Japanese ski market recovers from some lean times
Japanese ski market recovers from some lean times
Niseko in Hokkaido is likely to benefit
Our four-part series covers the dip in demand for winter resort properties that’s causing some concern on the slopes of North America, Europe and Japan
With the next two Winter Olympics taking place in South Korea and China respectively, the profile of winter sports in Asia is expected to soar over the next few years. Highlighted by the Savills Alpine Property Market report as “one of Asia’s most important ski resorts,” Niseko in Hokkaido, Japan, is likely to benefit.
The Japanese ski market is recovering from some lean times. In the 1980s, it became a victim of its own success, with “resorts crowded to such an extent that it was sometimes difficult to actually ski,” according to Geneva-based consultant Laurent Vanat. Then, in the 1990s, Japan’s economic slump saw many overstretched resorts closing.
“Skier visits are currently under 40 million per year, about half of what they were in the 1980s,” says Vanat, who notes that while the market was once mainly domestic, the September 11 attacks on New York in 2001 saw many Australian skiers opting to fly to Japan rather than the United States. “They were followed by visitors from neighbouring Asian countries,” he adds.
Niseko is at the forefront of this recovery, according to Grant Mitchell, director of Niseko Property. “While Niseko was once only sought out by the most die-hard skiers, its evolution has seen it embrace its position as the preeminent luxury winter holiday destination in all of Asia,” he says.
More: China’s growing influence in Niseko
While no part of the world is completely insulated from uncertainty in the economic climate, Mitchell says that Niseko offers a literal climactic consistency, which “the mature, over-developed locations in Europe and North America” cannot.
“Niseko is regarded as having the most consistent and plentiful powder snow in the world… ensuring high consumer confidence in booking early and often when compared with the recent insecurity of snow conditions in Europe and North America,” he says.
The financial climes on Niseko’s slopes may also be appealing to those wishing to invest, says Mitchell. “Typical net rental returns from ski properties range between 3 to 6 percent while capital appreciation has been as strong as 10 percent per annum over the last five years. These sorts of figures are simply unrealizable in the staid mature markets of traditional luxury winter destinations.”
In the ski property market, it seems, for every downhill there’s an up side.
Source: Property Report