Travel to Japan

Snow Festival

The Sapporo Snow Festival every February attracts two million visitors to the city and is the highlight of the year. The 2006 festival was the 57th since a group of Hokkaido students first had the idea of creating ice sculptures in Odori Park not long after the end of World War II. Anyone hoping to stay in Sapporo during the festival needs to plan well in advance.

Historical Village

Just outside Sapporo you can visit the Hokkaido Historical Village, where about 60 old buildings from around the island stand as they did in the pioneering years of the 19th century. You can see Sapporo's first railway station, and the newspaper building from the seaside town of Otaru. Depending on the season, visitors can travel through the village on horse-drawn carriages or sleighs.

Yuki Matsuri - Snow Festival

This was a great experience for anyone! First let me just say that you wil find so much snow - It's best to arrive a day or two before the start of the festival so you can experience the process. At the end of Odori park is the international section. Here you can meet volunteers building sculptures from all over the world! I also highly recommend taking the bus tour to the Chitose Ice Festival on the lake. It is lit with colored lights at night and is more interactive than in Sapporo. A bus tour runs about 2900yen.

Sapporo Clock Tower

Read any travel guides and you will find this place listed as a landmark. It is probably always part of the itinerary in any tour package to Sapporo. This quaint old building is nestled amongst tall office building. The clock tower building is small, so dont get too excited. There are some exhibits in it, (about 2 to 3 levels of it), mostly in Japanese and some English. Not very interesting inside, but the exterior is good for a holiday shot to bring home.

Grand old Dame

This grand old dame provides a picturesque setting to your photos. Especially in winter, the red bricked building looks very pretty in the snow. This place is a about a 10min walk away from the main Sapporo JR line train station. If you just want to have pictures taken, the compund takes about 10-15 mins to walk through p.s. : see my other tips on Otaru, Hokkaido (30 mins train ride from Sapporo)