Trip planning

I'm trying to plan where I want to go for Chinese New Year. It's from January 24th to February 1st this year. My three feasible and realistic options are as follows:

1. Snowboarding in Japan
The only reason I want to go to Japan is so I can snowboard there. This will be the first season I won't go snowboarding in a loooong time so I really want to head up to Sapporo and do some serious riding. I don't know if I'll ever get the chance to to snowboard in Asia again so I really want to try it.
The Cons: Expensive. The flight is like 600 US and plus I'd have to get all my gear, rent a board and boots, lift ticket, train to the resort. It'd cost a lot ! But....it may be worth it. It'd be a ridiculously fun trip and I'm a very simple man.....just give me a snowboard, some fresh powder and I'm happy just riding down the mountain for days and days...

2. Trip to Laos
I've heard great things about Laos from lots of different people and I feel like if I'm there for a week I can spend a day or two in Bankok and really get to explore the country. The other good thing is that its really cheap, which I am always a big fan of.
The Problem:
Logistics of actually getting around. Lao has very little infrastructure so things like buses and trains are a little bit unreliable. Plus I heard in the North, and outside of the major cities it's not too safe.

3. Island hopping in the Philippines.
Again the best thing about this option is it fits in my budget. It's really cheap there (some places cheaper than Laos) and I heard some of the islands are really pristine, and great for surfing. Plus it's kind of off the beaten path and not many people go there. It's not a "hotspot" yet and therefore could be a much more unique experience than other places.
Downside:
I heard that some part of the country (especially Manila), are to use the British phrase "a bit dodgy" SO that would be my main concern. But I have traveled in some shady places before (sometimes on my own) and I do have my good old reliable New York City Street Smarts (assuming all the nice and polite people in Taiwan haven't dismantled my street smart abilities)

These are my choices. Any tips or suggestions? Any feedback would be appreciated.....
-Brian