Mount Yotei

Niseko (ニセコ町, Niseko-chō?) is a town located in Abuta District, Shiribeshi, Hokkaidō, Japan. Although in Japanese, Niseko principally refers to a municipal area, overseas, the name has come to refer to a wider area of ski resorts encompassing Hokkiado’s Mount Yōtei and Annupuri ranges. It is one of the most famous ski resorts in Japan known for it’s powder light snow and spectacular mountainous outback.

Niseko is comprised of seven ski areas, in order of size:

* Niseko Mt. Resort Grand Hirafu, centered around the village of Hirafu is perhaps the best known field but is actually part of the neighbouring Kutchan township.
* Niseko Higashiyama is the less popular neighbor of Hirafu but has the best front valley skiing.
* Niseko Annupuri is hit with the strongest winds and worst weather in the area, causing occasional closures.
* Niseko Hanazono
* Niseko Moiwa
* Niseko Weiss

Niseko also has back-country ski-courses that are unofficially on the maps. To the furthest right of Annupuri lies Sannozaka, an area prone to avalanche but with high quality snow. To the far right of Hirafu lies Higashi One, also prone to avalanche but with a challenging back-country terrain. Near the lower half of Hirafu is a forest route called Strawbery Fields, which is perhaps the most famous run in Hirafu. Climbing Mount Yōtei also provides back country skiing.

Hirafu is the perhaps the most foreigner-friendly resort thanks to the many Australian skiers and snowboarders who have been frequenting their slopes. The town is like a western town within Japan where all menus are in English and imported food items are in abundance.

Because of its northern location, Niseko is fed by weather streams that come from Siberia rather than from Eastern Japan. The resort experiences a consistently high and light snowfall. The snow is not as dry as other areas in Hokkaidō, but the volume is high, with the average snow depth in March reaching 351cm.

Niseko was named as the world’s second snowiest resort in December 2007 with annual average snow fall of 595 inches (15.11 metres)/ First place went to the Mt Baker Ski Area in Washington State with 641 inches.

Niseko resort

Okurayama

When in Sapporo, you need to visit the Okurayama Observatory. This former Olympic ski jump stadium is about 90 Meters high and opens during winter time for the public. When the ski jump is not in used, you can go up via cable car on top of the ski jump for a spectacular view of Sapporo. Definitely a must visit.

Mount Moiwa
Another place to visit for a great view of Sapporo is Mount Moiwa. Go at night and you’ll see how beautiful the landscape of a city is from a bird’s eye view.

Pictures of the old buildings
Not too far off is the Historic Village of Hokkaido (kaitaku no mura). Basically, this tiny town is like an open air museum that features 60 buildings on a time continuum from Meiji to the Taisho periods.

The Historic Village of Hokkaido is located in the Nopporo Forest Park (Shinrin Koen) outside of Sapporo. From Sapporo Station, take a local train on the JR Hakodate Line to Shinrin Koen Station (about 15 minutes) from where the museum is a 5 minute bus ride or 15-20 minute walk.

Sapporo Botanic Garden
Botanical gardens is a popular place to visit whenever there is nothing else to see and in Sapporo, the Botanic Garden owned by the Hokkaido University is one such place. Although it’s not like the other gardens/parks around Japan, it’s still filled with greeneries and is pleasant. You can take a picnic in the area but because it’s privately owned you’d need to pay a small admissions fee. They have a cool green house that is open during the winter times when the rest of the garden is close.

Susukino
Nightlife in Japan is always something to shout about. And in Sapporo, the place you want to get to for a nice time with your buds would be at Susukino. It’s known to be the largest night district in the North of Tokyo. The place is literally packed with bars, clubs, shops, restaurants and karaoke joints. Oh and around the corner of Susukino, there is a little lane callen Ramen Yochoko where there is noting but sleets of ramen stalls selling the famous Sapporo Ramen.

Shiroi Koibito Cookies
You’ll also need to visit Shiroi Koibito Park; a kind of theme park owned by the Ishiya Chocolate company. This place reminds me of Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory. Do remember to get their well known souvenir which a type of cookie that is sandwich with a slice of thin white chocolate filling. I heard they are out of this world. I heard.

Within Sapporo there are some pretty interesting spots to check out when you’re there. The Sapporo Beer Museum is one of them as I have posted about it previously. But there are also other places hidden in nooks and corners for Sapporo like the Odori Park, Clock Tower (which incidentally is the symbol of Sapporo), and Nijo Market.

Let’s check out these three places around Sapporo.

Odori Park
Odori park lies in the center of Sapporo. It kinda reminds me of Central Park in US, a nice big patch of greenery in the midst of a bustling city. The park stretches 12 block and is the venue for the Sapporo Snow Festival during February, where you can see lots of ice carvings and frosty displays.

Tokeidai
The clock tower, or Tokeidai, is the symbol of Sapporo. It building was erected in 1878 and in 1881, a US made clock was added to the architecture. The clock tower is today a museum and is an important cultural property in Japan.

Nijo Market

Now, Nijo Market is definitely a spot for the gastronomically interested. You can find the freshest salmon roes, sea urchins and whatever seafood you want at Nijo Market. This hotspot if a place for both tourist and locals to shop. One of the attractions of Nijo market is having a seafood breakfast to start your day. And by golly, you WILL have the FRESHEST seafood served up to you, with all the choices for you to pick from.

The market opens from 7am to 6pm all week. :)

Rishiri’s view from Rebun

Rishiri and Rebun are islands situated at the northern most tip of Japan. Just off the tip of northern Hokkaido.

Rishiri Island
Rishiri Island a remote island about 20 kilometres off the island of Japan and has a circumference of 60kilometres. What it lacks in size is made up for a spectacular view of its scenery. In the middle of the island is Mount Rishiri, a dormant volcano. Together with its neighbouring island Rebun, Rishiri belongs to the Rishiri-Rebun-Sarobetsu National Park. Many of the island’s 6000 inhabitants are making a living from tourism and fishing.

Rebun Island
Visiting these islands is a sure way of interacting with nature. Visitors who come here hike, camp, fish and mountain climb. These islands are popular during the summer months when the weather is not too hot and nature basically takes your for a walk. It is absolutely beautiful.

How do you get to Reshiri and Rebun Island?
Takes an airplane to Sapporo and then drive your way to the port to take the ferry to either of these islands.

Higashi Nihonkai Ferry operates the following ferry routes:

* Wakkanai – Rishiri (Oshidomari Port)
100 minutes, 1980 Yen, 2-4 round trips per day
* Wakkanai – Rebun (Kafuka Port)
115 minutes, 2200 Yen, 2-4 round trips per day
* Rishiri (Oshidomari Port) – Rebun (Kafuka Port)
40 minutes, 780 Yen, 1-2 round trips per day
* Rishiri (Kutsugata Port) – Rebun (Kafuka Port)
40 minutes, 780 Yen, 2 round trips per day in summer only

Bringing a car from Wakkanai to Rishiri or Rebun by ferry costs around 17,000 to 18,000 Yen one way. Between Rishiri and Rebun the cost is about 6000 Yen. Reservations for cars should be made at least one day in advance.

Wakkanai can be reached from Sapporo by train (5.5 hours, 10,000 Yen), airplane (1 hour, 10,000 to 20,000 Yen) or highway bus (6 hours, 5500 Yen) and from Tokyo by airplane (2 hours, 15,000 to 40,000 Yen).

To read more about how to get there click HERE.

Source: Japan Guide

Click on Hokkaido for more about its travelling info. :)

View from on top of Mount Hakodate

Hakodate (函館市; -shi) is a city and port located in Oshima, Hokkaidō, Japan. It is the capital city of Oshima Subprefecture.

As of 2004, the city has an estimated population of 299,737 and the density of 442.24 persons per km². The total area is 677.77 km². Hakodate’s size nearly doubled on December 1, 2004 when the neighboring municipalities of Toi, Esan, Todohokke and Minamikayabe were merged into it.

What’s there to Hakodate? Well, it’s a city so expect the usual city fares – buildings, streets, cars, traffic lights. However, Hakodate has a magnificent mountain called Mouth Hakodate that gives a spectacular view of the city. And of course, since Hakodate city is by the sea, you can expect the freshes of the freshes of seafoods incorporated as part of their daily cuisine.

Hakodate is one of the first Japanese harbor cities to be opened to international trade after the country’s era of isolation, Hakodate has experienced notable influence from overseas, and the foreign population’s former residential district called Motomachi and a Western style fort are among its main tourist attractions.

Onumo park is a quasi national park in Hakodate. It’s situated between Hakodate and Sapporo so it’s really a nice stopover if you’re going in between cities. The park is known for its picturesque sceneries with a lake dotted with islands. There’s even a majestic dormant volcano there too called Mount Komagatake.

Check out this link to find out about how you can get to Hakodate, Hokkaido.

Source: Japan Guide

Sapporo Beer

Dropping by to Sapporo and not going to the Sapporo Beer Museum is like going to Disneyland without entering the Sleeping Beauty Cinderella Castle. It’s one of the main attractions in Sapporo. The Museum was set up in 1987 on a Meiji Period red factory building, so it’s hard to miss it when you get there. The Sapporo Beer brewery is the oldest in Japan. Production started in 1877 and is still going strong till today. Ask any fella in the bar what Sapporo Beer is and s/he’ll say *burp*. They all know it.

The museum introduces the history of beer in Japan and the process of beer making. Tasting of various types of beer is possible at a small fee.

Sapporo Beer Museum

How to get there?
You can get to the beer musuem by the “Loop 88 Factory Line” bus that stops among other places at Odori Station and in front of Seibu department store near Sapporo Station. Alternatively, it is a 20-30 minute walk from Sapporo Station.

Here are some trivias on Sapporo Beer and its brewery:

- In 2006, Sapporo announced they would be acquiring No. 3 Canadian brewer Sleeman in a $400-million all-cash deal.

- On July 1, 2003, Sapporo Breweries renamed Sapporo Holdings, Ltd. and became a pure holding company. Its brewing business operations were transferred to a newly established wholly-owned operating subsidiary “Sapporo Breweries Limited.” Sapporo Holdings’ major business units are Sapporo Breweries, Ltd. (beer, happoshu, wine, spirits, foods, etc.), Sapporo Beverage Co., Ltd. (soft drinks), Sapporo Lion, Ltd. (restaurants) and Yebisu Garden Place Co., Ltd. (real estate).

Source: Japan Guide

Ino’s Place

If you’re visiting Sapporo, Hokkaido and are at loss with where to stay, I’d recommend Ino’s Place.It’s backpacker’s haven as the place is clean, friendly and warm. Oh and not to mention the price is pretty good too from $31 per night. On Yahoo! Travel, Ino’s place was rated 5 stars out of 5 too.

The location of this guesthouse makes it a great place as well as it is about 12 minutes away from the city center (7 Minutes by subway and 5 minutes of walk). Hey, if you’re backpacking, that’s like the walking to your neighbour’s house in Australia, Zone D.

Reception Area

Accommodation at Ino’s Place includes:
- Good Location for sightseeing
- Helpful & English speaking Staff
- No Curfew
- Private Shower Rooms (24hrs Free)
- Fully Equipped Self-Catering Kitchen
- Laundry Facilities
- Central Heating
- TV Lounge
- Internet service
- Wired and Wireless(11b/g) LAN available
- Tourist Information
- Free coffee & tea
- Clean & Cozy Lounge Room
- Western style facilities
- VISA & Master Cards accepted

Lounge Area

And we musn’t forget the type of rooms and rates:

- Dormitory bed 3,400 Yen
(co-ed room is available)

- Private room from 4,300 Yen/Person
Family/Group room 3,800 Yen/Person

- Special Rate for long-term stay.
(from 2,800 Yen/night)

- Supplemental heating charge
200 yen per night (nov.-Apr.)

Dorm Rooms

So if you’re every visiting Sapporo and is looking for a place with great value and warmth (as well as meeting folks for all over the world), drop in to Ino’s Place.

Every year, between February 6 and February 12, there will be a festival held in Japan, called the Sapporo Snow Festival.

Sapporo is the fifth largest city in Japan by population and third largest geographically. It is in this festival that you can momentarily enjoy the snow and forget how bitter the cold is while you’re engulf with beauty of snow expressionism. The origins of this festival started from a very humble beginning. It all started with 6 highschool kids back in 50’s in Odori Park building 6 statues. And when the big guys from Japan Self Defence Force saw how fun it was, they joined in a build their the biggest snow sculpture which turns this event into what is today, a big snow fest.

The Sapporo Snow Festival is one of the largest winter events in Japan. Teams from outside Japan come to participate, and the festival is thought to be an opportunity for promoting international relations. About two million people come to see the enormous beautiful snow statues on display in Odori Park in central Sapporo, which is the main site of the festival.

Subject of the statues and snow sculpture varies from year to year but there is always a statue of a famous person built – I guess it’s just much more fun that way because who would just wanna see dolphins, elephants, whales and objects; the face of a recognizable person is almost always much more impressive…:) Just like in 2004, they built a statue of a well known Japanese baseball player, Hideki “Godzilla” Matsui who plays for the New York Yankees.

This event is a definite must see by all tourists and visitors from around Japan as it showcases some of the most excellent snow sculptures in the world.