Travel + Leisure Co. Reopens 16-Room Maruike Ski Resort in Nagano

Travel + Leisure Co. will open a refurbished 16-room ski resort in Nagano, Japan, this winter, weeks after acquiring and rebranding the property as Club Wyndham Maruike Shiga Kogen.

The company bought the resort earlier this year, and the deal is deliberately small in room count but not in ambition. An extensive refurbishment introduces Western-style comfort while preserving the character of a traditional Japanese mountain resort. The lobby gets a light refresh. The ski rental room and lockers are being completely upgraded — a direct bet on winter-sports traffic.

Where the property sits

Maruike sits in Shiga Kogen, Nagano — Asia's largest ski precinct and one of Japan's leading mountain destinations. The area holds the country's highest skiable terrain, peaking at 2,307 metres. It's also the most accessible major ski area from Tokyo: guests arrive by bullet train to Nagano, then a connecting bus.

That transit math matters for a timeshare operator. Tokyo's outbound market is enormous, and the rail link shortens the friction between impulse booking and arrival.

What does the acquisition change for the operator?

Two things: scale and cluster economics. The new resort sits near Club Wyndham Shirakabaso Shiga Kogen, which opens the potential for a dual-resort experience — an expanded range of dining, beverage and recreation offerings across both properties for Club Wyndham owners and guests.

"This purchase and opening of this resort are a strategic move to expand our presence in regional Japan," said Barry Robinson, Travel + Leisure Co.'s President and Managing Director of International Operations.

"It gives us economies of scale and greater potential to offer guests enhanced experiences in a location we see growing in popularity as a year-round destination. Through our presence in this region, we intend to elevate Shiga Kogen's status as a ski precinct to local and international tourists, create additional employment locally, and contribute to the expansion of Nagano's tourism industry."

The cluster extends beyond two properties. An hour away sits Club Wyndham Chikumakan Nagano, a traditional ryokan resort with indoor and outdoor onsen.

What guests actually get

Club Wyndham Shirakabaso already carries the flagship amenity load:

• Onsen hot springs
• A whisky bar
• A lobby café
• A pizza restaurant
• A full-service ski rental and retail shop with premium equipment and rental options

Maruike adds slope-adjacent capacity — 16 rooms — plus upgraded rental infrastructure, feeding guests into that shared amenity base rather than duplicating it.

A positioning no rival holds

Through these resorts, Travel + Leisure Co. remains the only international hospitality operator in Joshin'etsu National Park. That exclusivity, combined with the winter opening and Robinson's stated aim of year-round demand, positions the company to grow revenue per destination rather than simply add keys — with local employment and Nagano's broader tourism economy as the spillover it says it intends to create.