unlikely there will be rooms available. We recommend booking as soon as possible, as there are only 21 spots IN TOTAL (including partners)!

4. I do not have a Health Science degree, can I attend?

Because of the level of education provided, a Health Science degree, eg Physio, Chiro, Osteopathy, Sports Physician, Exercise Physiologist etc is the minimum to be able to attend the conference. Partners and friends without a degree are welcome to attend. Someone in your group must be attending the conference though.

5. Is it guaranteed that there will be snow?

The only thing we guarantee is that there will definitely be NO leprechauns anywhere in the village. We have picked February because of the large amount of snowfall in the month on average, so there is a pretty good chance of plenty of snow. Last time we had loads of snow, it snowed every day....

6. Can I hire ski gear in Niseko?

Yes. There are ski hire places in Niseko, and we will provide details following your booking to allow you to organise this.

7. What sort of room will I be staying in?

A studio room, unless you decide to pay for an upgrade (optional extra) to an apartment. These have great facilities, and are truly luxury rooms. Have a look at The Freshwater website for an idea of the inclusions.  

8. Why are we staying in Grand Hirafu village?

Grand Hirafu is the largest village in Niseko, with the biggest ski area and amount of lifts. Not only that, there is lots of choice of restaurants, bars, supermarkets and most other things. Last time we stayed in Annupuri, which was nice, but a bit limited in some of the eating and skiing options, so this time, we went for the main village.

9. I can't speak Japanese, how will I order Sake?

We will help you out with that. Russell spent 12 months in Japan and speaks a reasonable amount of Japanese and some English, and doesn't mind Sake himself, so will help you order. Most places in Niseko have staff that speak English too if Russell isn't around.

10. Do I need a Japanese visa? 

If you are Australian, you do not need a visa for a short stay. If you are not Australian, have a chat to Rika at Travel Managers Australia (www.travelmanagers.com.au)

11. Do I have to pay a deposit?

Yes. The only way to confirm your place is with a $1000 AUD non-refundable deposit paid to Travel Managers Australia. We recommend you take out Travel Insurance immediately upon booking in case of any unforeseen occurrences.

12. Can the Travel package price vary? 

Yes. The travel package price is based upon an exchange rate of 76 JPY to 1 AUD. If the exchange rate improves eg more JPY to the AUD, the price will decrease, and vice versa. The only way to ensure your rate does not change is to pay the entire amount. This is not compulsory, but the balance of your travel payment may vary accordingly.

13. Will the conference price vary?

No. This is a set price, and we think it is awesome value.

14. What is the cancellation policy?

Because of the venue cancellation policy, the $1000 AUD deposit paid to Travel Managers Australia is non-refundable, and the Conference fee is also non-refundable. 

15. Is this trip tax deductible?

A good one for your accountant. A couple of questions may clarify this.

a. Is the education related to your current employment?

b. What is the purpose of your trip? Is it to attend the conference?

Here are a couple of links that may help

http://www.ato.gov.au/individuals/content.asp?doc=/content/33125.htm&page=2&H2

http://www.ato.gov.au/individuals/content.asp?doc=/content/00179664.htm&page=10&H10

http://law.ato.gov.au/atolaw/view.htm?docid=txd/td200818/nat/ato/00001

16. How many education-related hours will there be?

There will be 6 hours of loggable education per day made up of practical, theory and discussion.

If the purpose of your trip is to attend the conference, the travel there and back may also be education related, and this will come to approx 48 hours. So overall, during the period of travel, the total loggable hours for education is approximately 100 hours.

17. Should I ski or snowboard?

Let's face it, they're both great, do whatever feels right to you. Snowboards really shine in deep powder, they float down like you are surfing on a cloud. Ski's can be great in powder, and really shine on the groomed slopes.

18. I would like to attend, but live outside Australia. Can I still book onto this conference?

You sure can. If you are flying in from countries outside Australia, a package is available includes all of the normal inclusions - accommodation, transfers etc, eveything except flights. Please contact This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it for information on this package. Once you have booked with us, all you would need to do is organise flights through your travel agent.

19. Can I organise my own flights and accommodation?

No. This is a group trip and conference, and it is not possible to attend the conference without booking through Travel Managers Australia.

20. What is the Sapporo Snow Festival?

Check it out here.

21. Why should I attend?

Because this is going to be a fantastic trip, definitely one to be in on.