In Niigata ski resort area of Myoko, trepidation as more foreign money pours in

Understandable concerns from the locals, unbridled, unregulated, culturally inappropriate and excessive development will blight the area while benefiting the people who live there nor at all in the long run, even driving them out of their own home town for the profit of strangers.

Places that have a special attraction, snow, surf, lifestyle, always seem to become overdeveloped and lose that special attraction.

threatening overdevelopment

Good ole xenphopia! Since when have rural Japanese been concerned of "overdevelopment"? Go see the "haikyo" hi-rise clusters in Tochigi or Fukushima, which are abandoned and crumbling to the ground. All Japanese development, which was somehow OK at the time.

If you come to Akakura in summer, it's pitch dark at night,"

That sounds like almost every Japanese onsen town I've ever been to.

"PCG's Tokyo-born founder, Ken Chan, said he's mindful of local fears about his project, which will span 350 hectares and two ski slopes."

Does anyone know exactly which two ski slopes they're talking about? Akakura Kanko and Akakura Onsen, perhaps?

Another peaceful town ruined by greed.

many foreign business owners in Akakura have refused to join the local tourism association

In Japan there are so many association but what are the really use of it? Just another organization where oyaji can enforce their rules. The fact those foreign established business can refuse to join, that really shows that businesses just don't need them.

But they're only interested in the snow and once that melts, those businesses shut. The town, also once a bustling hot-spring destination, no longer has enough going on to attract many visitors during the rest of the year. "If you come to Akakura in summer, it's pitch dark at night," 

Sounds like many rural area in Japan that many people never heard at all.

the owner of a half-century-old shop in Akakura that sells steamed buns filled with red bean paste, said he sometimes feels like he doesn't live in Japan as Westerners throng the town's streets.

Development in Myoko should sustain the region's culture, he said, adding: "We don't want to be another Niseko."

Without foreigners that area just will be another rural area with greying and declining population that having difficulty in paying local tax to maintain local infrastructure.

"We don't want to be another Niseko."

That is so true. Add Kyoto and a few other places getting trampled.

So why doesn't the Japanese government invest in and control their own overseas tourism?

It's maddening to me.

Time to limit land- and busness ownership to foreigners who live here and have permanent residence.

So why doesn't the Japanese government invest in and control their own overseas tourism?

Because when JGovt try to do things by their own it will be unprofittable, just see Tokyo Olympics, Osaka Expo this year. Foreign business know way better in doing business, the place might be overcrowded but business up and running. As they should be.

Good ole xenphopia! Since when have rural Japanese been concerned of "overdevelopment"? Go see the "haikyo" hi-rise clusters in Tochigi or Fukushima, which are abandoned and crumbling to the ground. All Japanese development, which was somehow OK at the time.

Exactly. You can't win with these people. On one hand they complain of Akiya and Haikyo, as well as how all Japanese are moving to the big cities and emptying out the countryside. Then when foreign money comes in and tries to develop it, they scream over development. It's just like the whole inflation deflation thing. They complained FOR YEARS about deflation and now they have all the inflation that they want and they are still not happy.

If you come to Akakura in summer, it's pitch dark at night,"

That sounds like almost every Japanese onsen town I've ever been to.

Except Kusatsu and I hated that place. Give me a pitch dark onsen town at night and that's where I want to be. I don't want to feel like I'm in Tokyo after relaxing in the Onsen. I love peace and quiet and going for walks with my family in the quiet.

I understand the concerns of the local people, but if your community is slowly dying, and the local population are not coming to ski or stay, would you rather just slowly fade into oblivion or try to find a solution. These new resorts bring jobs and money. It may interest people in staying and working there, instead of everybody moving to Tokyo!

Even before news of PCG's interest, many inns, ski rental shops and restaurants in Akakura - one of five major ski resort towns in the Myoko region - had been snapped up by foreigners.

https://english.kyodonews.net/news/2022/02/8cd27b81d87e-seibu-to-sell-some-prince-hotels-leisure-assets-to-singapores-gic.html

We were in the Furano area backcountry a while back, we didn't go into the resort but everywhere we went the locals were fuming. We used the Kitanomine Gondola and on the ride up a local said Prince Hotel had sold out to Chinese. The Chinese bus in bus load of tourists straight from the airport, into the resort and all the money is kept outside Japan. All the rental is done inside the resort too.

There's nothing to gain for Furano citizens other than crowded resorts. It's amazing how 'lazy' Japan's corporates has become. Lazy balance sheet, lazy deals, even more lazy government.

Take a look in all the local rags, despite unjustified seafood ban by China, all Ishiba can say is let's look for common grounds and be friendly with China.

Good ole xenphopia! Since when have rural Japanese been concerned of "overdevelopment"?

You explained it yourself JeffL, it's lazy management, lazy balance sheet, and concerns by locals are definitely justified. Just ask locals at Furano. They were definitely very welcoming of tourists, until Chinese owners:

Bypass taxis, bypass local trains, bypass local businesses relying heavily on winter tourism, and instead bus in tourists straight from the airport and into the resorts.

Ask the Kiwis and Aussie about Singaporean intentions as well. They launched a budget airline 'Tiger Airline' into the Australian market, but had no intention of making a profit or providing a decent service. Instead flight cancellations, poor on time performance etc. were the norms, forcing governments to step in to regulate ALL airlines, making aviation more expensive for every airlines. Why? because, apparently they were upset Quantas had setup competition with a local asian airline in Singapore.

The Myoko area is very beautiful and we visited many times when we lived nearby. I'm not sure a super-rich restore is an answer. Not many locals live there.

Understandable concerns from the locals, unbridled, unregulated, culturally inappropriate and excessive development will blight the area while benefiting the people who live there nor at all in the long run, even driving them out of their own home town for the profit of strangers.

I don't know too much about this particular area to make an appropriate assessment. I also feel your concerns. But I also know that without tourism, some areas would cease to exist. There would be no tax revenue generated to support needed services for locals. And this has already led to schools and businesses shutting doors in the country side, along with the younger population moving to bigger cities. It's a double-edged sword. Hopefully, foreign businesses and tourists can become more aware of the rules and regulations of the area.

The place was crowded 10 years ago and I stop visiting Ni igata for winter boarding. The snow quality and quantity was and still is excellent if it not track out but when comes the crowds all you get for the last 2/3 of the season are track out sessions. There is better offering just North because of isolation to the area. The snow is a bit wetter but no overseas visitors and rare to get track out. I am a day visitor and back home at my local onsen by 19:00 so I don't mind traveling a few hours for untracked terrain.

Hilarious!

Now that the shoe is on the other foot the Japanese don't like it.

During the Bubble Japanese companies were buying up businesses including ski resorts around the world and flying in Japanese tourists by the load.

Not just ski resorts but golf resorts even a few major sports fishing resorts all being beyond the cost any locals could afford.

Then once to bubble burst, they in many cases just walked away leaving these places to close and crumble.

Near where I lived in the 80s 3 of the 4 resorts were owned by Japanese investment companies and like all ski resorts/areas it was winter boom and summer bust.

But we must have our daily anti foreign tourists article.

Great news. I have always wanted to ski in Myoko.

This will spread out the so-called "overtourism" to other resort areas amd have more tourists visiting rural Japan, which everyone was hoping for. Right?

I have recently been doing the drive up ski and stay in the van off the beaten track with my boy in last few years to Minakami in Gunma.

Great place for snow, scenery and skiing / snowboarding / snow walking etc, etc but the town is a ghost town.

We could not find one open restaurant in the whole town for 2 years running.

You have to eat from the supermarket or conbini or be staying in a Ryokan and have to eat what they dish up. No souvenir shops open right outside the station. Every shop shuttered.

It's dying for some tourist love and money tbh.

So good luck Myoko and try some omotenashi. It will go along way to please your new guests.

But they're only interested in the snow and once that melts, those businesses shut. The town, also once a bustling hot-spring destination, no longer has enough going on to attract many visitors during the rest of the year.

And can someone tell me what is different from pretty much every ski resorts worldwide?

Was it any different from before foreigners started coming?

Oh right it wasn't, it was people going to ski in the winter and not much in the summer.

Well, if there's no domestic investment what can people expect? As another commenter says above, it's okay when there's Japanese investment abroad, but not if foreigners try in Japan.

How many tourists visit Myoko?

"While specific Myoko tourist numbers aren't readily available, it's worth noting that ski resorts in Niigata, including Myoko Kogen, saw a significant decline in visitors, hitting 3.81 million in fiscal 2022, down from 16 million in the peak year of fiscal 1992. "

"Nakajima said many foreign business owners in Akakura have refused to join the local tourism association. One consequence is a lot of broken rules on the part of businesses and tourists that range from not disposing of garbage properly, to overparking to late-night fireworks."

Hmmm, why am I not surprised. This little tidbit will be lost on those who are quick to gaslight local Japanese for not doing more to accommodate foreign tourists. Classic case of individuals that think rules don't apply to them.

And why not do something to entice tourists to come in summer. I'm sure they can build local attractions and things of that sort.

Without foreign investment and development, those towns will simply die out and disappear.

Zero innovation, walls and ceilings in hotels and pension turning yellow, with rooms that reek of that nasty cigarettes smell. Old lifts with the speed of a turtle and abandoned buildings long ago with broken windows, giving the place a ghost town vibe.

That is the state, or will be the state of all those old ski towns that don't want foreign investment. They will simply, disappear. That includes the lifts on the ski resorts.

If done properly it would be good, but foreign tourism will price out locals. They are there to make money so understandable but doesn’t mean people have to like it. A lot of people will hate this. As this is not going to be created with locals in mind but foreign facing and to line the wallets of the foreign investors. Look at Niseko. I am glad I got to enjoy it before the overdevelopment and greed set in.

The town, also once a bustling hot-spring destination, no longer has enough going on

Emphasis on the word "once". Like most Japanese resorts, Myoko was overdeveloped in the 1980s. That's a very long time ago and much of the area became very run down. The top lift at Kurohime, the only steep bit, stopped running in something like 1998 (!!) and was never repaired. Revitalization is one reason Myoko was given a Shinkansen stop (its quite far away) which, like the rest of the Hokuriku Shinkansen, non-locals paid for.

The basic problem in the story is that there was massive untapped demand for skiing in Myoko. This was clear as day as soon as Niseko took off in the early 2000s. Unfortunately Myoko locals did not have the nous to sell their resort, which was 100% Japanese owned at the time, to foreign skiers. No complex marketing or advanced level of English was necessary to do this. Just friendly faces and a willingness to serve foreign customers and maybe adapt business practices a little, e.g., not serving fish and only fish for breakfast. All they had to do was copy what little foreign owned lodges in Niseko were doing. Had Myoko (or Furano, or Hakuba or anywhere) locals done this, locals would have massively benefitted from foreign skiers and would have stayed in control of their town. Instead, they sold up at rock bottom prices and now have to watch as others, many of them nonJapanese and unwilling to act in local ways, cash in massively. Much of such revenue flows out of Myoko.

This new project threatens overdevelopment again and I don't support it. The Myoko area has brought it on itself though for failing to recognize their own potential and selling up on the cheap. The foreigners who started in Myoko did it by buying lodges for 10 to 20 million yen, sums many Japanese could afford. Big foreign capital only arrived fifteen years later. The big appeal of Myoko is its huge snowfall, a huge gift from Mother Nature which is far more precious and rare than 99% of people in Niigata will realize.

oldman_13

Today 09:27 am JST

Hmmm, why am I not surprised. This little tidbit will be lost on those who are quick to gaslight local Japanese for not doing more to accommodate foreign tourists. Classic case of individuals that think rules don't apply to them.

Yep, and I remember the exact same thing back during the Bubble back home when Japanese companies were doing the same sorts of things.

Things like bringing in Japanese staff and not following local employment laws like overtime, not following local environmental laws and constructing without proper permits, violating local drinking hours by continuing to serve alcohol after hours to Japanese tour groups, violating the fishing quota of Atlantic salmon at their exclusive fishing resort, etc... funny how again if they do it that was ok now they are upset when it is the reverse.

I have no issue with tourists using Japan's many ski resorts. I believe it’s largely beneficial for towns that would otherwise see little business outside of weekends and holidays in the winter. Ski resorts have always been over-crowded on weekends anyways, so the added tourists doesn't create much more of a nuisance. The real concern is if foreign businesses become too focused on profit without contributing to the development and coordination with the local community. Sure "Patience Capital Group (PCG) promises to create 1,000 jobs" but how many of these jobs are going to be full-time instead of seasonal and offer wages that would allow for one to raise a family within the region year round? If it's job creation they deem is beneficial for communities, they are only half correct. It is the quality of the jobs that matter the most. Japan isn't exactly in need of more jobs with it's labor shortage, but what we need are more high quality jobs.

but the surge in property prices brought higher taxes for locals choosing not to sell. Inflation there - from labor costs to a bowl of ramen - has gone through the roof, pricing locals and most domestic travelers out of the market.

as someone who was priced out of their home town, I completely feel the agony. I may have a house now in Japan, but it required me to move out of a place I loved throughout my childhood where housing prices far exceeded the average median salary. Many of my friends have moved away as well, and I feel it is common in the US. The Japanese aren't known to be frequent movers unless their work forces them to or they seek opportunities elsewhere. In most cases, people like to settle down and so it is understandable why locals who were living peacefully would be worried about being priced out.

It is not the best idea to too readily allow foreign investment. Government should have total control over that, and only after careful consultation with local people including local businesses.

Tony W.

Today 10:13 am JST

It is not the best idea to too readily allow foreign investment. Government should have total control over that, and only after careful consultation with local people including local businesses

And on that note.

When people in the USA, Canada, Australia, etc... said the same thing about Japanese investing in those countries during the Bubble, the people saying it were called racist!

Japan is becoming local un-friendly.

Zero innovation, walls and ceilings in hotels and pension turning yellow, with rooms that reek of that nasty cigarettes smell. Old lifts with the speed of a turtle and abandoned buildings long ago with broken windows, giving the place a ghost town vibe.

That is the state, or will be the state of all those old ski towns that don't want foreign investment. They will simply, disappear. That includes the lifts on the ski resorts.

Yep, that's what it was like. There used to be two massive sports halls by the north end of Ikenotaira that were literally falling down, with big chunks of wall and roof on the ground. The area was still used for cross country skiing. Any children playing nearby risked serious injury or death.

Honshu's biggest resort for foreign skiers is Hakuba, but it is still easy to find shuttered buildings with broken windows. Just walk along the main street leading to Tsugaike Ski resort. That's broken windows less than 200m from the main gondola.

If Myoko got South Korea levels of snow and not the world-leading amounts Mother Nature provides, it would have died. Many ski resorts worldwide are suffering from a lack of snow through no fault of their own. Japanese resorts are lucky that they have been unaffected.

Chinese money is doing the same thing around the world. Same as Japanese money was in the bubble era.

When people in the USA, Canada, Australia, etc... said the same thing about Japanese investing in those countries during the Bubble, the people saying it were called racist!

You are not wrong.

Changes happens. Its inevitable. You can't hang on to how things were in days gone by. Surely investment in your area is a good long-term prospect, its better than neglect. I think its good that the community has raised concerns with the developers and investors, and I hope the changes are made with their views being taken into consideration.

 it is understandable why locals who were living peacefully would be worried about being priced out.

I understand this concern but Japan is not automatically the same as gaikoku and should not be assumed to be the same.

Note that "living peacefully" in Japanese resorts means watching building after building in your town become permanently shuttered and start falling down. In a ski resort, it means lifts breaking down and not being replaced or entire ski areas closing and any jobs at them and local accommodation disappearing. Even Hakuba, Honshu's biggest success, has four closed ski areas, with a fifth one regularly changing hands and struggling to remain open. Its hard to see how anyone can legitimately call Hakuba "crowded" in 2025 when another five resorts' worth of people used to go there. As Wallace says about Niigata

 it's worth noting that ski resorts in Niigata, including Myoko Kogen, saw a significant decline in visitors, hitting 3.81 million in fiscal 2022, down from 16 million in the peak year of fiscal 1992. "

I don't know what people here and Niigata are going on about.

I was raised in a place with 4 ski resorts.

As a child all 4 were locally ( family) owned.

Then came the Japanese and 3 out of 4 were bought and expanded including the* village" which became nothing but shops a restaurants by Japanese resort/package tour companies.

Then the bubble in Japan bust and these places started to crumble.

Now all 4 are owned by an American resort company which did the exact same thing as the Japanese.

The village today is packed with tourists and the 4 ski mountains crowded in the winter.

But in the summer many shops close especially the sports gear ones, restaurants reduce floor space and staff they opened a wholesale outlet park nearby to try and boost the number of people going to the area but it doesn't even come close to the numbers during ski season.

And guess what? This is absolutely no different than when I was a child and the mountains were locally family owned, jobs and business in the winter and nothing much in the summer.

It is a "ski resort" not a summer beach and winter ski resort.

And like it or not the locals need to remember that.

We knew this the locals knew this and budgeted accordingly.

All those I grew up with understood, in winter you worked more, you put money aside for the lean periods of off season, if you are smart you have a small side business or work to supplement your income in the off season while living on the money you put aside during the main work season (AKA ski season).

Is this anything different than places like Shōnan and other beach areas? Shōnan is packed in the summer, local businesses booming, then come fall and winter and it is a near ghost town.

But I imagine if a major foreign company suddenly bought up the area and continued the same situation it is in now, the locals and many here would be complaining about it and pointing out that business is dead in the winter and blaming the foreign investors.

You can't stick your head in the snow and ignore the foreign populace moving in and out of Myoko. They are coming and it can't be stopped. I get all the concerns of being run out of town, land and ski passes being much more expensive, and lauds of tourists being noisy and messy. It happened in Niseko, now in Hakuba, and next is Myoko. Locals have a chance to actually be leaders instead of stubborn old whiners. And yes, the age where all this xenophobia comes from is usually the old men who don't want or like change. Those who are entrepreneurs will make money and enjoy the tourism boom.

I personally miss going to Hakuba, but it's just not for me anymore. It's overrun with tourists who are annoying and I'm fine with that. They can have Hakuba. I'll stick to my local ski hill and embrace the calmness.

Why build or expand resorts, when experts tell us climate change is going to boil the earth? It sounds like they're throwing money away.

I wonder why Japanese winter tourism businesses has become foreign owned to such a degree. Where are the Japanese entrepreneurs and companies?

Kaowaiinekochanknaw Today  08:57 am JST

I have recently been doing the drive up ski and stay in the van off the beaten track with my boy in last few years to Minakami in Gunma. 

Great place for snow, scenery and skiing / snowboarding / snow walking etc, etc but the town is a ghost town. 

We could not find one open restaurant in the whole town for 2 years running.

You have to eat from the supermarket or conbini or be staying in a Ryokan and have to eat what they dish up. No souvenir shops open right outside the station. Every shop shuttered. 

It's dying for some tourist love and money tbh.

Thanks for this information. I'm about to get involved with a project with Minakami's kankou kyokai, so views like this from foreign residents and visitors will help to inform what they need to do to make it an attractive place to visit and stay.

I wonder why Japanese winter tourism businesses has become foreign owned to such a degree. Where are the Japanese entrepreneurs and companies?

Why are many businesses exporting used cars from Japan foreign owned?

Why were many Japanese antiques, furniture etc. bought for peanuts or simply picked up off the road on sodai gomi day and shipped out of the country in the 1980s and 1990s?

Why did Kurosawa need Spielberg and George Lucas to finance his later films like Kagemusha and Ran?

Why did many anime need fansubbers, i.e., amateur fans creating free subtitles for other enthusiasts, to make them popular worldwide?

Why does vintage Japanese audio equipment (Sansui amps etc.) get sold for way higher prices overseas?

This story just goes on and on. If Japanese people cannot see value in what they have, they should not moan when others who can see such value step in.

Thanks for this information. I'm about to get involved with a project with Minakami's kankou kyokai, so views like this from foreign residents and visitors will help to inform what they need to do to make it an attractive place to visit and stay.

Wish you the best of success as I think it's a beautiful location with loads of great snow and charm.

Any investment and the hard work going in to revitalize is welcome.

More and more Japanese land and assets bought by foreigners. Tourist places especially popular.

Wish you the best of success as I think it's a beautiful location with loads of great snow and charm. 

Any investment and the hard work going in to revitalize is welcome.

Thanks. It seems there are people there who want to get things moving again, and it will take a lot of hard work over several years.

Niigata has the wettest snow.

These associations exist in the US as Home Owners Associations with the head a 55 year non-working busy body telling people what not to plant in their yards and explaining lamps on fence posts are strictly forbidden. Wise for thrm to ignore the rules and use common sense. This is the special privilege of foreigners in Japan.

If you go to Kinugawa 鬼怒川 or Minakami onsen 水上温泉, it most certainly has been overdeveloped. It is a ghost town with plants overtaking the buildings and no money to tear down or demolition.

I bet if the Patience Capital Group were local or domestic, instead of Singaporean, no one would be whining.

Be thankful capital is coming in to Myoko.

Nakajima said many foreign business owners in Akakura have refused to join the local tourism association. One consequence is a lot of broken rules on the part of businesses and tourists that range from not disposing of garbage properly, to overparking to late-night fireworks.

"We have no idea who they are and what they're doing. They just come in December and disappear when spring comes," he said. Nakajima recently started approaching foreign businesses to offer lectures on the town's rules.

Blame the people who sold out to these foreigners without having a talk with the locals first. They should have made it compulsory for the foreigners to consult the locals before taking any decision.

Hideyoshi.N

Today 12:17 pm JST

More and more Japanese land and assets bought by foreigners. Tourist places especially popular.

And the other fact!

More and more Japanese land and assets bought by foreigners. In places that were dying and refurbishing thousands of Akiyas that have long been abandoned bringing in new money and business, investment jobs, etc... to these places that have for decades complained about losing population no jobs for younger generations, etc...

More and more Japanese land and assets bought by foreigners. In places that were dying and refurbishing thousands of Akiyas that have long been abandoned bringing in new money and business, investment jobs, etc..

Yes, this is also true.

Japan needs the foreign direct investments...

How did they get planning permission from the local authorities?

I wonder why Japanese winter tourism businesses has become foreign owned to such a degree. Where are the Japanese entrepreneurs and companies

Foreign businesses know how to attract more tourists - Japanese and foreign - and charge a fair price for a great experience. Good food and beer are a must after a day on the slopes

Japanese establishments serve the same ubiquitous soba, udon, fried potato, karei rice and karaage in a room the size of a small living room with metal folding chairs from the 1980’s or older.

There seems a fairly clear choice here, one that it sounds like no one really wants to make. The call to inaction is always strong! Do you let rural towns and hamlets go off the demographic cliff and disappear, or do you invest in the massive wave of potential that is inbound tourism? Perhaps if the Japanese were a bit bolder and more ambitious there wouldn’t be need for foreign investment to get these projects off the ground. It could be done locally, sustainably and in a way where everyone in the community could be brought in and could benefit. But that would take vision and communication now wouldn’t it? You have to be assertive too…

Let those hamlets that want to go extinct get their wish I guess. Pity , cause the few kids that are still left would do well to have the world come to them.

Instead of a celebratory welcome, the local association wants to go and explain ‘the rules’

It doesn’t seem to be the right type of welcome….

Ricky...I agree on all points !/First time !

I see the same attitudes where I live in a beach/surf area.

Locals can either have crumbling minshukus and no restaurant customers or embrace some foreign investment.

We are foreign...but do we not bleed when you cut us ....

Guru! Miracles do happen! Onya.

To those that don't like what is happening in this place (and others) those that down vote anyone pointing out the reality.

Please give us your great wisdom and alternative solutions.

I recently watch a program on dead and dying resorts in Japan.

One was a once very popular onsen town in the mountains.

Hotels, riyojans, tennis courts, restaurants, etc... all crumbling trees and plants growing all over these formerly popular places, roofs collapsed, road with holes big enough for a car to fall into, etc...

But the locals were against foreign investment and the idea of foreign tourists.

Asked what they wanted and their replies were pure fantasy.

They kept saying " we need a return to the old economy and the government to invest and the tourist will return" what world do they live in?

A *return to the old economy " do they mean a new bubble? Are they unaware that the Japanese population isn't what it used to be in both population and demographics?

The youths are not interested in going to a old style onsen where everyone eats at a designated time and in bed by 21:00.

So the town dies more every day while these most old residents dream of a return to the "good old days " .

The school close the last medical facility closed they will lose their last grocery store in June and will need to travel 30 km to the next closest one.

But still they live in the dream that the government should "save the town"

Antiquesaving is right.

It’s mostly old guys that like going to onsens.

One onsen I go to has a separate bin for adult diapers-no joke!

I see many hotels in my area abandoned , seriously left to the elements.

I have scouted a few ...it is weird...as if the staff left after an alien invasion....all the croquerie , all the work documents , an old billiard table, an old juke box....weird ...I souvenired some things ...

There is a coffee table book with photos of these things...eerie

Japan desperately needs economic revitalization in local areas. Obviously, Japan's ski and snowboarding potential's a great way to do it and requires foreigners to do so as Japan's population's shrinking and aging.

Besides, it's also about an obvious shortage of quality ski facilities in Asia relative to the population, Japan would be crazy not to promote such tourism business that also has greater staying power with home purchases etc.

Foreign based business interests, especially those with deep Chinese connections can drum up huge numbers of foreign skiers and boarders far better than their Japanese counterparts can ever achieve.

Without foreigners, Japan's ski resorts will all fail, as domestic population demographic spiral only set to get far worse, within 10yrs net population will drop (+6K) daily

Deo Gratias

Today 06:01 pm JST

Shouldn't they have to obey the local laws and rules -- whether they belong to the local tourism association or not?

> I thought such laws and rules applied to everybody, not just local association members.

> My wife and I don't belong to our neighborhood association, but we still have to follow the rules on trash and other matters.

> So, I don't get that one

And who is saying they don't?

The people upset they are not joining and upset about the prices are upset about having foreign tourists.

And you and others just take it for granted these people are telling the truth.

I have been here a long long time, the number of times something happened or someone unknown did something and so genius made the comment ' oh it must be the gaijins" and it had nothing to do with me.

Yes I have even had someone come and tell me the unsorted garbage that the city refused to pickup and left with a sticker on was mine and I had to " sort things correctly " well guess what it wasn't mine nor any other gaijin's!

This is the problem in Japan and here by many foreigners on this site, they automatically assume it must be the gaijins doing something wrong.

Well here is something to think about.

Most employees at these places are Japanese and I am willing to bet they know the rules and will say something and or do the correct way.

So think about that!

It’s mostly old guys that like going to onsens.

One onsen I go to has a separate bin for adult diapers-no joke!

Old guys tend not to wash before they enter the hot spring waters. We've all noticed how they undress then go straight in. At that age, changing clothes or taking a bath is a challenge and they don't take one everyday let alone several days. Best to stay away from Ossan Onsens.

As, since it's known Japan requires more foreigners due to demographic collapse, why not promote ski business and industry to do so in a FUN way to better connect?!

Even if Japan's inbound immigration remains FLAT at 2024 levels of 1K per day for remainder of 21st century, Foreigners in Japan will VERY likely be in the majority, while the "median" age of Japanese will be approx. 75!

Bottom line's Japan doesn't have a choice, revitalization of local areas, including home and condo purchases desperately needed. Many may end up retiring in Japan or even live and work here as a result if younger.

Biggest risk of course is climate change but based on this snowy winter less so and no, the experts don't know as the climate has changed since the dawn of 'time'.

Japan must recognize that relatively few foreigners are willing to go to stand alone onsens as a 'destination'.

Another reason ski resorts so well positioned and pure onsen resorts in a HEAP of trouble moving forward.

Besides, what feels better than an onsen and sauna after a great day on the slopes, especially with your kids?!

OK folks make up your minds.

So the Japanese complain about "over tourism" in Tokyo, Kyoto and Nara and everyone says they (tourists) need to go see other parts of Japan.

Japanese were complaining that Gala Yuzawa one of the most popular and the easiest for Japanese in Tokyo to go to on a ski day trip had too many foreigners.

Now foreign companies are upgrading other places, attracting foreigners to those places instead of the usual ones where everyone complains about over tourism, and what do we get? More complaining.

When people commented that tourists have to start going to other places and not just the usual ones, I said: What difference would that make? The probabilities are those other places will end up complaining, and here we are, more complaining.

The sad part of tourism is when foreigners come in a buy everything up it prices the Japanese citizens out.

kaimycahl

Today 09:34 pm JST

The sad part of tourism is when foreigners come in a buy everything up it prices the Japanese citizens out

OK tell us what they buy up that prices the Japanese out?

Electronics? Nope Japan 100 volts the rest of the world different. So they buy models for overseas.

Food? Not really, they eat out and usually a lot of things and not that much Japanese type rice.

Clothing? Again no.

Souvenirs? Yes and a whole load of crap the Japanese are not going to buy anyway

This sad old trope " tourists buy everything and raise prices" is just that a trope!

The only thing tourists really raise prices in are accomodations in areas that are popular for overseas tourists.

So *over tourism " Right?

Is Japan that incapable or just doesn't want to do anything.

Japan has 126 million people and in 2024 nearly 37 million visites the country.

NY city has a population of around 8.3 million and got 65 million visitors in 2024.

Is Japan that incapable or just doesn't want to do anything.

I would say both.

I get the locals' feelings and worries but they also have to be realistic - they admitted that the town is no longer a hot spring town that used to have enough Japanese visiting. Foreigners aren't responsible for the demographic declines in the Tohoku region and others in Japan with similar drastically ageing populations and no viable local economy to attract younger Japanese to live there, have kids there and stay there.

Skiing and snowboarding are the only attractions there and they will bring an influx of foreign investment. If the Japanese govt's laws permit this kind of foreign investment then it will come. Niigata's young/younger people leave in droves and most end up in Tokyo and other big Japanese cities. Local city ordinances and policing can be used more effectively to stop anti social behavior by foreign visitors/residens.

As for Mr Koji Miyashita saying he no longer feels as if he's in Japan - welcome to the world where countries like the UK and England with centuries of culture that developed countries have embraced in the sciences, arts, philosophy, political theory have seen big immigration intakes for decades ofpeople from countries with little in common. And maybe Mr Miyashita forgets or was completely unaware of the Japanese spending spree in the 80s and 90s in other countries that saw an over abundance of golf courses and in some cases ugly developments that had nothing to do with the local interests/benefits. As well as laundered money.

Without tourism $spend, Japan's already terrible economy, that supposedly 'grew' 0.1% for 2024 even with massive Govt. deficit spending would be Far Worse.

Private sector consumption's been decreasing in Japan since at LEAST 2019, can't grow an economy with fewer households, depopulation and unprecedented aging.

Japan’s businesses really need to up their game if foreign tourists are to be exploited to a higher potential.