Japan Winter Travel Itinerary: Sapporo, Aomori, Sendai and Yamagata

I hadn’t been planning a winter trip to Japan but when I spotted an amazing flight deal I just had to go for it! For this trip in particular I built my itinerary around the Sapporo Snow Festival as well some of the other snow festivals happening in northern Japan too, and as a result this Japan winter travel itinerary covers Sapporo, Aomori, Sendai and Yamagata (as well as some day trips and Tokyo too).

I saw so many cool things on this trip. Getting to experience the Sapporo, Otaru and Hirosaki snow festivals was a dream come true! In the UK where I live we don’t get that much snow and so I really saw the natural world in a new light. I also became very conscious that nature is amazing but can be slightly terrifying, too!

This time around I stayed at hotels that were at the lower end of the price range – Sapporo being the exception given the festival. Some of the hotels I stayed at were great (I’ve mentioned why below) and some were fine but I probably wouldn’t recommend them so I haven’t mentioned them.

I am going to cover what clothes you need to take first but you can skip straight to the itinerary here.

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What to wear if you’re going in January/ February!

As I was visiting Tokyo, Hokkaido and then the Tohoku region (i.e. the northern area of Honshu, Japan’s largest island), there were a range of weather conditions to prepare for. I had purchased a warm parka that was perfect for walking around in minus temperatures in Sapporo, but I ended up sweaty in a Tokyo that was a pleasant 14 degrees. 

If you’re heading north, you will absolutely need a hat, scarf, gloves and a warm coat. I also took thermal leggings and sturdy boots, both of which were much needed. If you’re planning on doing some hiking I would also recommend purchasing the spikes you can slip over your shoes. You can purchase them in Japan but you can potentially get them cheaper in your home country.

There was a LOT of snow in Aomori and Yamagata in particular (to the point where you couldn’t actually tell what places looked like underneath). I often saw trucks carrying snow away, presumably to be deposited elsewhere. There were plenty of people shovelling snow so getting around was okay but you still had to be careful not to slip and fall. 

Getting around  

I did the Sapporo and Tohoku itinerary below without a car and without a Rail Pass too. However, I did fly from Tokyo to Sapporo, and Sapporo to Aomori to avoid both the unpredictable weather and the challenging train changes en route. At any other time of year I would have taken the Shinkansen to be more environmentally friendly but I just didn’t want to chance it this time.

Upon reflection, I would have loved more time in Sapporo and Hokkaido generally. One for next time! 

Tokyo

For this trip I visited some of my favourite neighbourhoods – Asakusa, Akihabara, Ginza – and some new places too, including Yanaka Ginza and Nippori Fabric Town.

Akasaka was my base location this time, which was reasonable price-wise and handy for getting around. It’s kind of a place between places, if that makes sense. There are things going on and there are restaurants and bars, but it hasn’t quite got the distinct feel of some of the other neighbourhoods of Tokyo. It does have Hie Shrine to visit though and the new Teamlab Borderless in Azabudai Hills is close by. 

I stayed at the Via Inn Prime Akasaka. This place was SO nice – the rooms were clean and smart and breakfast was absolutely delicious. The French toast, salt grilled chicken, and scrambled eggs on toast were my particular favourites!  There was also a really lovely sento (public bath) which is one of my top things to do when in Japan. Actually, in the women’s sento at least there were two baths – one inside and one outside. 

(For more inspiration you can find my Golden Route itinerary here by the way, as well as my Tokyo and Chubu region itinerary here. From each of those pages there are links to many of my Tokyo posts.)

 

Day 1: Arrive in Tokyo

I landed at 7am, took a shower at Haneda Airport (which I would 100% recommend doing) and dumped my luggage at the hotel. 

I then headed to my favourite place in Tokyo (and also the most touristy), Asakusa. I got myself an omikuji (fortune) and wandered down the Nakamisedori shopping street before getting a 20 minute bus journey to Nippori Fabric Town to pick up some cheap fabric. Then, I walked to Yanaka Ginza for a relaxed shopping experience amongst some kitty friends (above!) 

(I actually went twice to Yanaka Ginza – the first time I visited was very quiet and I was slightly disappointed, but I went back on my final day (doing the trip in reverse) and loved looking around! It just goes to show the effect of lack of sleep has on your perception at times).

You can read my one day itinerary to Asakusa and Akihabara here, and my visit to Yanaka Ginza and Nippori Fabric Town here!

Day 2: Day trip to Yokohama

I took the train to Yokohama station, which takes under 30 minutes from Shimbashi station. After doing some shopping and walking past the famous ferris wheel (which was closed, I was gutted!) I visited the World Porters shopping centre briefly. I then walked on to the Red Brick Warehouses for some more shopping. This place had a great selection of lovely gifts, even if it was a little more expensive than expected.  

I then headed from Yokohama station to Shin-Yokohama station. Here I visited the Ramen Museum for some education – and some dinner! The basement floor is designed like a Showa-era street and you can take your pick of ramen from a range of different establishments.

Day 3: Visiting a few famous shrines and the new TeamLab Borderless

I started my day visiting Gotokuji temple, where you can find all the lucky cats (above) and bring one home of your very own! 

Although I wouldn’t recommend you do both of these in a day as it’s not a sensible route, I also travelled about 40 minutes to visit the weather shrine, Koenji Hikawa. Here you can also purchase rather unique omamori and you can even take home your own teru teru bozu (which translates to ‘shine shine monk’). Teru teru bozu are generally hung up by children as a wish for good weather. You can see mine below.

In the evening, I visited the new location of the digital art museum TeamLab Borderless in Azabudai Hills. I am a huge Teamlab fan! I made sure to have a drink in the teahouse (a new experience for me), where my green tea and ice cream came to life under the light projections.

Sapporo

I stayed at the JR Inn Sapporo Kita2jo. This was a lovely hotel and even had a ‘pillow corner’ where you could pick your pillow based on what filling and plumpness you were after! It was a great location for the train station, bus station, subway station(s), and most importantly, for the Odori Park site of the Sapporo snow festival! It also of course had a sento, which I hadn’t realised when I booked!

I really liked Sapporo, and the places I visited in Hokkaido in general. I would love to go back as there was plenty I missed out on, including taking a cable car up to Mount Moiwa, exploring Sapporo’s Fushimi Inari Shrine, as well as visiting the Sapporo Beer museum.

Day 4: Fly up to Sapporo and visit the Sapporo Snow Festival!

I arrived in Sapporo around 4pm and immediately headed out to the snow festival! I walked the entire length of Odori Park and back (this is the main venue of the snow festival) before walking down to the Susukino site. I made sure to get a picture of the famous Nikka whisky sign!

Day 5: Explore Sapporo

I took the bus to visit the Hokkaido Museum. The museum covers Hokkaido’s history and geography, and has a section about the indigenous Ainu people and their culture which was really interesting. After that I walked to the Historical Village of Hokkaido museum, which has architectural examples of different types of 19th century village buildings. I enjoyed looking around but can imagine this place is a bit more lively and fun to explore when there aren’t piles of snow around! (This became a bit of a theme throughout my trip…)

In the afternoon I headed back to Sapporo to explore some shrines before heading back to the festival again. A lot of the sculptures look totally different during the day so I would recommend going both during the day and at night.

 

Day 6: Otaru

On day 6 I took the bus (although you can take the train) to Otaru, which is about an hour away from Sapporo. I saw the steam clock (similar to the one in Vancouver) and explored the shops down the delightful Sakaimachi area. It was getting a bit cold and snowy so I visited the free Bank museum before heading to the Otaru railway museum. Pro tip: it is not worth doing this in February as all the trains are under snow!

When I visited, the Otaru Snow Lantern festival was due to start and there were people making little sculptures along the length of the canal. I left before switch-on though as the snow was falling heavily and I was absolutely exhausted after walking miles in the freezing cold. I was a bit disappointed but did see some of the displays at least.

Day 7: Noboribetsu Onsen

You have to take both a train and bus to get to Noboribetsu Onsen, which is a bit of a faff but it is worth it! You can see amazing steaming vents and visit an onsen too. I visited the Takimotokan Onsen and explored all the different baths, including the open air one!

You can read about my visit to Noboribetsu Onsen here. 

Aomori

There isn’t a huge amount to do in Aomori city itself but I really wanted to see the museum about the Nebuta festival. This was an absolute highlight!

Day 7: Sapporo to Aomori

I flew from Sapporo to Aomori, arriving mid-afternoon. I immediately visited Nebuta Wa Rasse, a museum about the famous Nebuta Festival. Here you can see some of the amazing illuminated floats used in the festival and take part in a demonstration of the music and dancing that happens during the festival too. 

Afterwards, I visited the A-Factory for some apple-related products. The apple ice cream is amazing!

You can read more about my day in Aomori city here.

Day 8: Hirosaki

On this day I took the train from Aomori to Hirosaki. I visited the Tsugaru-han Neputa-mura Village to learn more about Hirosaki’s Summer festival and then explored Hirosaki Castle area which is home to their annual snow festival! Here there were sculptures and lots of lanterns built from snow. Walking through them in the dark was a very cool experience.

Sendai

There isn’t loads to do in Sendai but it is a cool city and it is a great jumping point from which to see Matsushima Bay and some of the attractions in nearby Yamagata. I stayed at the Almont Sendai which was lovely (and of course, had a sento). The breakfast was really cool – there were lots of regional foods on offer and you could even make yourself your own donburi rice bowl with fresh fish. They also had ice cream too! I got to try some edamame ice cream which was really refreshing. (Sendai is famous for edamame – you can even get an edamame milkshake. These are called ‘zunda shakes’!)

Day 9: Aomori to Sendai

I took the Shinkansen from Aomori (via Shin-Aomori) to Sendai, which took around 2.5 hours. Once I had dropped off my luggage I took the Loople bus to see the best of Sendai, including Zuihoden (an ornate mausoleum dedicated to Date Masamune), Osaki Hachiman Shrine, and then Rinnoji temple and its garden. In the evening, I headed back to Sendai station to do some shopping. 

Day 10: Matsushima Bay

This day was very windy. After getting the train to Matsushima Bay, I made a beeline for Zuiganji temple to see the amazing interior with gold-painted walls and doors and walk along the squeaky nightingale floor. I then headed to Entsuin temple, which is next door, and wandered round the beautiful garden. I then walked along the shoreline to take some pictures of the stunning views of the bay, before walking along the shorefront to the Fukuurabashi bridge and then back to the train station. 

(NB this isn’t the typical tourist route – I had wanted to go to Shiogama and then take the sightseeing boat to Matsushima but the winds were so high the boat wasn’t running. The winds also meant that the bridge to Fukuura island was closed too. It was a bit frustrating but also I’d rather be safe than sorry and I still had a great time!)

You can read about my day trip to Matsushima Bay here.

Yamagata

Yamagata itself doesn’t have a lot to do but it is a good hub from which to see some of the best places in the region – Yamadera, Zao Onsen, and Ginzan Onsen.

Day 11: Sendai to Yamagata and a hike up Yamadera

Taking the bus from Sendai to Yamagata was a breeze, and it only took an hour and a half (you can also take the train if you prefer). I dropped my bags off and took the half-hour train to Yamadera station. The hike up Yamadera was a lot of fun even if it was a bit dangerous, especially in the snow!

You can read about my hike up Yamadera here.

Day 12: Seeing the Snow Monsters of Zao Onsen (as a non-skier)

I was so excited to see the Snow Monsters of Zao Onsen, although I was panicking a bit at first as all the pre-booked tickets for the main cable car were sold out at Yamagata Station. I took my chances though and got on the bus anyway. The bus takes around 45 minutes to get to Zao Onsen.

I had to queue for a while but I eventually got up the mountain. The Snow Monsters were AMAZING, and so so worth the wait.  

Day 13: Ginzan Onsen

As with quite a few places on my trip, it was a bit of a challenge to see what Ginzan Onsen looked like under so much snow! I took the train to Oshida station before transferring to Ginzan Onsen on the bus. I explored the lovely streets of Ginzan Onsen and ate some soba overlooking the river. There’s a waterfall at one end although I couldn’t see much more than that due to the snowfall blocking the route! I had a little look round the shops though and had some matcha ice cream before heading back.

Tokyo again!

I stayed at the APA Hotel Haneda Anamori Inari Ekimae, which was 6 minutes away from Haneda airport on the Keikyu line and 4 minutes walk from Anamori Inari Shrine. It was super cheap and convenient and is great if you have an early flight home. 

Day 15: Back to Tokyo

After travelling back from Yamagata to Tokyo on the Shinkansen (arriving at lunchtime) I stored my luggage at Tokyo Station before heading back to Asakusa and Yanaka Ginza/ Nippori Fabric Town again to pick up some last minute souvenirs. (Pro tip: If you’re storing luggage at Tokyo Station (or any big station) take a picture of where your luggage is. Otherwise you might end up walking round for hours trying to work out where you stored it!)

Day 16: Fly home 🙁

I made a quick stop at Anamori Inari Shrine to see the little cave full of fox statues before heading to the airport for the flight home.

 

For more Japan itinerary ideas, here are my Golden Route (Tokyo, Kyoto, Hiroshima, Miyajima), North Kyushu, and Chubu region itineraries.