经济学人DAY7 | 日本为何少有豪华酒店?

最新消息 2019-12-21 16:05:18

 《经济学人》常被视作英语学习的范本,文章中常见的优秀文章也是英文学习者进阶的重要工具。为此我们青藤语培开通了「经济学人Day」栏目每周不定时推送《经济学人》文章及其详解,包括官方精选例句、重难点单词释义、写作积累等。每日坚持早日分托!

 

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(本文选自《经济学人》20191214期)

 

背景介绍:

日本作为第二次世界大战的战败国,在战后短短的20多年便在经济上超越了西德,成为了世界第三大经济体,随后在80年代又超越苏联成为了世界第二大经济体。日本能够在这么短的时间内从战后的满目疮痍发展成一个经济强国,这不由让人感到惊讶。但是一个让人感到奇怪的现象是,日本却少有豪华酒店,这是为何?

 

Posh hotels are scarce in Japan—and increasingly lucrative豪华酒店在日本很少见,但却越来越成为一门有利可图的生意了

 

With its cool modernist interiors and views of Tokyo’s Imperial Palace, Hotel Okura has been the choice of the well-heeled since its gilded lobby was unveiled in 1962 as a symbol of Japan’s emergence from post-war austerity. 自1962年大仓酒店以其金碧辉煌的大厅作为日本摆脱战后经济紧缩的象征面世以来,凭借着酷炫的现代主义内饰以及东京皇宫的外观,它一直都是有钱人的首选。


Taro Aso, the deputy prime minister, enjoys a late-night tipple at the bar. Yoko Ono takes a suite on her trips to the city. Every American president from Gerald Ford on, has graced its rooms. Donald Trump may well have done, too, had the Okura not been shut for refurbishment when he visited Japan in May.日本副首相麻生太郎喜欢深夜在大仓酒店的酒吧里买醉。小野洋子去东京旅行时也住在了大仓酒店。从杰拉尔德·福特以来的每一位美国总统都曾下榻大仓酒店。如果今年5月份在唐纳德·特朗普访问日本时,大仓酒店没有因整修而关闭,那么他很有可能也会住在这里。


One reason for the Okura’s popularity is the lack of alternatives. Japan has roughly the same number of five-star hotels as Vietnam, and fewer than London or Paris. 大仓酒店之所以如此受欢迎,原因之一是因为没有其他的选择了。日本五星级酒店的数量与越南相当,比伦敦和巴黎都要少。

 

The Okura has stopped taking bookings for next summer’s Olympics for want of rooms, many of which have been earmarked for organisers. 由于房间紧缺,大仓酒店已经停止接受明年夏季奥运会期间的预定了,其中许多房间预留给了奥运会的组织者。


The dearth of high-end accommodation has the government considering tax breaks and cheap loans to help build 50 “world-class” hotels—though not in time for the Tokyo games.高端住宿的匮乏使得日本政府考虑通过减免税收和低息贷款的方式来帮助建造50家“世界级”酒店,当然,东京奥运会之前已经来不及了。


Japan came late to mass tourism, points out Koki Hara, a real-estate lawyer. For decades the government pushed industrial growth, so the country’s cities filled up with drab business hotels that catered to armies of salarymen. 房地产律师原田孝希指出,日本在大众旅游业方面起步较晚。几十年来,政府一直在推动工业的发展,因此在日本的城市里,到处都是为了迎合大批工薪阶层需求而建造的单调乏味的商务酒店。

 

Property developers dominated the real-estate market and clung to most of the prime city-centre spots. High inheritance taxes mean Japan has fewer moguls than other rich places, hence fewer people who might be keen to build and run posh hotels.房地产开发商主导着日本的房地产市场,并且占据着市中心主要的黄金地段。高额的遗产税意味着日本的富豪比其他发达国家要少,因此也少有人乐于建造和经营豪华酒店。


A leap in tourist numbers has exposed the problem. Lured by the cheaper yen, 31m people visited Japan last year, a fivefold rise since 2011. Next year 40m foreign visitors are expected, including 10m just for the Olympics. 游客数量的激增使得这一问题得以暴露。受日元贬值的吸引,去年全球共有3100万游客赴日旅游,相比2011年增长了5倍。预计明年赴日旅游的外国游客数量将达4000万,其中仅奥运会期间就将达1000万。

 

By 2030 demand for accommodation from foreigners will roughly double, estimates CBRE, a consultancy. A lot of them will be well-off. Hotels used to be a bad business, but not any more, says Yutaka Kawamura of Mitsui Fudosan, Japan’s biggest property developer.据咨询公司世邦魏理仕估计,到2030年,外国游客的住宿需求将会增加近一倍。而他们中的许多人都将是富人。日本最大的房地产开发商三井不动产河村由隆表示,酒店曾经是一门糟糕的生意,但如今已不再如此了。(红色标注词为重难点词汇) 

 

本文翻译:Nancy本文采编:LISA

 

小编说作为东亚四小龙的日本在二战结束后仅仅用了几十年的时间便成为了世界第二大经济体,同时也是亚洲第一个发达国家,这可以称得上是一个奇迹。然而,日本却少有豪华酒店,其五星级酒店的数量竟和越南相当。由于政府大力推动工业的发展,导致城市中往往以商务酒店居多,这是原因之一。而高额的遗产税则是另一个原因。但随着赴日旅游的外国游客的激增,日本豪华酒店的需求也在增加,豪华酒店匮乏的问题也引起了日本政府的重视,日本豪华酒店的春天即将到来。

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