Otaru Canal, Hokkaido Prefecture, Japan
Photo: Yo_Takehana via FIND/47 · CC BY 4.0
北海道HOKKAIDŌ
HOKKAIDŌ · 北海道県 · Japan

Hokkaido

Powder snow, onsen, seafood, and wide-open nature.

Powder snow, onsen, seafood, and wide-open nature.

Where it isHokkaido, HOKKAIDŌ
Otaru Canal, Hokkaido Prefecture, Japan
Otaru Canal
Sapporo Clock Tower, Hokkaido Prefecture, Japan
Sapporo Clock Tower
Sapporo Snow Festival, Hokkaido Prefecture, Japan
Sapporo Snow Festival
Lake Akan, Hokkaido Prefecture, Japan
Lake Akan

Photos: Otaru Canal — Charlie_or_Y-N via FIND/47, CC BY 4.0 · Sapporo Clock Tower — Charlie_or_Y-N via FIND/47, CC BY 4.0 · Sapporo Snow Festival — DVIDSHUB via Flickr, CC BY 2.0 · Lake Akan — kkawamura via FIND/47, CC BY 4.0

01

Getting there

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02

What to see

All tours · Hokkaido PR
Otaru Canal, Hokkaido Prefecture, JapanTop pick

Otaru Canal (Otaru Unga)

An iconic 1,140 m waterway lined with preserved stone warehouses from Hokkaido's maritime trade era; at dusk 63 gas lamps light up and reflect on the water. A…

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Sapporo Clock Tower, Hokkaido Prefecture, JapanTop pick

Sapporo Clock Tower & Former Hokkaido Government Office (Red Brick Office)

The Clock Tower (built 1878) is Japan's oldest still-running clock tower and a National Important Cultural Property; the nearby Meiji-era American Neo-Baroque…

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Sapporo Snow Festival, Hokkaido Prefecture, JapanTop pick

Sapporo Snow Festival (Yuki Matsuri)

Sapporo's largest winter event, drawing over 2 million visitors annually across the Odori, Susukino and Tsudome sites. The 2026 edition runs February 4-11,…

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03

What to eat

Food tours & cooking classes PR
Seafood donburi, Hokkaido Prefecture, JapanMust-eat

Seafood donburi (uni-ikura-don / kaisen-don)

Hokkaido's cold waters yield prized crab, uni (sea urchin), ikura (salmon roe), scallops and squid. A classic way to sample it is a fresh seafood rice bowl at…

Sapporo Soup Curry, Hokkaido Prefecture, JapanMust-eat

Sapporo Soup Curry

A spicy broth-based curry loaded with vegetables and meat over rice. It originated in Sapporo in the 1970s and became a nationwide hit in the 2000s; there are…

Jingisukan, Hokkaido Prefecture, JapanMust-eat

Jingisukan (Genghis Khan grilled lamb)

Lamb or mutton and vegetables grilled at the table on a domed metal pan and dipped in sauce. It is considered the communal 'soul food' of Hokkaido.

04

Hokkaido at a glance

Food Culture Nature City Access how we rank all 47 →
Otaru Canal, Hokkaido Prefecture, Japan

Sleep in Hokkaido

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07

Next door

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Links marked PR are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Photos: Otaru Canal — Yo_Takehana via FIND/47, CC BY 4.0 · Otaru Canal — Charlie_or_Y-N via FIND/47, CC BY 4.0 · Sapporo Clock Tower — Charlie_or_Y-N via FIND/47, CC BY 4.0 · Sapporo Snow Festival — DVIDSHUB via Flickr, CC BY 2.0 · Lake Akan — kkawamura via FIND/47, CC BY 4.0 · Otaru Canal — 8691Y54YUKIE via FIND/47, CC BY 4.0 · Sapporo Clock Tower — bryan... via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Sapporo Snow Festival — CharlesLam via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Seafood donburi — avlxyz via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Sapporo Soup Curry — pelican via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Jingisukan — Dick Thomas Johnson via Flickr, CC BY 2.0. Map: Geolonia (MIT).