- How to get to Hokkaido
- 【SAPPORO-Hokkaido】Recommended sightseeing spots
- 【SAPPORO-Hokkaido】Recommended Restaurants
- 【SAPPORO-Hokkaido】Reasonable and good hotel recommendation
- How to get from Sapporo to Otaru
- 【Otaru-Hokkaido】Recommended sightseeing spots
- 【Otaru-Hokkaido】Recommended Restaurants
- Departing from Hokkaido
How to get to Hokkaido
There are two ways to get to Hokkaido: first come directly from your home country, or by plane from Tokyo. If you have Hokkaido in your Japan travel plans and want to visit several places such as Tokyo, Nagoya, and Osaka, we recommend that you first come directly from your country to New Chitose Airport in Hokkaido.
It’s the cheapest. If that is not possible, come to Tokyo once and then fly to Hokkaido.
And Hokkaido is a bigger island than you might imagine. It has an area the same size as South Korea. In Hokkaido, trains only exist mainly in urban areas on the west side. You will need a bus or rental car to get to central Hokkaido or the eastern edge of Hokkaido. Therefore, if you go to central or eastern Hokkaido, you will need to stay for more than 3 days.
If you are sightseeing in the western part of Hokkaido, you can do it in less than 3 days. Here are some recommendations on the west side of Hokkaido, which is near Hokkaido’s major airports.
How to get to New Chitose Airport, how to get to Sapporo city from the airport
If you are flying directly from your country to Hokkaido, we recommend arriving at New Chitose Airport (CTS). This is because it is the closest airport to Sapporo, Hokkaido’s most popular center.
From Tokyo to Hokkaido. It costs 10,000 yen to fly by LCC to New Chitose Airport, which is located in Sapporo, the center of Hokkaido. A plane departs from Narita Airport in Tokyo.
Let’s move from the airport to the main station. The means of transportation is by train. It takes about 40 minutes by Rapid Airport train from New Chitose Airport Station to Sapporo Station. It runs about once every 15 minutes from 8:00 to 20:00. The cost is about 1100 yen.
【SAPPORO-Hokkaido】Recommended sightseeing spots
SAPPORO-HOKKAIDO Shopping
新千歳空港 New Chitose Airport
I’ll be honest. All of Hokkaido’s famous souvenirs and delicious shops can be found in the airport shopping mall. We recommend buying souvenirs at the airport on your last day.
Sapporo has a lot of snow, so you will mainly be traveling on underground streets. The underground shopping mall is very comfortable.
Sapporo Snow Festival.
It is held only in the beginning of February. Only from February 5th to February 10th every year.
If you visit Hokkaido’s universities until late October or late November, you can see the beautiful avenues of autumn leaves.
【SAPPORO-Hokkaido】Recommended Restaurants
There are many delicious foods in Hokkaido. It is famous for its seafood, miso butter ramen, potatoes, corn, and milk.
[SAPPORO]Teshikaga Ramen Yokocho store
There are many ramen shops around Sapporo. Popular stores have long lines. Most stores have it, but we recommend choosing a store that has “Miso Butter Ramen.”
[SAPPORO]★★Conveyor belt sushi Triton Kita 8jo Kosei branch 回転寿しトリトン 北8条光星店
Triton, a conveyor belt sushi restaurant in Hokkaido that is said to be the most delicious in Japan. It’s special to be able to eat at such a low price. It’s a popular restaurant, so there will probably be a line for several minutes.
However, the sushi is worth the wait.
My recommendations are “Nishin [herring] ニシン” and “Aji [horse mackerel] アジ”
【SAPPORO-Hokkaido】Reasonable and good hotel recommendation
I recommend you book a hotel as close to the station as possible. This is because Hokkaido is a large area, and in winter, snow can make traveling difficult.
Single room
close to the station
price less than 10,000 yen
rating 8 or higher
How to get from Sapporo to Otaru
If you enjoyed Sapporo on your first day, take the train to Otaru, located in the northwest of Hokkaido, on your second day. It’s so close that I can come back for a day trip.
JR is the standard way to travel from Sapporo to Otaru. Travel time between Sapporo and Otaru is approximately 30 minutes on the Rapid Airport train and approximately 46 minutes on the local train. The fee is 750 yen.
Otaru is a seaside port town. Seafood is very delicious. If you want to eat seafood, I recommend Otaru.
【Otaru-Hokkaido】Recommended sightseeing spots
Otaru-Hokkaido Shopping
[Otaru]小樽中央市場 Otaru Central Market
You can get a lot of delicious dried fish at the Otaru fish market. And the seafood around this area is delicious.
[Otaru]かま栄 工場直売店 Kamaei factory direct sales store
The freshly made kamaboko (fried ground white fish) here is very delicious. This is a factory-operated store where we serve freshly made food at the counter. Be sure to try the "ひら天 Hiraten'and 'えび天 Ebi ten” recommed.
[Otaru]Taisho Glass Museum Main Store
Glasswork has been famous in Otaru since around 1800. You can see a lot of beautiful glass products.
【Otaru-Hokkaido】Recommended Restaurants
[Otaru]★★★Takeda (Sankaku Market Otaru City Station)たけだ（三角市場 小樽市駅前）
ANA’s special rice bowl from “Shokudo Ajidokoro Takeda” in Otaru Sankaku Market. Rice with sea urchin, salmon roe, and crab. 3300 yen. Delicious memories from Hokkaido.
There are also shops around this market where you can grill and eat a variety of shellfish.
You’ll never know that there are oysters and avian clams the size of an adult man’s palm, and scallops the size of your fist.
Departing from Hokkaido
It will take you about 3 days to sightsee in Sapporo and Otaru in Hokkaido. Then, continue your journey by returning directly to your home country, returning to Tokyo’s Narita Airport, or heading to Nagoya or Osaka.
New Chitose Airport.
Most of Hokkaido’s specialty products can be found at this airport. There are also delicious restaurants.
If you have time, you can stand in line for corn bread at the airport. This corn bread is very delicious.
This is a terminal for domestic flights only in Japan.
★★美瑛選果 新千歳空港店 びえいのコーンぱん Biei corn bread
