In Niseko’s Booming Property Market, Investors Are Buying Individual Hotel Rooms

Nearly everyone taking a winter trip to Japan these days is headed to Hokkaido, Japan’s northern-most island. While other major cities like Tokyo and Osaka still pull a large proportion of Japan’s total international visitors each year, Hokkaido has also become a headline year-round destination.

This is driving up demand for hotel investment and development projects in key areas in Hokkaido, such as Niseko. This town in Shiribeshi Subprefecture is one of three towns (Kutchan, Niseko, and Rankoshi) in the Niseko tourism zone.

Since the early 2000s, international hospitality brands, real estate investors, and developers have been pouring capital to secure a foothold in the Niseko tourism zone. This picked up significantly in the 2010s, which saw hotel room rates climb at an average of 10% per year over the decade, and yields on hospitality properties climbed to as high as 6%.

Most of the real estate development and investment volumes are driven by luxury international brands who have built ski resorts, luxury hotels and serviced apartments, as well as holiday homes in Niseko.

Over the last five years, average hotel rates in Niseko have continued to surge, with peak January rates recently rising from about ¥40,000 to ¥50,000+ (S$323 to S$404) per night due to high international demand.

According to a hospitality real estate report published by Colliers Japan last month, supply of new development projects is trending down as available sites become more scarce and construction costs rise.

As a result, the subdivision and sale of developed hotel condominiums to individuals is increasing. This has helped shine a spotlight on unique players in the Niseko market like Hotel101 Global.

The Singapore-registered, Filipino-owned hospitality group operates a unique ‘condotel’ model that features identical 226 sq ft rooms. Individual rooms are sold to investors while the company manages the overall hotel operations.

Investment and development capital pours into Niseko

More than 42.68 million international visitors arrived in Japan in 2025, exceeding the record set the previous year by over 5.81 million people, according to travel statistics from the Japanese government. Travel expenditure also reached an all-time high last year, with international tourism pulling in about ¥9.5 trillion into the economy.

More than 3.2 million international visitors travelled to Hokkaido last year, supported by an expanding Asia-Pacific air connectivity through the New Chitose Airport, which serves 44 airlines to 20 destinations, reported hotel insider C9 Hotelworks.

Infrastructure development also underpins the area’s appeal, with projects like the Hokkaido Shinkansen extension and a business jet terminal at the New Chitose Airport set to elevate holiday destinations like Niseko.

While the region is known for its winter activities, the region also gets its fair share of year-round visitors. According to statistics compiled by Hotel101, about 43% of visitors to Hokkaido come in the summer months and are mainly tourists from Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, South Korea, and China.

In the peak winter season, which accounts for 57% of the area’s total international visitors, most are tourists from Australia, Hong Kong, the USA, Singapore, and China.

Hotel 101 operates a 482-room property in Niseko. Under its ‘condotel’ model, rooms at Hotel101 Niseko were launched for sale in 2024 at guide prices from ¥37.66 million, at the time. The hotel project is expected to be completed by the end of this year.

One-of-a-kind ‘Condotel’

Located on Niseko Hirafu 4-jo 1 Chome, Hotel101 Niseko is Hotel101’s first Japanese property. The group has a market presence in the Philippines and Spain.

All of its properties are a hybrid comprising a condo and a hotel, and it claims to be the first in the world to feature only one type of room across all its properties.

Hotel101 Niseko features all day reception service, all-day dining, a convenience store, on-site parking, and a business centre. Residents will also be able to enjoy facilities like indoor swimming pools and sauna, a hot mineral bath, a children’s playground, a fitness gym, laundry room, and private dining rooms.

Each room is 226 sq ft and if fully furnished with a Queen-sized bed and a single bed to accommodate up to three occupants. Rooms are also fitted with a refrigerator, sink, microwave, and a kettle.

The concept is somewhat straightforward. You can purchase one, or more, units at the development and have complete ownership over the units as well as a freehold condo title. Owners will enjoy five free nights annually in the hotel they invest in, and five additional nights in any Hotel101 worldwide.

Owners also rake in a 30% share of the gross room revenues of the hotel per month, regardless if their unit was booked out by the hotel or not. All operating and maintenance costs are covered by the hotel owner, Hotel101.

 According to a factsheet from Hotel101, it projects that the average daily rate (ADR) the upcoming ‘condotel’ will achieve is ¥25,000, once the development is completed and operations stabilise. It also expects an average occupancy of 80%.

Hokkaido leads Japanese land price growth

There is a stacked development pipeline of new international hotels and branded residences in Niseko over the next three years, according to C9 Hotelworks. Niseko in Hokkaido is Japan’s largest branded residences market, with about 78% of the total supply, followed by Okinawa (11%), Kanto (6%), and Chubu (5%).

The development pipeline in Niseko includes over 1,350 units across at least 12 projects, which comprise newly launched projects and unlaunched developments.

There are four new developments set to be completed this year. They are:

• Moxy Niseko Village, a 310-key hotel in Niseko Village
• Hotel101 Niseko, a 482-key hotel residences in Outer Hirafu
• Aki Nisekko Villas, an 11-unit branded residence in Upper Hirafu
• Sparx Villa Niseko, a 6-unit branded residence in Soga

Other developments coming up include Hanacreek, Powder Loft Niseko, Hoshinoya Hütte Niseko, Hotel & Residences by Ryowha, and The Chedi Niseko.

All of this development activity has contributed to land price growth across Hokkaido.

According to a land price survey by Colliers Japan last month, four areas in Hokkaido are in the top ten list of areas in Japan that recorded the steepest land price increase in 2025. This is attributed to the explosive growth in the development of new condos and hotels, supported by strong demand for vacation homes.

The four leading areas where land prices  in Hokkaido have significantly increased are:

• Chitose 5-2: ¥155,000 (+31.4% y-o-y)
• Chitose 5-3: ¥165,000 (+29.9% y-o-y)
• Chitose 5-1: ¥127,000 (+29.6% y-o-y)
• Furano-3: ¥51,600 (+27.1% y-o-y)

Against this backdrop of sustained development and strong inbound tourism numbers, investment appetite for hotels and residences in Niseko is climbing.

But Colliers Japan cautions that rising construction and development costs will be the chief concern for future hospitality projects and branded residences in the years ahead. As a result, the projected supply post-2029 is likely to trend downwards.

This is leading investors to consider apartment hotel development projects to secure assets today that are yielding high ADR rates.