Hakucho/Hokuto during Yuki Matsuri

Hi all,

Is it normally difficult to book seats on these trains - either the "super" or regular versions of both - around the time of the Sapporo Yuki Matsuri? Here's the current plan (not my whole itinerary, just the relevant dates when I need to use those trains):

05 Feb 2014: Aomori to Sapporo (day 1 of the Yuki Matsuri)
10 Feb 2014: Sapporo to Hakodate
11 Feb 2014: Hakodate to Aomori, and further on to Tōkyō by shinkansen (national holiday)

Trouble is, the earliest I'll be able to book tickets is when I arrive in Japan, on 01 Feb. Any idea if all these services will be fully booked out by then?

I'll be using a Green JR Pass so I'm hoping this might improve my chances (since I'll also have access to Green cars).

Thanks.

Green car(s) 99�� already full.(not today)

Possible or not by weather condition.
Feb is deppest snow season.

So find ordinary reserved seat car first
if full just take non-reserved cars(except Tohoku Shinkansen).

I tried for a reservation on the Sapporo to Hakodate Green car for the 10/12 7am train when I got to Tokyo on 10/08 and it was already full. I barely got a seat on the train. There was nothing special happening that day, so I would imagine the Snow Festival being extra difficult.

Thanks for the very helpful feedback!

An earlier version of my travel plan actually involved domestic air travel to and from Sapporo - that option's now looking more and more attractive.

Cheerio.

I am travelling to Hokkaido during 19-28 Dec.

I was a bit worried like you are right now, therefore I went on JR Hokkaido website and have been monitoring its online reservation system past week, see how quickly the reserved seats were sold.

Some trains are more popular than others (early morning especially) and are half full a month before departure.

I would suggest you to do what I do, monitor the reservation system, book the ticket if you feel you not gonna get a seat if you wait till you land in Japan.

Mind you, JR Hokkaido Passes are not available on the reservation system. You need to pay by credit card at the time you make the reservation and of course, it is less economical than getting a JR Hokkaido Pass.

JR Hokkaido website:
http://www2.jrhokkaido.co.jp/global/

JR Hokkaido Online Reservation Website:
https://www3.jrhokkaido.co.jp/rail-en/asp/RWY010.aspx