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The event occurs over just one week, from the last week of January to early February. Much like Otaru’s Snow Light Path Festival coming up below, the Yukitoro (snow-candle way) event occurs in Jozankei during the coldest months. Local residents set up 1,000 to 2,000 snow candles at Jozankei Shrine, transforming the area into a magical landscape of snow lanterns. This crystal-clear ice resembles sparkling jewels as the sunlight enhances its beauty throughout the morning.

For many visitors Hokkaido’s numerous National Parks are number one on the agenda, offering near-unlimited hiking opportunities. JR offers a special Hokkaido Pass, separate from the Japan Rail Pass, which allows the bearer to ride all JR trains in Hokkaido, as well as most JR buses for seven days. There is little regional dialect variation as most people are fairly recent immigrants from all over Japan. Only elderly people, however, are likely to speak only Tohoku dialect. Hokkaido used to be known as Ezo (蝦夷), in earlier times pronounced Yezo, whence modern Latin yezoensis in the scientific names of local species.

Snowfall varies widely from as much as 11 metres (400 in) on the mountains adjacent to the Sea of Japan down to around 1.8 metres (71 in) on the Pacific coast. The island tends to have isolated snowstorms that develop long-lasting snowbanks. The generally high quality of powder snow and numerous mountains in Hokkaidō make it a popular region for snow sports.

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You might be a nervous beginner looking for a caring and patient instructor, our an advanced skier looking for that hidden powder spot. Early-morning or midday tours are available to experience this breathtaking sight. From January to May, you might find restaurants expanding their menu to red king crab, which is harvested from the icy waters of the Sea of Okhotsk during its drift ice season. A kaisendon (seafood rice bowl) topped with fresh salmon, uni (sea urchin), ikura (salmon roe) and crab is a must-try in winter. Head to Nijo Market in Sapporo for a top-tier kaisendon experience. Just 1.5 hours from Sapporo, Otaru is a charming harbor city perfect for a romantic winter getaway.

We are sure you will enjoy it as much as we do, but be warned the food and atmosphere is addicting. Home to Japan’s native Ainu people, Hokkaido continues to represent the untamed wilderness with many great national parks. Hokkaido is by far Japan’s largest prefecture, consisting of Japan’s entire northern island and its surrounding islets. For many visitors the scenery resembles a mix of northern Europe and the American West, with rolling fields, grazing cows, and pioneer cottages replacing the rice paddies and concrete warrens of ‚mainland‘ Japan. However, the ubiquitous hotspring resorts in much of the island serve as a reminder that you are still in Japan.

1. For footwear, choose non-slip, snow-proof shoes to help maintain stability on icy paths.
2. In Hokkai, a famous shabu-shabu branch, you can enjoy lamb as a hot pot, as well as other delicacies like snow crab legs and seafood tempura.
3. Hokkaidō (北海道) 1 is the northernmost of Japan’s four main islands.
4. Among the municipalities in Hokkaido, Sapporo will request 200 yen a night for a room charge of less than 50,000 yen and 500 yen for fees more than 50,000 yen.
5. But a more peculiar reason is the real impetus behind this recent rise in northern food festivals.

The cruise from Rausu offers the chance to spot Steller’s sea eagles, white-tailed eagles and other wildlife alongside the drift ice. The event takes place in Sapporo’s Odori Park, where massive snow sculptures span a 1.5-kilometer stretch. At the park’s west end, international teams from around 20 countries compete annually in the snow-sculpting contest. The event encourages visitors to walk in quietude, soaking in the soft, flickering lights amid the crisp night air. The German Christmas Market in Sapporo began in 2002 as part of a sister city exchange program with Munich. Each year, in the month leading up to Christmas, Odori Park transforms into a festive wonderland filled with stalls offering Christmas gifts, spiced mulled wine and delicious German cuisine.

Hokkaido’s red king crab

The island of Hokkaidō is located in the north of Japan, near Russia (Sakhalin Oblast). It has coastlines on the Sea of Japan (to the west of the island), the Sea of Okhotsk (to the north), and the Pacific Ocean (to the east). Hokkaidō is 83,423.84 km2 (32,210.12 sq mi) which make it the second-largest island of Japan. In Kutchan, where the popular Niseko ski resort is located, a flat rate of 2 percent of the room charge is collected from visitors. Dress in layers to stay warm, with essentials including a waterproof and insulated winter jacket, thermal base layers, warm sweaters, gloves, hats, scarves and waterproof boots. Yes, Hokkaido hosts several winter festivals, including the Sapporo Snow Festival, Otaru Snow Light Path Festival and Jozankei Yukitoro Festival.

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1. The prefecture’s government calls itself the „Hokkaidō Government“ rather than the „Hokkaidō Prefectural Government“.
2. From France’s Les 3 Vallées to the après-ski of Whistler, here’s our pick of the world’s best places for snowboarders.
3. The next logical reason would be that it’s a matter of prestige, and that’s certainly part of it.
4. Before 1983, the governorship had been held by Liberal Democrats Naohiro Dōgakinai and Kingo Machimura for 24 years.
5. Famous for its world-class powder snow, Niseko is a top destination for skiers and snowboarders.
6. Hokkaido is vast, so allow plenty of time to get around and don’t try to do too much if your time is limited.
7. For 2024, the season is warmer than expected, so winter in Hokkaido starts from mid-December 2024 to mid-March 2025.

Visitors can rent snowshoes at various locations across Hokkaido, including ropeway stations and tourism associations, with some offering rentals for free or at a nominal fee. From France’s Les 3 Vallées to the après-ski of Whistler, here’s our pick of the world’s best places for snowboarders. Hokkaido is one of Japan’s best places for camping, but beware of the nighttime chill – even in the summer months you’ll need a good sleeping bag. In particular, the southwest coast can be surprisingly cold, due to ocean currents.

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Akkeshi’s oysters, Saroma’s scallops, and the northwest coast’s sea urchin (うに uni) are considered to be among Japan’s very best seafood. Hokkaido has some of the best powder in the world and skiing has really taken off, with resorts like Niseko and Furano drawing visitors from far and wide. Hokkaido did not become a part of Japan until late in the nation’s history, so in spite of its size, it never had the number of castles that other prefectures had. Matsumae Castle in Matsumae is Hokkaido’s only Japanese-style castle with a donjon. Other castle sites are more akin to forts, such as Hakodate’s Goryokaku. None of the structures of any chashi remain, but Nemuro has the highest concentration of chashi ruins.

During these times, the temperatures routinely drop below freezing. Hokkaidō (北海道) is the Japan of wide-open spaces, with 20% of the country’s land area but only 5% of its population. There are large swathes of wilderness here, with primeval forests, tropical-blue caldera lakes, fields of alpine wildflowers and bubbling, in-the-rough hot springs. In the summer, all this (plus the cooler, drier weather) draws hikers, cyclists and strollers.

However, visitors not used to driving in snow should be careful in the winter, and note that speed limits are reduced significantly (only about 80km/h) in winter when the expressways are covered in snow. As such, give yourself more time to cover the same distance in the winter than you would in the summer. Due to its vast size and numerous outlying islands, Hokkaido has a fairly well-developed commuter airline network. The main regional carriers are JAL subsidiary Hokkaido Air Commuter and ANA subsidiary Air Nippon (now operating in its parent’s livery).

The next logical reason would be that it’s a matter of prestige, and that’s certainly part of it. As the head of a department store, you certainly wouldn’t want to be the only one without a Hokkaido food fair and if you do have one, you would certainly want it to be the best despite the additional costs. So, attaching your department store with the popular Hokkaido name has its benefits even if it isn’t profitable. One’s first guess might be that they rake in the dough with sales, but that’s actually not true.

There are more brown bears in Hokkaidō than anywhere else in Asia besides Russia. The Hokkaidō brown bear is separated into three distinct lineages. There are only eight lineages in the world.54 Those on Honshu died out long ago. The historical suffix 道 (-dō) translates to „prefecture“ in English, ambiguously the same as 府 (-fu) for Osaka and Kyoto, and 県 (-ken) for the rest of the „prefectures“. Dō, as shorthand, can be used to uniquely identify Hokkaido, for hokkaidu example as in 道道 (dōdō, „Hokkaido road“)16 or 道議会 (Dōgikai, „Hokkaido Assembly“),17 the same way 都 (-to) is used for Tokyo. The prefecture’s government calls itself the „Hokkaidō Government“ rather than the „Hokkaidō Prefectural Government“.