Skiing in Japan, Elevated

After decades of minimal investment, one Niseko resort is spending big on new lifts

- James E. Ellis and David Rocks

On a frosty afternoon, Colin Hackworth treks into the backwoods of Japan’s Niseko mountain to show off a favorite stash of fresh powder. Dropping down a steep face, he dips into the kneedeep snow, shooting up crystallized plumes as he makes turn after turn through the trees. “There’s just nowhere else like this,” says the 65-year-old Australian. “When you understand the ski industry, you understand how rare it is to get this kind of abundant, airy powder.”

Niseko sits on the western edge of the island of Hokkaido, where Siberian winds sweeping across the Sea of Japan drop heavy snow almost daily during the winter months. The area typically gets at least 10 meters (33 feet) a season—and sometimes more than 15 meters—versus about 3 in France’s Courchevel and 6 at Vail Mountain in Colorado.

Hackworth is betting on that powder with an investment blitz the likes of which Japan’s ski industry hasn’t seen in decades. Backed by Hong Kong billionaire Richard Li, his company, Nihon Harmony Resorts, poured more than $500 million into new lifts and a sparkling Park Hyatt hotel during the Covid-19 pandemic. The hotel is now fully booked despite room rates of $1,200 a night, and lift revenue is running more than 30% ahead of pre-pandemic levels. His plan is the exact opposite of what Japan’s resorts have done for the past three decades—sticking with outdated infrastructure to keep ticket prices low. “This whole attitude of ‘Let’s see how cheap we can make skiing’ is the wrong business strategy,” Hackworth says. “If we invest, people will come. Everybody knows Niseko has the best snow in the world.”