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How to get to Hokkaido |
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Hokkaido is the second largest of the Japanese islands, situated in the north of the country.
We took a package by Japan Airlines, JAL, which included the hotels, a rental car and the flights from/to Tokyo to/from cities of your choice in Hokkaido. We flew to Memanbetsu, and flew back from Asahikawa. Flying is probably the most convenient way, taking about 1.5 hours from Tokyo. Actually you can also travel to Hokkaido by using car-ferry services (we originally planned to spend much longer time in Hokkaido in summer and wanted to go by a car-ferry, so that we could also see a bit of the north part of Honshu, Japan’s main island, although we had to abandon this plan eventually). Train connections are also available, of course.
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What to do in Hokkaido |
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Hokkaido is pure nature. It very much reminded us of our trips to New Zealand or Canada, as it offers green forests, lakes, mountains covered with snow and the sea at the same time. The climate is also very similar to those areas, with a very cold and snowy winter (actually, Hokkaido is very popular with Japanese skiers for its perfect powder snow) and a relatively cool summer, different from the hot and humid summers in the rest of Japan.
As almost everywhere you will find lots of onsen (hot springs) and volcanic rocks.
Another difference to Honshu is the very small
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density of people per area. Thus, you can easily travel by car without regular traffic jams like in the densely populated areas of Honshu. Hokkaido was originally populated by the Ainu, the native tribe. The Japanese did not come here before the 15th century, however this is not well known. The city names in Hokkaido and several museums still remind you of this special Ainu culture.
Given the fact of lots of quiet nature, the best to do in Hokkaido is to enjoy the green and volcanic landscape, the hot springs and the several specific natural phenomena,
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such as the round “marimo” seaweed or waterfalls.
Hiking, touring the island and enjoying the nature and in winter skiing are the main things to do here in Hokkaido. Hokkaido is definitely for nature-lovers.
For those who seeking
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for Japanese cultural aspects such as architectural tradition or religious buildings, seeing those Honshu or Kyushu would be more interesting. Check out more about Hokkaido by clicking at the link to japan-guide.com
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See our pictures by clicking on the respective button:
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