The prospects for developers to generate large profits from the ski area of Niseko have dwindled as speculation from foreign investors drives some of the biggest increases in land prices in Japan. Photographer: Soichiro Koriyama/Bloomberg
It’s Too Expensive to Build Ski Lodges in Japan’s Powder Paradise
Niseko’s famed powder snow has helped attract hundreds of millions of dollars of investment over the years. Now, costs are driving developers away.
The ski area of Niseko in northern Japan needs no introduction among the winter vacationers and wealthy elites of Asia. Its famed powder snow has drawn in hundreds of millions of dollars of investment over the years, accelerating a buildup of condos and hotels across two small Hokkaido towns to make it Asia’s best-known ski resort.
But in recent years, the prospects for developers to generate large profits from Niseko have dwindled as speculation from foreign investors drives some of the biggest increases in land prices in Japan. Surging costs of raw materials and a lack of construction labor are compounding the challenges in the remote area, putting a damper on the high investor interest to cash in on the nation’s tourism boom.