9D Charms of Hokkaido

The serene Lake Mashu, with a circumference of 20 kilometres and a surface area of 19 square kilometres, is the world’s clearest lake. This lake is situated at the eastern tip of the Akan National Park in Hokkaido and is surrounded by majestic mountains each about 300 to 400m tall. Lake Mashu has been given a few nicknames such as Lake of the Gods or The Lake of Mystery. read more »

Established in 1984, the Shiraoi Ainu Village is a museum that is constructed as a replica of the local Ainu village just on the shore of Lake Poroto. Within this facility, there will be exhibitions of all kinds of cultural assets of the Ainu village, as well as to hold several scientific researches. In this village, visitors will get to see the exact replica of Ainu chise, which is the thatched roofs for houses, pu for storing food, hepere set which are cages for the young bears and lastly, chip, which are dugout canoes. read more »

Located at the base of Mount Daisetsu-zan which is known as the 'roof of Hokkaido', this gigantic gorge has attracted uncountable visitors annually with its magnificent tall cliffs, wonderful hot springs, splendid waterfalls and stunningly unique rock formations resulted by the many geographical weathering processes. Entirely closed by 100m tall cliffs which were formed by the erosion of tuff, this huge gorge stretches for up to 24km and is now the heart of the Daisetsu-zan National Park. The best waterfalls of Sounkyo Gorge would be that of the Ryusei-no-taki Falls, also known as the shooting star falls, and the Ginga-no-taki Falls which is known as the Milky Way Falls. read more »

Ask anyone about Otokoyama and people are bound to mention its famous sake. The Otokoyama Sake brewery and Museum offers visitors a chance to witness the sake-making process, with exhibits highlighting its rich heritage and also showcasing ancient sake-related art and literature. There is also a beautiful Japanese garden here, where the flowers bloom in May and September. read more »

Farm Tomita is famous for being the place to visit for those wishing to see lavenders in Hokkaido. As one of Hokkaido’s premier flower farms, it has expanded from being a simple lavender farm to include other varieties of flowers in its large fields, such as French Marigolds, Poppies and many more. The most famous image of Farm Tomita is its 'rainbow field', created by planting different rows of flowers aside each other, along the gentle sloping hills. read more »

Situated in the beautiful Muruyama Park, Hokkaido shrine is the perfect place for flower-viewing as well as paying respects to the shrine. This large shrine has an imperial-looking architecture, housing Emperor Meiji as well as three other deities and it is located within a garden of Sakura trees. Even if one could not appreciate the religious significance, one can still come here for a relaxing stroll. read more »

Sapporo Beer is one of the oldest and most popular beer brands in Japan, existing since the Meiji Period. Ran by the Sapporo Brewing Company, the Sapporo Beer Museum introduces the history of beer in Japan and sheds light on the process of beer making. Admission is free and exhibits include beer bottles, posters, signs, miniatures of the building, and instruments for brewing beer, some of which were actually used in the brewery before WWII. read more »

Visit Odori Park and you can have twelve different kind of experiences! The park is divded into 12 blocks from Nishi 1 Chome to Nishi 13 Chome, each with a different layout of pavement and special monument, and some with a fountain. Located in Nishi 1 Chome is Sapporo TV tower,an observation deck with nice views of the park. You will be able to see Odori Park being surrounded by the city buildings if you were up in the tower. read more »

The Sapporo TV Tower looks like a carbon copy of Eiffel tower. Its observatory deck is 90m off the ground allowing visitor to have a view of the Sapporo city. Visitor can also get to buy the tv tower medal and engrave names onto the medal and some other tv tower souvenirs. read more »

Since the beginning of Sapporo, Tanuki Koji Shopping Arcade has been the place to be for locals and visitors from all over the world to come and have the time of their lives for approximately 130 years now. Housing about 200 retail outlets and businesses, this shopping arcade has been holding several events that have attracted boisterous crowds, including events such as 'Ouridashi', which is well known for the grabbing of cash which will be held twice a year in June and December respectively. Another event would be that of the 'Tanuki Festival', whereby the arcade will be elaborately decorated. read more »

The Sapporo JR tower is located in the heart of Sapporo and is both a shopping mall and an office building, standing at an astounding height of 173 metres, 38 storeys. The Sapporo JR Tower is separated in three sections, the West, Center, and East section. The West section houses Daimaru Sapporo branch store, which is a nine-storey building. read more »

In the early 20th century, Otaru Canal was used for water transportation of goods to warehouses, acting as a busy port. However, its operations ceased when larger docking facilities were built elsewhere to allow direct transaction of goods by larger vessels. The Otaru canal faced the threat of being landfilled, but after a citizens' movement, the former glamour of the canal is now restored. read more »

Visit this Kitachi Glass for a wide array of glass-designed products! It is one of the oldest store selling glass products Otaru, founded in 1901. It offers a full range of product types and designs such as stained glass lamp, cups, windows, vases and last but not least, glass accessories. Kitaichi Glass currently has a couple of stores and a museum displaying a variety of glasswork. read more »

Otaru Music Box Museum is the largest museum of music boxes in Japan. Be prepared to be awed by the architectural design of the museum even before you enter the museum itself. Another landmark to look out for is the Steam Clock made by a Canadian clock maker in front of the museum. read more »

Showa Shinzan (Showa new mountain), a volcanic lava dome in the Shikotsu-Toya National Park, Hokkaido, is located directly next to Mount Usu and is one of Japan’s youngest mountains around. The mountain was initially a flat wheat field when the Showa Shinzan suddenly rose up to a mountain with a current height of 290 metres between 1943 and 1945. Today, sulphurous fumes can be seen venting furiously out of this young volcano and this can be viewed by tourists by taking the Usuzan Ropeway, which is accessible from Toyako Onsen in 15 mins by bus, or 10 mins by car. read more »

Fort Goryokaku is a massive western styled citadel, which was built in the last years of the Edo Period for the defense of Hakodate against the imperialist threat posed by the Western powers. The unique star shaped fort was converted into a public park in 1910 once it had lost all its military importance. Fort Goryokaku is known to be Hokkaido's best cherry blossom viewing spots due to the large number of cherry blossom trees planted along the moats and the peak of the blooming season usually takes place around early May, making this attraction incredibly popular during that season. read more »

Mount Hakodate stands at an astounding height of 334 metres and is located is central Hakodate. If visitors are lucky where the days and nights are clear, one will find the views from the mountain spectacular and is said to be included among Japan's three best night views alongside the views from Nagasaki's Mount Inasa and Kobe's Mount Rokko. The summit of Mount Hakodate is accessible by cars or buses so tourists can reach it without much problem. read more »