Sapporo Travel: Access, Orientation and Transportation

How to travel between Sapporo and Tokyo

By air

Tokyo-Sapporo is the world's busiest air route with dozens of departures per day, operated by JAL, ANA, Air Do and Skymark Airlines. Most flights use Tokyo's Haneda Airport and Sapporo's New Chitose Airport. Only a small number of flights use Tokyo's Narita Airport.

Flight time between Tokyo and Sapporo is about 90 minutes. The regular one way fare is around 34,000 yen in case of JAL and ANA, around 26,000 yen in case of Air Do and around 17,000 yen in case of Skymark Airlines. If you use an air pass or profit from one of the many other discount offers, you can fly for less. Skymark usually offers the lowest fares, that are often around or even below 10,000 yen.

Sapporo's New Chitose Airport is located about 30 kilometers south of the city center. By frequently departing trains, it takes about 35 minutes and costs 1,040 yen into central Sapporo.

By daytime train

Take a Hayate train on the JR Tohoku Shinkansen from Tokyo to Shin-Aomori Station (3.5 hours). Then, take the JR Hakucho limited express to Hakodate (2 hours) and finally the JR Hokuto limited express to Sapporo (3.5 hours). The entire one way trip costs around 23,000 yen and takes around ten hours. It is fully covered by the Japan Rail Pass. Note that seat reservations are mandatory on Hayate trains between Tokyo and Shin-Aomori.

By night train

One or two night trains operate daily between Tokyo's Ueno Station and Sapporo in each direction. Regular one way fares start around 25,000 yen for the most basic type of berth. Note that Japan Rail Pass holders have to pay a surcharge of at least 12,000 yen (14,500 yen from December 4, 2010) to ride a night train between Tokyo and Sapporo.

View our night train information page for more details.

By ferry

There are long distance ferries between various ports in Honshu and Hokkaido, providing leisurely and inexpensive access to Hokkaido. Some of the ports with ferries to Hokkaido are Niigata, Oarai (Ibaraki Prefecture), Sendai, Nagoya, Maizuru (Kyoto Prefecture) and Tsuruga (Fukui Prefecture). Most ferries arrive either in Otaru, 30 train minutes west of Sapporo or Tomakomai, 45-60 train minutes south of Sapporo.

View our ferry information page for more details.

Above fees and schedules are subject to change. For the current Yen exchange rate, click here.

No major city in Japan is easier to navigate than Sapporo with its rectangular street layout and simple addressing system: City blocks are named and numbered according to the point of compass, with the apex at the eastern end of Odori Park. The Sapporo Beer Museum, for example, is located in city block "North 7, East 9", i.e. in the 7th block north and 9th block east of the apex.

Three subway lines, a tram line and many bus companies (JR Hokkaido Bus, Hokkaido Chuo Bus and Jotetsu Bus) provide Sapporo with an efficient network of public transportation. The Japan Rail Pass, Hokkaido Rail Pass and Hokkaido Free Pass are valid on local buses operated by JR Hokkaido Bus.

Prepaid cards make the process of taking subways and buses easier, as you do not always need to buy a new ticket for each ride. Some of them also give small discounts. Prepaid cards can be purchased at vending machines.