Alister

This year Summerlife will be bilingual for the first time as Niseko businesses demand Japanese language information for customers.

Summerlife is the sister publication of Niseko’s popular Powderlife winter magazine.

During COVID publisher Niseko Media printed Powderlife in Japanese to help attract Japanese customers.

Now Summerlife follows suit, this time with English and Japanese together in the one bilingual magazine.

Summerlife Editor Kristian Lund said before COVID Powderlife was online in Japanese and Chinese, but the hardcopy only printed in English. 

“COVID allowed us an opportunity to focus on the Japanese market which has been fantastic for Niseko,” Mr Lund said. 

“While we printed the hardcopy Powderlife in Japanese, other businesses ramped up their Japanese language marketing material, and Niseko Tourism pivoted almost wholly towards targeting the domestic market.

“It was a demanding and difficult period, but now everyone in Niseko is benefitting from huge growth in domestic traveller numbers – it’s like a whole new market for us.

“This is especially important outside of winter with the boost in green season visitation leading to Summerlife’s evolution as a bilingual magazine.”

Niseko Tourism Chief Marketing Officer Acme Wu said Japanese visitor numbers had increased significantly since before COVID, and Summerlife was an important marketing tool to ensure this growth continued.

“Summerlife acts like an all-in-one marketing showcase for Niseko’s green season,” said Ms Wu. 

“The stunning photography and articles showcase the best of Niseko in one professionally produced package.

“With up-to-date information about events, restaurants and real estate listings, it is also the best local guide to summer for visitors when they are in Niseko.”

Mr Lund said Powderlife and Summerlife were the only professionally produced, independent magazines representing all businesses in Niseko:

• Editor – Kristian Lund is a former News Ltd newspaper journalist;
• Photo Editor – Aaron Jamieson is a National Geographic-published photographer;
• Editorial Manager – Chika Lund is a fourth-generation Niseko-resident working on several local tourism advisory boards;
• Japanese Editorial Advisor – Hiroki Yanagisawa is a journalist and media professional;
• Designer – Nobi Kashiwagi is the former Art Director for Vogue Magazine US.

Summerlife is also translated into traditional Chinese with 3,000 copies printed and distributed in Hong Kong and other Asian countries.

Media Inquiries:

Kristian Lund
[email protected]

080 4047 5615

Flywire is a payment platform for travel companies that provides customers with secure and streamlined ways to pay, so you can focus on what you do best–building unforgettable experiences, dedicated to international travels and businesses in Niseko.

We’re super excited to share our annual luxury travel report with you, What will define luxury travel in 2023. In our second annual report, we surveyed more than 600 luxury travelers from the United States to understand what they’re doing, where they’re going and how they will make their travel decisions in 2023.

We found that luxury travelers are ready to spend more time and money traveling in 2023–providing ample evidence of the resilience of the travel economy. Hybrid and flexible work, plus a level of comfort in stacking business and leisure travel, are giving space for longer and more frequent getaways, and making destinations that may be in their off-seasons appealing year-round.

This report is a must-read for agents and travel providers as it looks at the spending patterns, destination plans, and must-haves for luxury travelers in 2023.

In this interactive report, you can expect to learn:

• How much do luxury travelers plan to spend on their trips in 2023, and where do they want to travel to?
• How are flexible and hybrid work arrangements affecting luxury travel?
• How do luxury travelers view travel agents and advisors and what do they need in 2023?

How are luxury travelers looking at group travel, and what once-in-a-lifetime events are on their lists?

BANGKOK, Thailand — Organisers of the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards have opened the call for entries for Greater Niseko at an opportune time for the world-renowned Japanese holiday property market.

The 5th PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards (Greater Niseko) are now accepting entries ahead of their presentation on Friday, 8 December 2023. The awards will be announced on an international stage at The Athenee Hotel, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Bangkok in Thailand, where the best of the best in the region’s real estate will gather to celebrate industry excellence. Submissions are accepted online via: asiapropertyawards.com/

The emergence of increasingly upscale communities and easy access for Asian tourists and second-home buyers continue to contribute to Niseko’s ascent, according to research from Property Report by PropertyGuru, the official magazine of the Awards.

With significant infrastructure developments in the pipeline, including a bullet-train route from Tokyo and a new regional highway, as well as a bid to host the 2030 Winter Olympics, Greater Niseko is bound for greater prominence in the coming years. While foreign families and individual investors continue to be the primary property buyers in the area, Greater Niseko is seeing renewed interest from Japanese individual and corporate buyers, many of whom are increasingly drawn to the area’s emerging enclaves.

Jules Kay, general manager of PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards and Events, said: “With its world-class hotels and hospitality projects, Greater Niseko continues to be a significant player in Asia’s property landscape, capturing the attention of investors, as well as the judges for the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards. As cross-border travel resumes in Japan, we eagerly anticipate the rebound of tourism in Greater Niseko, and are pleased to recognise and award the development and design firms that are revitalising one of the world’s premier ski resort destinations.”

Key dates for the 2023 edition:
15 September 2023 – Entries Close
2-13 October 2023 – Site Inspections
18 October 2023 – Final Judging

8 December 2023 – Gala Event and Awards Ceremony in Bangkok, Thailand
8 December 2023 – Regional Grand Final Gala Presentation in Bangkok, Thailand

The public are encouraged to submit their nominations before the deadline of entries on 15 September 2023 here: asiapropertyawards.com/nominations

New chairperson elected

Experts in real estate consultancy, design, and other fields have been assembled to form a panel of judges who will participate in a fair, transparent process of selecting the award recipients. This year, Eddie Guillemette, CEO of Midori no Ki (MnK), will serve as the new chairperson of the independent panel of judges, succeeding Bill Barnett, founder and managing director of C9 Hotelworks, who will remain on the panel.

Eddie Guillemette said: “I’m delighted to announce the resumption of the search for outstanding developments, companies, and design practices in Greater Niseko through the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards, in collaboration with an esteemed panel of independent judges. With the revitalisation of Japan’s tourism sector and its close association with the real estate industry, we hold a positive outlook for the Greater Niseko property market this year.”

Bill Barnett said: “Niseko is Asia’s leading alpine real estate market and on the cusp of even greater things with a pipeline of international hotel brands such as Six Senses and Capella adding traction to the branded residences sector. We are optimistic of a significant market uplift this year based on very strong fundamentals.”

The nominees shortlisted by the judges will be able to showcase their companies and projects to a wide network of property seekers, real estate agents, banks and valuers, and enterprises served by PropertyGuru Group (NYSE: PGRU), Southeast Asia’s leading property technology company.

Supervised by HLB, the global network of independent advisory and accounting firms, the awards programme makes full use of a professionally run judging system, with an established reputation for credibility and integrity.

Representation for Greater Niseko

Main winners of the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards (Greater Niseko) will qualify to compete with the region’s best at the 18th PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards Grand Final, which will also be held in Bangkok, Thailand on 8 December 2023.

Greater Niseko was represented last year at the 17th PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards Grand Final with Andaru Collection Niseko by Blue Waves Group winning both the Best Completed Housing/Landed Development (Asia) and Best Housing/Landed Interior Design (Asia) awards. Also representing Greater Niseko, HakuVillas by H2 Group won the Best Completed Condo Development (Asia) award.

Established in 2005, the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards continue to reward high-calibre work within the industry, encompassing property development, construction, architecture, interior design, and sustainable building practices. The series initially covered Southeast Asia and has expanded over the years to include the region’s dynamic property markets, including Australia, China, and India.

Organised by PropertyGuru Group, the 5th PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards (Greater Niseko) are supported by official magazine Property Report by PropertyGuru; media partner Powderlife; supporting association Niseko Tourism; and official supervisor HLB.

For more information, email [email protected] or visit the official website: AsiaPropertyAwards.com.

Our ‘ohoro GIN(standard)’ awarded the Country Winners Gold
at an international gin competition called World Gin Award 2023
which was held in England. It is one of the biggest gin competitions in the world.

Ohoro GIN(standard) is a regular product since we released it in 2021. It is flavored with 13 botanicals, including sweet gale and Japanese peppermint from Niseko with good high-quality underground water from Mt.Annupuri. You can enjoy a clear, smooth, but full-bodied flavor with a light citrus aroma.
We recommend it as a cocktail base for gin and tonic, martini, or simply with ice.

On 23rd February, there will be an award for the ‘World’s Best’ in England.

Tokyu Land Corporation (Headquarters: Shibuya-ku, Tokyo; President and CEO: Masashi Okada; “Tokyu
Land” below) and Tokyu Resorts & Stays Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Shibuya-ku, Tokyo; President and CEO:
Toshihiro Awatsuji; “Tokyu Resorts & Stays” below) announce that as the second entry of their “Value up
NISEKO 2030” project, the companies have made the decision to rebuild the “Hotel Niseko Alpen” in the
Kutchan Town, Hokkaido into a hotel condominium. Located right in front of the state-of-the-art gondola that
will undergo a redesign as the first entry in the project, Hotel Niseko Alpen will be reborn into a hotel
condominium with the top location in Niseko, one that offers direct access to all ski slopes. Note that Hotel
Niseko Alpen in its current form will discontinue its business as of March 31, 2023 in order to undergo
demolition of the existing building. The hotel condominium to take its place is scheduled to open in Winter
2026.

■ Background and Purpose of Rebuilding
Since opening in 1986, Hotel Niseko Aspen has been used by numerous customers, local and otherwise, as
a core hotel of a ski slope. In recent years, the facility has undergone repairs and improvements to a number
of its guest rooms, the updating of its equipment, and other changes as needed. While Tokyu Land and Tokyu
Resorts & Stays had considered large-scale repairs and improvements over time as a means of improving the
value of the area going forward, based on various surveys, the state of dilapidation of the facility, and other
factors, the companies settled a policy of rebuilding the facility outright.
With “Niseko Tokyu Grand HIRAFU,” Tokyu Land and Tokyu Resorts & Stays had bolstered their initiatives
aimed at regional revitalization outside the skiing season, including putting a summer gondola in service and a mountain bike course in place. With the rebuilding of Hotel Niseko Alpen, the companies seek to contribute
to improving the appeal of staying at the hotel as a core facility of a ski slope located in that resort’s core as
well as continue to compel numerous visitors to use the facility with a view to realizing an all-season
international resort.
After its rebuilding, Tokyu Land and Tokyu Resorts & Stays are envisioning that Hotel Niseko Aspen will take
the shape of a hotel condominium containing over 100 guest rooms. The companies will proceed to promote
this plan with a target opening of Winter 2026.

■ The birth of a hotel condominium right in front of a new gondola that connects directly to the
ski slopes
Hotel Niseko Alpen is positioned in a prime ski-in/ski-out location within the Niseko Tokyu Grand HIRAFU
ski resort that also places it right in front of a new gondola scheduled to be rebuilt in Winter 2024. With the
new hotel condominium that it is planning to build, Tokyu Land and Tokyu Resorts & Stays will take full
advantage of this outstanding location to create accommodations that are more comfortable and
environmentally-conscious and are of higher quality. Additionally, in its plans for the facility, the companies
also seek to incorporate prosperity-building initiatives befitting accommodations to be positioned as a resort
core that will also contain the Hirafu Ski Resort Daiichi Parking Area Development Project being planned by
Kutchan Town. Tokyu Land and Tokyu Resorts & Stays will announce details of the hotel condominium,
including its name, an overview and when sales of units will commence, as soon as they have been
determined.

■ About Value up NISEKO 2030
The Value up NISEKO 2030 project is an urban development project intended to address challenges and
revitalize the area through collaborating with the government, local companies, and people in the community
to build the world-class “NISEKO” brand as a resort that aims for sustainable development and a destination
that continues to be chosen by the year 2030. Having executed a comprehensive cooperation agreement for the formation of an all-season international resort to mark the 50 th anniversary of Kutchan’s Ski Town
Declaration, in addition to promoting smart resorts, Tokyu Land will proceed to tackle the improvement of
physical infrastructure such as the updating of cableways on ski slopes as well as non-physical aspects like
measures aimed at making resorts conducive to all-season use while bolstering the company’s regional
affiliations. Moreover, Tokyu Land has decided on the rebuilding of the lift with the most extensive transport
record in Niseko as the first entry in the Value up NISEKO 2030 project, and intends to continue promoting
multiple endeavors that also include a non-physical initiative in the form of commencing demonstration tests
for “Niseko Powder Tokens” as Japan’s first skiing NFT that will be accompanied by “fast track” privileges
starting this Winter season.