The region has emerged as a favored destination for both Japanese and International skiers and snowboarders. By introducing an automated ticket and gate system visitors can expect greater convenience than ever before with less waiting times and more simplified purchasing choices. This announcement coincides with the sale of the ultimate ski pass, Hakuba Valley Season Pass which can be purchased online starting June 1, 2016.
Hakuba Valley, comprised of 11 ski resorts in Omachi City, Hakuba Village and Otari Village in Nagano Prefecture managed by 15 cableway companies, will invest in a common automatic ticket and gate system for the coming winter season 2016-17.
This ticketing system will join together all of Hakuba Valley area“s ski slopes, courses and lifts creating Japan“s largest snow resort area. The „all-in-one“ ticket will allow ski-lovers to enjoy greater benefits across the Hakuba Valley*. The new system is in response to the needs of both the domestic and international ski community. In particular the number of foreign skiers who are staying for longer periods in recent years. This will be a major service improvement for guests as well for local business operators.
Background installation and the establishment of the largest ski resort Hakuba Valley
Hakuba Valley is formed by 11 ski resorts in Omachi, Hakuba and Otari in the Nagano Prefecture. The area was selected as the competition venue of Alpine skiing for the 1998 Winter Olympic because of its world- famous powder snow, snow reliability and consistency.
SKIDATA, a world leader in ticketing and access solutions, is the new partner for this exciting project.
This collaboration will see the introduction of a new access and revenue management system. After installing the new automatic gates, guests who purchase the Hakuba Valley ticket will now directly access the lifts without having to visit the ticket counter when switching between snow resorts*. Until now, there was no common infrastructure among the 11 ski resorts and 15 cableways companies. The joint venture is a strengthening of ties and is sure to bring a positive impact in the region. Hakuba Valley will now own 111 ski lifts (including gondolas) and a total of 956ha of skiable terrain.
Stimulation of the inbound market
The ski resorts of Hakuba Valley have been actively promoting to the international market for over a decade. Continued collaborative efforts and a unified approach reveal that Hakuba Valley is the second most popular ski resort in Japan. Historically, the previous winter 2015-2016, inbound visitors increased by 30% compared to the season before. Guests enjoy a long-term stay with an average of 8-9 days. Hakuba Valley is striving to cater for those long-term guests by offering enhanced experiences including a greater variety of slopes with inter-connecting shuttle bus service between the ski resorts facilitated by the new ticket system.
Enjoy your time in Hakuba – a better customer experience with the new access management system
The commencement of the new management access system will offer significant improvements and a range of possibilities for further advancement of products and services. Better service quality and product value will appeal to all skiers and snowboarders visiting the region. A „web shop“ for business and guests will be established. Tickets can be purchased at the ticket counters of the participating ski resorts and easily over the internet, and through participating accommodations and rental outlets etc. Conveniently, tickets can also be recharged after expired usage in all participating businesses thus offering a better experience for Japanese and International guests.
Long lasting customer relationships, continual growth and progress – a strong partner
In order to achieve the best user experience, Hakuba Valley is proud to announce that SKIDATA, the world leader in ticketing and access management for amusement facilities has joined hands to provide the snow resort area with innovative and technological solutions. Mr. Bjarne Eckardt, Representative Director of SKIDATA Japan says, that „We are very honored to be part of such an exciting project. We are happy to support Hakuba Valley to become the largest ski resort in Japan by providing the best solution for ski resort access.“
The representative of Daihoku Chiiki Lift Management Committee, which is formed by the members of all 11 ski resorts in Hakuba Valley and the president of Hakuba Happo-One Ski Resort, Mr. Yasuo Kurata explains „In the past the ski resorts of Hakuba Valley have been holding each other back in order to strike for individual benefits. The introduction of this new system is a significant milestone that finally allows the lift companies to cooperate with each other to aim for better customer service instead of business benefits only. We hope our change can bring more customers to Japan“s number one snow resort area to experience fun, quality of snow and course variety“.
Since the 1990″s, the ski industry worldwide has been experiencing a recession year by year. However, Hakuba Valley has never forgotten the role it dominated as one of the top ski resorts in Japan. Our resort will keep investing for the local domestic market to regain the popularity of skiing in Japan and by acknowledging the expectations of international visitors we hope to further develop the inbound industry.
SKIDATA is an international leader in the field of access solutions and their management. Almost 10,000 SKIDATA installations worldwide in ski resorts, shopping centers, major airports, municipalities, sports stadiums, trade shows, and amusement parks provide secure and reliable access and entry control for people and vehicles. SKIDATA places great value in providing solutions that are intuitive, easy to use, and secure. The integrated concepts of SKIDATA solutions help clients optimize performance and maximize profits. SKIDATA Group (www.skidata.com) belongs to the publicly traded Swiss Kudelski Group (www.nagra.com), a leading provider of digital security solutions.
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