Struggling golf courses in rural Japan are drawing Korean tourists. After one course began offering a one-night golf package for about 84,700 won, its foreign visitor numbers doubled.
The average price of memberships at 150 major courses stood at about 3.05 million yen (25.7 million won), the highest level since 2009, according to figures compiled by the Kanto Golf Membership Trading Association and reported by the Nikkei on the 19th. That is roughly 80% higher than at the end of 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mid-priced memberships in the 3 million to 5 million yen range have led the rally, jumping 76% over the same period. That is twice the 38% gain for memberships priced above 10 million yen. Analysts attribute the increase to demand from individuals who actually want to play. More buyers are also funding purchases with stock market gains or retirement payouts.
The market has split sharply by region. Prices in Tokyo have risen to 2.7 times their level at the end of 2019, with Yamanashi at 2.3 times and Okinawa at 2.2 times. By contrast, prices in Yamagata and Aomori have fallen about 40%. The gap is widening between snow-covered areas with short playing seasons and the Tokyo metropolitan region, which offers easy access from the city.
Memberships Soar but Courses Still Lose Money, Turning to Budget Packages for Koreans
Rising membership prices do not translate into revenue for the courses. Gains from resales of existing memberships go to the sellers, while the courses rely on green fees and annual dues. With labor and maintenance costs climbing, rural courses find it difficult to raise even their green fees.
About a quarter of Japan's 2,153 golf courses are operating at a loss, according to the Japan Golf Course Managers Association. A growing number are closing. Yaita Country Club in Tochigi Prefecture has announced it will shut down at the end of 2027 and plans to hand over its land to a solar power developer.
Some courses have turned to overseas customers to survive. Uguisunomori Golf Club & Hotel Bato, in the town of Nakagawa in the same prefecture, sits in a rural village more than two hours by car from the nearest airport, yet it has drawn attention in the Japanese media as Korean golfers flock there. After years of losses, the course has recovered enough to plan an expansion.
The course has a hotel and hot springs but long struggled with losses because of its poor transport links, the Nikkei reported. The turning point came in 2023, when operator Nihon Ryokuchi Kaihatsu partnered with a Korean-affiliated company that had experience running other Japanese golf courses. That company used its Korean subsidiary to market the course to golfers in South Korea.
The pricing gamble worked. The course began selling a package that bundles a round of golf with one night's lodging and three meals for about 10,000 yen (84,700 won). It also runs shuttle buses to and from Narita and Ibaraki airports to ease the travel burden, and promotes its hot spring hotel with open-air baths. "Combined with a low-cost carrier ticket, the price is competitive enough," a course official said.
As a result, the share of foreign visitors from abroad rose to 60% in 2025 from 30% in 2024, and total customer numbers increased 30%. The course said it now has room to invest and plans to build a new lodging wing with 10 rooms next year.
Foreign overnight visitors to Nakagawa rose to 17,618 in 2025 from 1,451 in 2023, a roughly twelvefold increase. About 98% of them were Korean.