Oct 03 (Kyodo) - A number of ski resorts in the popular Niseko area in northern Japan's Hokkaido are set to delay the start of their operations for this winter season due to the lack of foreign visitors amid the continued novel coronavirus pandemic.
The Niseko Mt. Resort Grand Hirafu (Kutchan), the area's largest ski resort, is slated to begin this winter's operations from Dec. 5, about two weeks later than usual, while some other ski resorts are planning to downsize their operations and hire fewer staff members.
Since the 1990s, Grand Hirafu has set its winter season opening date around Nov. 23 every year. With about 70 percent of its visitors coming from overseas in a typical year, the company said it expects the total number of visitors this winter "may fall to about 20 percent to 30 percent of the usual number."
As a result, the resort will reduce the number of staff employed during the ski season from about 500 last winter to about 300, and slash the number of ski lifts in operation to seven out of 12. The number of restaurants in the ski resort will be halved, and piste areas open for nighttime skiing from Dec. 19 will be reduced to half the usual size.
