Tourism Chinese tourists pay to shovel snow in Japan

Lucky Hokkaido: locals are surprised that snow shovelling, usually frowned upon, has become a profitable tourist venture:

Some Japanese tour agencies and hotels are enhancing holiday experiences by introducing snow shovelling as a distinctive attraction for international visitors. During the week-long Spring Festival holiday in January and February, mainland China recorded 7.7 million inbound and outbound trips. Japan ranked among the top destinations for Chinese travelers, with bookings for trips to the country doubling compared to last year's Spring Festival holiday, according to China's Xinhua News. While the trend of bakugai (ばくがい, "explosive buying") by Chinese tourists remains popular, another emerging viral activity is snow shovelling.

According to Japanese media outlet TBS Television, a local tour agency in Sapporo, located in northern Japan's Hokkaido prefecture, introduced the snow shovelling tour as a local speciality. [...] The trip offered by Tobu Top Tours provides customers with a rare opportunity to ride in a specialised snow removal vehicle and observe snow being ploughed. Priced at 250,000 yen (US$1,600) for one to six people, this experience is available from January to early March. On the Chinese social media platform RedNote, several Hokkaido homestays have also begun offering rides in snow removal trucks to attract customers. Reports indicate that some tourists enjoyed the hands-on experience of shovelling snow during their visits to northern Japan.

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Chinese tourists have been sharing their first experiences of snow shoveling in Japan on RedNote, showcasing a growing trend among young Chinese travelers who now favor hands-on experiences over traditional shopping. Many were surprised that this physically demanding task, usually seen as undesirable by locals, has become a sought-after and profitable activity for foreign visitors. "The person who first thought of this is a genius," commented one Japanese user on X.

Send a couple of those groups down this way!

Had about 50 inches of snow here in Portland , Maine so far. I haven't had to go to the gym this year.

Grandpa Frank said:

Had about 50 inches of snow here in Portland , Maine so far. I haven't had to go to the gym this year.

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Be careful for your heart! Shoveling snow is different than just exercise.

Unlike conventional exercise, shoveling is usually done without a warm-up and can cause sudden increase in blood pressure and heart rate. Additionally, cold air may cause constriction of blood vessels, including coronary arteries, and decrease oxygen supply to the heart. Together, these factors can increase the heart's workload and cause a heart attack.

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About every 3 years I buy a new powerful snow blower. My latest plows through 2 feet of hard packed snow. I hold on for dear life while it drags me along behind it and does most of the work.