Enjoy Hokkaido Even on a Day Trip! Popular Sightseeing Spots by Area and Tips for a Day Trip

“Shiroi Koibito” is known as one of Sapporo’s signature sweets.
Shiroi Koibito Park is a sweets theme park where you can tour the production line for Shiroi Koibito and other treats, learn about the history of chocolate, and even make your own original Shiroi Koibito.
Its British-style garden, filled with blooming roses in summer and snow scenes and seasonal decorations in winter, is also popular as a photo spot.

Odori Park is located in the heart of Sapporo.
Surrounded by Approx. 4,700 trees of 92 varieties, including lilacs and Japanese elms, the park also features lawns and fountains, making it a relaxing oasis loved by both locals and visitors in the middle of the office district.
Odori Park is also known as a venue for events such as the Sapporo Lilac Festival and the YOSAKOI Soran Festival, and among them, the Sapporo Snow Festival is especially famous as a major event that attracts Approx. 2 million visitors from Japan and abroad every year.

Originally built as a drill hall for Sapporo Agricultural College to train leaders for the development of Hokkaido.
Under the direction of Kiyotaka Kuroda, the Hokkaido Development Commissioner who attended its completion ceremony, the building was fitted with the clock tower now loved as one of Sapporo’s landmarks.
From 1995 to 1998, major preservation and restoration work was carried out, and it was redeveloped as a museum.

One of the charms of Hitsujigaoka Observation Hill is that you can enjoy sweeping natural scenery while still being in the city of Sapporo, home to Approx. 2 million people.
In spring, fresh green pasture grass spreads across the landscape, and in summer, lavender fields welcome visitors.
Autumn brings colorful leaves, while winter covers the area in a blanket of pure white snow. With grand scenery that changes through the four seasons, it is a perfect photo spot.

Mt. Moiwa is located almost in the center of Sapporo.
You can reach the 531-meter summit by a Swiss-made mini cable car designed for forest viewing, and the mountain is also popular among locals as an easy climb, with five hiking trails leading to the top.

Otaru Port developed as a gateway for the settlement of Hokkaido.
After the war, the canal finished its role as a waterway, and the area has since been transformed into one of Otaru’s most iconic sightseeing spots, complete with walking paths and small parks.
There are 63 gas lamps along the promenade, and they light up at dusk.
Stone warehouses still line the canal just as they did in the past, and many are now used as restaurants and other facilities.

Located one street back from the main road facing Otaru Canal, Sakaimachi Street was Otaru’s main street and saw major growth from the Meiji period through the early Showa period.
The Approx. 1,300-meter shopping street stretching from Marchen Crossing to Nichigin-dori is still lined with many stone Western-style buildings and warehouses from that era, where you can enjoy strolling and shopping in a nostalgic atmosphere.

A specialty music box store with locations mainly in Otaru as well as in Hakodate, Furano, Yokohama, Kamakura, and Kyoto.
Its main shop, the Main Building, was built in 1915 and is designated as a historical building by Otaru City, preserving the atmosphere of a bygone era.
The interior, made up of two buildings of red brick and stone, is divided into five floors, each displaying and selling music boxes with a different concept.

Mt. Tengu is Otaru’s symbolic mountain, with an elevation of 532.4 meters.
At the summit is an observation deck listed with one star in the Michelin Green Guide Japon, offering sweeping views of the city and the Sea of Japan.
At night, you can enjoy a panoramic view of Otaru’s beautiful nightscape, counted alongside Mt. Moiwa and Mt. Hakodate as one of Hokkaido’s three major night views.

At Handmade Experience Yukobo, you can make your own music box.
You choose the music box base and melody, then select your favorite glass decorations.
There are many options for both the outer decorations and the songs, so you can create a one-of-a-kind original music box with your favorite tune.

Asahikawa City Asahiyama Zoo, the northernmost zoo in Japan, is a popular zoo known for its behavioral exhibits, which create comfortable spaces suited to each animal’s habits and encourage them to show their natural behavior.
Highlights include the Penguin House, where penguins swim freely through an underwater tunnel, and the Seal House, where seals move up and down a cylindrical tank, allowing visitors to watch the animals living actively and naturally.

A garden unique to Hokkaido, colored by plants centered on perennials that thrive in the climate and natural setting of northern Japan.
Because the blooming season and vivid flower colors change with the seasons, it is known as a dramatic garden.
At the center of Ueno Farm is the Nym Garden, a natural-style garden made up of several areas where wildflowers with simple beauty and ornamental grasses grow together with vibrant blooms.

This hill has long been loved as a scenic spot offering a sweeping view across 60 kilometers from Aibetsudake at the northern end of Daisetsuzan National Park to Minamifurano-dake at its southern end.
It is said that a local photographer gave it the name Shuujitsu no Oka, and the endlessly rolling road cutting through beautiful rural scenery creates a landscape that feels uniquely Hokkaido.

A science museum with a permanent exhibition hall, as well as a planetarium, laboratories, and an observation deck.
There are many hands-on exhibits, making it fun for both adults and children.
Nearby, you’ll also find Miyamae Park and the Chubetsu River riverbed area, which are great for a walk.

A scenic spot named for its resemblance to Arashiyama in Kyoto.
At an elevation of Approx. 250 meters, Arashiyama Observation Deck is a popular place where you can enjoy beautiful views day or night.
The surrounding area includes the Arashiyama Park Center and hiking courses, making it a casual walking spot loved by people of all ages.

Goryokaku is a Western-style fortress built in 1866.
Until it was taken over by the new Meiji government, it served as the political center of Ezo.
Later, in 1914, it was opened to the public as Goryokaku Park, and it became a sightseeing destination as well as a nationally designated Special Historic Site.

Kanemori Red Brick Warehouse is a landmark in Hakodate’s bay area made up of four warehouse buildings.
With rows of red brick warehouses creating a romantic and atmospheric setting, it’s easy to see why the area is so popular not only with locals and tourists, but also with couples.
The four warehouses are named BAY Hakodate, Kanemori Youbutsukan, Hakodate History Plaza, and Kanemori Hall, and each has its own unique character.

Hachimanzaka Slope got its name because Hakodate Hachimangu Shrine once stood at the top of the hill.
This beautiful stone-paved road stretches straight toward the sea, lined with neatly maintained trees on both sides, and offers a view of Hakodate Bay and the Seikan Ferry Memorial Ship Mashumaru moored in the distance.

At Goryokaku Tower, built next to Goryokaku Park, you can look down from a height of 90 meters over the Goryokaku ruins, a nationally designated Special Historic Site, and the tower is loved by locals and visitors alike as one of Hakodate’s landmarks.
The 360-degree panorama offers views of seasonal scenery such as cherry blossoms, autumn leaves, fresh greenery, and snow around Goryokaku Park, as well as famous sights including Mt. Hakodate, the Tsugaru Strait, and Hakodate Bay.

Mt. Hakodate Ropeway uses a large gondola built with combined domestic and international technology, with a capacity of 125 passengers.
It connects the foot and summit of Mt. Hakodate and reaches the top in Approx. 3 minutes at a speed of 7 meters per second.
The current gondola is the fifth generation; while the first could carry only 30 people, it was improved over time to accommodate far larger numbers.

Shirogane Blue Pond, with its striking vivid blue color, is famous as one of Biei’s top sightseeing spots.
It is an artificial pond that formed by chance when water collected behind a block dam built on the Biei River as part of erosion control work to prevent volcanic mudflows from Mt. Tokachi.
The mysteriously beautiful blue water, together with the surrounding rich nature and the standing dead larch trees, creates a fantastical atmosphere like something from a fairy tale.

A tourist farm in Nakafurano, Hokkaido, famous for its graceful lavender fields stretching out on a grand scale.
Along with its vast lavender fields, one of its signature sights is the Irodori Field, where vivid bands of flowers such as purple lavender, white baby’s breath, and red poppies paint the gently sloping hillside like a canvas.

A shopping area located Approx. 2 minutes on foot from Shin Furano Prince Hotel in Furano, Hokkaido.
“Ningle” refers to the “wise dwellers of the forest,” about 15 cm tall, who appear in the play Ningle by playwright So Kuramoto and are said to live in Hokkaido’s forests.
In the beautiful woodland that feels like it belongs in a fairy tale, 15 log cabins stand in a row, each selling craft items inspired by nature.

One of the representative sightseeing spots of the Biei Shirogane Onsen area, this waterfall flows into the Biei River from a cliff in the gorge with a drop of Approx. 30 meters, looking just like a white beard as its name suggests.
It is classified as a “senryubaku,” a rare type of waterfall in Japan where groundwater flows out through cracks in the rock face.

A scenic flower garden spread across the hills of Biei, Hokkaido, this spectacular spot is filled with dozens of kinds of flowers blooming like a carpet from spring through fall.
From June to September, when the flowers are especially beautiful, lavender, salvia, marigolds, cockscomb, and others bloom in colorful bands, creating a scene that looks like a painting.

The greatest appeal of Lake Toya in Hokkaido is, first and foremost, its natural scenery.
This area, centered around the caldera lake Lake Toya and the active volcano Mt. Usu, is recognized by UNESCO as Toya-Usu UNESCO Global Geopark.
The natural dynamism created by volcanic activity that occurs once every few decades is one of its main highlights.

A hot spring area created by the eruption of Mt. Yosomiyama during the Meiji period.
It boasts an abundant supply of hot spring water and has the largest number of hotels and ryokan in Hokkaido.
Today, it is one of Hokkaido’s most popular hot spring destinations, attracting at least 3 million visitors a year.
Accommodation facilities line the lakeshore, where you can enjoy luxurious hot spring bathing while looking out from guest rooms and open-air baths over the mystical Lake Toya, which changes with the seasons, and the beautiful Mt. Yotei, also known as Ezo Fuji.

An aquarium centered around Nixe Castle, modeled after the real Egeskov Castle in Denmark. It displays Approx. 20,000 creatures from Approx. 400 species.
Inside the beautiful brick-style castle, the entire building is used as an aquarium.
Cute dolphin and sea lion performances are also held daily, and with its green open plaza, NIXE Land amusement park, and restaurants popular for menus made with local ingredients, it is a place where you can have fun all day.

One of Noboribetsu’s most popular sightseeing spots, Jigokudani is an explosion crater formed by the volcanic activity of Mt. Hiyori.
The valley, with a diameter of 450 meters and an area of Approx. 11 hectares, is still volcanically active today and is also known as the source of Noboribetsu Onsen, producing 10,000 tons of hot spring water a day.
Its exposed rocky surface is dotted with many vents and fumaroles emitting white steam, creating a scene that truly lives up to its name, Hell Valley.
A walking path allows you to circle the area in Approx. 20 minutes and see the bubbling hot spring sources and flowing thermal water up close.

Located at the summit of Shihorei at an elevation of 550 meters, Noboribetsu Bear Park can be reached in Approx. 7 minutes by ropeway from the lower station in the Noboribetsu Onsen area.
At least 60 brown bears live here actively.
The bears are displayed in separate male and female areas.
The First Ranch, where the male bears are kept, includes a glass-walled room called the “Human Cage,” where you can observe the bears moving around all around you.