There have been a number of Australians who have made a major impact on Niseko, beginning with adventure sports and then inbound tour operators.
Following them and also making an important contribution to the early days of the resort’s international expansion is Niseko’s first foreign developer, Simon Robinson. We find out his story and get some pearlers for his top three tips on things to do in Niseko.
When did you first come to Niseko?
January 2002. A business partner had been trying to get me to come for years but I saw the altitude of 300-1300m and I never believed that it could be good here. But I relented and two weeks before we left we got in with Snowave (now Ski Japan) and I had the best skiing experience of my life.
I understand that you used to run a successful restaurant in Canberra. Tell us a bit more about that.
We had two locations, a restaurant Red Belly Black and The Observatory Function Centre. We had 35 fulltime staff and won numerous awards. In the 2003 Canberra bush fires our house and the function centre burnt down, which was 75% of our turnover. Two weeks later we were booked to come to Niseko again on holidays. Because we had just lost everything, it changed our perspective and we realised everyone had huge smiles on their faces and we thought it was as good as the heli-skiing that we had done previously. Most international tourists had the same complaint – they didn’t like the accommodation. So we started buying land.
Tell us about the difference in selling your first development compared to a recent development.
I used to have to drag people over to look at apartments – ski in, ski out $AU340,000, but there were lots of questions. I managed to sell it to friends. Now demand outstrips supply. Buyers want more and more these days, the product quality is higher and the price is higher. Buyers are now coming from all over Asia, not just Australia. Maybe the latest breakdown is 40% Australians, 60% Asians.
What do you think Hirafu needs that it doesn’t have?
Town Planning. It needs a master plan. There is a great eclectic mix of buildings in Hirafu that I love, but there is no zoning for where you put commercial, residential etc. There is definitely a need for more services and commercial property.
What do you think Niseko will be like in 10 years?
I think it will be the jewel in Japan’s tourism growth agenda. I think Hokkaido is going to become one of the soft adventure meccas. So many people have never been to Japan, because of the image of it being crowded and expensive, but in reality it is neither.
How many days a season do you ski?
About 80-100 days. About 2 full days a week and 3-5 half days.
Where could we usually find you on the mountain?
Out of resort most of the time. The east face from the peak and in the Annupuri bowls and over to Moiwa and back to Annupuri.
What are the three top tips that you would recommend all visitors to Niseko do?
1 Hike the peak at least once and try to do it when the visibility is OK.
2 Go into Kutchan – walk into a restaurant with a flag or a lantern and try to find dress-up Karaoke.
3 Go to an onsen that is outside the main resort area. Yukichichibu Onsen is my personal favourite.