COMPANY PROFILE: YTL HOTELS
NEW OPENING T e Aspen of the East I
n March 2010, YTL Hotels bought Niseko Village in Hokkaido, Japan, from US company Citigroup with the stated view of turning the 462-hec-
tare (1,142-acre) ski resort into the “Aspen of the East”. Included in the reported jpy6bn (us$76m, €54m £47m) sale was the 506- room Hilton Hotel, the 200-room Green Leaf Hotel, two 18-hole golf courses, 155 hectares of ski-mountain and natural hot springs. T e company’s masterplan for the resort
is to create a world-class, year-round vil- lage resort, with private residences as well as high-end leisure facilities. According to Anthony Champalimaud, YTL Hotels’ VP development Europe and America, the company chose to start the redevelopment with Green Leaf to “plant a fl ag” that would demonstrate quickly (the property was only closed for eight weeks) the overall vision. As well as overhauling guestrooms and pub-
lic spaces, the Green Leaf renovation included the addition of a 100sq m (1,076 sq ſt ) spa in a space, adjacent to the existing onsen (hot spring baths), which was previously the giſt shop. While the long, thin structure was not changed, a local artist created a stunning
‘art wall’ to divide the spa from the corridor leading to the onsen. And although sound- proofi ng was impossible, the brick fl oor was changed to wood to encourage guests to remove their shoes and move more quietly. T e layout of the spa has also been care-
fully planned so the experience becomes more serene as the guest moves through
The Japanese ski resort was bought in 2010 (above); the new Green Leaf spa by Champalimaud Design (below)
it. Near the entrance, there are fi ve neck, shoulder and back massage stations, which is considered a social space for après-ski ten- sion release; further in are two manicure and two pedicure/foot massage stations, and at the, end nearest the onsen, are three mas- sage rooms. Although not a Spa Village, the YTL Hotels philosophy of refl ecting local traditions has also been considered – the sig- nature experience is the Hot Buttered Rum Treatment, based on a popular, local après- ski drink of the same name. Champalimaud – also a director of Cham-
palimaud Design, the New York-based fi rm that redesigned the Green Leaf – is delighted with the resort and spa’s success in its open- ing season. Despite the potential for negative PR following the earthquake and tsunami in March, and the subsequent disaster in Fuku- shima, YTL Hotels says occupancy at the
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hotel was up on the previous season while the spa’s capture rate was 5 per cent – not unreasonable given the resort’s younger, out- doorsy demographic. Although Niseko Village did close for a
couple of weeks in solidarity with those aff ected by the disaster (so power supplies could be diverted to where they were most needed), Champalimaud says the actual impact on the resort – which is almost 400 miles from Fukushima – was nonexistent and summer business at the Hilton is already on a par with last year. T is resilience could be partly due to the fact that 90 per cent of Niseko Village’s visitors are currently Japa- nese, but while the impact of the disaster on plans to attract a more international audience is not yet clear, Chik points out that forecasts suggests tourism across Japan should recover within three years. ●
SPA BUSINESS 3 2011 ©Cybertrek 2011
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