Biei

Biei (���l) is a small town surrounded by a picturesque landscape of gently rolling hills and vast fields. A pleasant way to enjoy the charm of Biei is by cycling or driving through the hills and visiting some of the flower fields and famous trees. The area northwest of the town center is named "Patchwork Road" and the area south of the town center "Panorama Road".

Patchwork Road

Named after the appearance of its fields seen from above, the Patchwork Road (�p�b�`���[�N�̘H, Patchwork no Michi) is the scenic area northwest of Biei's town center. Note that it refers to an area rather than a single road. It offers beautiful rural landscapes around the year, especially during the green and colorful summer and autumn months and during winter when everything is covered under a deep layer of snow.

Over the years, the area's beauty has attracted the attention of marketing professionals, and some trees were used in commercials or for package label designs. Among these famous trees are a row of larch trees on the Mild Seven Hill (from a cigarette commercial), a poplar named Ken and Mary Tree (from a car commercial) and the Seven Star Tree (which appeared on cigarette packages). A group of oak trees is known as the Parents and Child Tree.

Other sites of interest in the Patchwork Road area are the Hokusei Hill Observatory, a pyramid structure that offers nice views over the fields of Biei and the Zerubu Hill, a flower park which can be explored not only on foot but also by various types of carts.

Panorama Road

Like the Patchwork Road, the Panorama Road (�p�m���}���[�h) is an area rather than a single road. It offers much of the same rural and scenic beauty as the Patchwork Road and is ideal for exploration by car or bicycle, although some people will prefer electrically powered bicycles due to the hilly terrain.

Among the area's highlights is Shikisai Hill, a spacious flower park with various flower fields (including lavender), which can be viewed by walking along the trails, by renting carts or by taking a ride on tractor-pulled wagons. In winter, snow mobiles are available. Another, smaller flower park is Kanno Farm, located along the main road between Biei and Furano.

Also worth a visit is the Takushinkan, an exhibition hall with beautiful landscape photography by renowned photographer Maeda Shinzo and his eldest son Akira. The exhibition displays landscape photographs from across Japan with an emphasis on photos from Biei.