Foreign skiers descend on Hokkaido resort

Kutchan, a ski resort in the Niseko ski region, located in northern Hokkaido, has been attracting hordes of tourists from overseas.

Once vacant inns in the town, population 16,000, are being converted to condos, with investment money from Australia and Hong Kong.

Kutchan's  tourism promotion office says foreign skiers, mostly Australians, discovered the area after the 9- 11 terrorist attacks.

The number of foreign tourists was 393 in 1997. The figure jumped to 14,406 in 2006.

Tourists from Australia and Hong Kong accounted for about 90% of the total.

Outdoor activity entrepreneurs from Australian, residing in Kutchan, promoted the Niseko region by word of mouth.

Domestic skiers tend to stay only two days. But skiers from abroad stay 7- 10 days on average.

Nihon Harmony Resorts KK manages the Niseko ski area. It expects more than 20,000 skiers from Australia in 2008.

Are you a skier? 

source