5-day travel itinerary for Hokkaido

Are you planning to go to Hokkaido, Japans northernmost island? Then I might have the perfect travel itinerary for you!

1.    day - Tokyo to Sapporo
The shortest and cheapest way to go from Tokyo to Sapporo is by airplane. Reasonably priced airlines are Jetstar and Vanilla Air (around 5,000 yen one way) or if you want a little bit more comfort JAL or ANA (around 25,000 yen). Also, JAL and ANA operate flights to Sapporo out of Haneda Airport. If you are living in the west side of Tokyo, departing from Haneda might be a better option for you, otherwise you first of all have to go the long and expensive way to Narita Airport where the low cost airlines operate. Flight time is around 1.5 hrs. Flights to Sapporo arrive at The New Chitose Airport which is not in the center of Sapporo. You can use the JR Chitose Line (1,070 yen) or the bus (1,030 yen) to get to the downtown of Sapporo. The ride takes 60-90 minutes.

Sapporo has so many nice sightseeing spots. What follows are my recommendations:

Odori Park
Odori Park is 1.5 km long and is located in the heart of Sapporo. During the summer season, you will find many beautiful flower arrangements in the whole park area. Also, it is a popular spot for festivals like the "October Festival". In winter the very popular snow festival will also be held at that park.

Clock Tower
The clock tower is just close to the Odori Park and a typical sign of Sapporo. The building was constructed in 1878 as part of a college. Nowadays you can find a museum inside, but the old clock bell, which is from America, is still part of the building.

Okurayama Ski Jump
A little bit outside of the city is the 90-meter-long Okurayama Ski Jump. In winter, the ski jump platform will be used for winter sports events like World Cups, but during the summer season you can go up to the observatory at the top of the hill and look down like a ski jumper is does. You will have a great view over the city from this spot. There is also a small museum about ski jumping and other winter sports at the facility.

Historic Village of Hokkaido
My favorite spot when visiting Sapporo is the Historic Village of Hokkaido, which is a nice open air museum with around 60 typical buildings from the Meji and Taisho periods. You can take a look inside all the buildings and some nice volunteers will talk about the history of that building or you can join one of their handicraft courses. It's a really great spot if you are interested in Japanese history.

2.    day – Countryside of Hokkaido
For the second day it is best to rent a car for traveling around Hokkaido. Hokkaido is popular for it's beautiful nature, which you can explore the best by car.

Very popular are the Furano Flower Fields, which are very popular in summer, when all the lavender is blooming. Also during other seasons, you can find many beautiful flowers in that field.

The Blue Pond in Biei is another very nice spot at which to see the beauty of Hokkaido. The amazing blue color is the result of an accidental presence of colloidal aluminium hydroxide in the water.

3.    day  - Sapporo to Onuma
Leaving Sapporo on the third day to go to the south of Hokkaido and to Onuma Park. You can go there by limited express train in around 3 hrs. Onuma Park makes for a perfect stop if you are also planning on going on to Hakodate.

Onuma Park is just between the two big lakes, Onuma and Konuma. You can explore the lakes and small islands, several of which are connected with each other by small bridges, on foot or you can rent a bicycle. The park is the perfect spot for a relaxing day surrounded by nature.

4.    day – Hakodate
From Onuma Park it only takes 1hrs to go to Hakodate, Hokkkaido's third biggest city. Hakodate was the first harbor city opened to international trade.

There are many great sightseeing spots in Hakodate waiting for you to explore. For example, the Fort Goryokau inc. the Fort Tower (the fort has the shape of a star) or the beautiful Motomachi, where you can find many western buidlings from old times.

The most popular spot is Mt. Hakodate from where you have a great view, especially in the evening, over the city!

5.    Day Hakodate to Tokyo
For the last day, you should make a stop at the morning fish market of Hakodate to try some fresh fish, before heading back to Tokyo.

If you want to fly back to Tokyo, you can again use Vanilla Air (around 6,000 yen) or JAL and ANA (around 13,000 yen). The flight time is around 1.5 hrs. Alternatively, you can also use the new Shinkansen from Shin-Hakodate to Hokkaido which takes around 4.5hrs to reach Tokyo.