YTL Hotels’ Niseko Village in Hokkaido has announced new resort development plans, including the nation’s first Ritz-Carlton Reserve and a high-speed ski lift.
Slated for a 2020 opening, the 50-room Ritz-Carlton Reserve will be situated in the heart of the village within the Kasara Niseko Village Townhouse. The building currently consists of eight luxury three-bedroom townhouses across two floors, bearing both contemporary and traditional Japanese designs.
The 2,723-foot-long Village Express lift is expected to be completed in time for the 2016-2017 ski season. The lift will be the first chair-gondola hybrid in Japan, and the country’s only lift to boast glass-bottom gondola cabins.
Nestled at the base of Mount Niseko, Niseko Village is rapidly becoming a popular destination for U.S. skiers and hikers. The village saw a 64 percent increase in U.S. visitors to its almost 2,200 acres of skiable land during just December and January of the 2015-2016 season over the entire 2014-2015 season.
