Hokkaido Itinerary

Hi, all. My friend & I are going on a trip to Hokkaido in July. I would find out whether our plan is feasible or not. Any advice/tip is greatly appreciated.

Arrival & Departure via Sapporo Chitose Airport
Day 1-3 [Stay in Asahikawa]:
-Biei/Furano/Asahikawa

Day 4-5 [Stay in Kushiro]: Drive to Kushiro on Day 4.
- Kushiro Crane Reserve
- Day trip to Lake Akan

Day 6-8 [Stay in Sapporo]:
-Otaru/Sapporo

Also, I am concerned about the transport frequency in Hokkaido as I heard it's not very frequent. Will I meet any difficulty if I follow the plan above?
Also, on the drive from Asahikawa to Kushiro, any recommendations to sightsee/experience?

Thank you.

Hi Ptero ,
We visited Hokkaido 2 months ago, and hired a car in Asahikawa for our trip to Furano and Biei. Would highly recommend you to do likewise. You will not only save time ,but importantly you will be able to see more places,and enjoy the trip more.

If you're driving southward from Asahikawa to Kushiro via Biei and Furano, there are a few places worth considering.

South of Furano is the Minami Furano area with Kanayama-ko which has the only lakeside lavender field in Hokkaido. If you happen to be there on the last Sat. and Sun of July, there is Kanayama-ko Kosui Festival with firework.
http://town.minamifurano.hokkaido.jp/ravender/ravender....

Near Kanayama-ko is the Ikutura JR station which is the venue for a popular Japanese film 鉄道員. The movie set is still there and is opened for visit
http://town.minamifurano.hokkaido.jp/poppoya/poppoya.ht...

Continue SE and you'll pass the town of Obihiro. For food, Obihiro is famous for its Butadon (pork rice bowl)
http://www.obikan.jp/user-cgi/obihirok/kanko/gurume.cgi...
Obihiro is also the HQ of the popular Rokkatei dessert/sweets shop, esp. for its strawberry chocolate.
http://www.rokkatei.co.jp/meika_w.html
Another popular dessert shop in Obihiro is Cranberry with its famed baked sweet potato/yam
http://www.cranberry.jp/
If you have time, you can also try out Obihiro's interesting yatai alley with about 20 small street-side stalls of BBQ and ramen
http://www.kitanoyatai.com/
About 40 min drive south of Obihiro is Kofuku rail station of a discontinued train line. The station is popular for its name as the place for happiness. People come and place their wish for happiness and a successful marriage. En-route is another rail station, Aikoku which means patriotism. Japanese people love the idea of saying “from patriotism to happiness” on this route.
http://www.city.obihiro.hokkaido.jp/shoukoukankoubu/kan...

liem (guest): Thanks, I will consider that option since we are planning to rent a car for about 2 days & maybe more.

We also planning to include visits to Tenninkyo & Sounkyo Gorge during our stay in Asahikawa. Comparing Furano/Biei area to Tenninkyo/Sounkyo Gorge area, which area is advisable that we should use a rented car to visit?


William5: Wow, Thank you for your suggestions. I never knew that film was filmed from there.

Wonder if anyone know whether there is foot spa/hand spa in either Kushiro or other places listed in our itinerary?

Thank you once again.

There are free of charge hand and foot baths in Lake Akan area.

http://www.lake-akan.com/en/hotsprings/index.html