Day 1: New Chitose Airport – Furano
The first day of the driving tour. After arrival at New Chitose Airport, head to the car rental shop and hire your car. Today’s destination is Furano City. About 2 hours from the Airport, the extensive basin between mountains has several beautiful nature attractions. The most popular destination would be Farm Tomita, known for its lavender fields. The main flower in this garden is lavender which is at its peak in July, but there are many different kinds of flowers from spring to autumn. Also, the merchandises with lavender are popular as a souvenir.
Accommodation in Furano
Day 2: Furano, Biei & Tomamu
In the mountains in this area, the sea of clouds can be seen in the early morning. Tomamu Unkai Terrace is the observatory terrace, you can see the sunrise coming up from the sea of clouds if the condition is good. You need to get up early and drive around one hour from Furano, but that would be a memorable view. The terrace is opening 5-8 am. After that, we’ll return to Furano and visit Shirogane Blue Pond and Shirahige Waterfall in Biei. The blue of Shirogane Pond looks magical and like a painting or an anime. Shirahige Waterfall is named after the appearance of the waterfall that looks like a white beard.
Accommodation in Furano
Day 3: Sapporo
Sapporo is the capital city of Hokkaido. Sapporo has a lot of tourist sites to visit, museums, theme parks and classic buildings. For Aussie ladies and gentlemen, Sapporo Beer Museum is the best to learn about the history of beer and the city of Sapporo. Thanks to the climate and the vast land, Sapporo has good conditions to brew beer. Sapporo Beer is a popular beer brand in Japan as well as Asahi or Kirin. Children can also join the museum tour, and you can try several kinds of beer at the tasting section during the tour. For lunch, there is a restaurant you can eat jingisukan, Hokkaido local-style lamb barbecue.
Note: Must be 20 years or older – and the driver cannot drink alcohol. Please bring your ID with you. Non-alcoholic beer or soft drinks are available for minors and drivers.
Accommodation in Sapporo
Day 4: Otaru
Otaru is the most beautiful town in Japan. This town has prospered since the early Meiji period, which is after the Edo samurai period, it is just the same as when the Western cultures came to Japan. Townscape somehow gives us the vibes of Europe in the 19s. Japanese travellers eat kaisen-don, fresh seafood rice bowl, or sushi in Sankaku Market. Also, Otaru is known for glass crafts, you can experience making some glass art at several shops.
At night, the town of Otaru shows us a different scape. Otaru Canal is lit up and you feel the history of the town from the buildings along the canal. There is a cruise tour of the canal, the night cruise tour is popular and recommended.
Accommodation in Otaru
Day 5: Otaru & Lake Toya
Another popular site in Otaru is Nikka Whisky Museum in Yoichi. Nikka is the first Japanese brand and the distillery in Otaru is the oldest in Japan. You can learn the history of the top Japanese whiskey brand and how they brew their whisky. They offer distillery tours as well as displays in the museum, you will learn about Nikka through the buildings with Scottish vibes.
Afternoon drives to Lake Toya via Niseko and Mt. Yotei. Mt. Yotei (located in Niseko) is called Hokkaido’s Fuji due to its beautiful and magnificent appearance. You can stop by dairy farms in Niseko to try some of their local and super-fresh produce.
We’ll end today with Lake Toya, one of the top nature destinations in Hokkaido. By public transportation, you might not be able to visit around plenty of attractions in Lake Toya in one day. Staying among the beautiful nature will make you feel as if you were in another world.
Accommodation around Lake Toya
Day 6: Lake Toya & Noboribetsu
Ride a cable car to Mt. Usu and enjoy panoramic views of Lake Toya and the neighbouring mountains. The mt. Usu Ropeway brings you close to the volcano’s summit, and with a short walk from the upper observation deck, you can appreciate views of the Ocean and Mt. Usu’s largest crater. After that, we’ll drive to Noboribetsu region, the most popular hot spring town in Hokkaido. Noboribetsu Jigokudani is a must-see in Noboribetsu. It is easy to take a stroll and catch some impressive pictures of the volcanic gases during a short scenic walk around this former explosive crater area. If you feel like walking some more while you are here, you might also want to dip your feet into the natural foot bath in Oyunuma River, a hot spring river that flows from a nearby pond providing a pristine location for relaxing.
Accommodation in Noboribetsu Onsen Town
Day 7: Noboribetsu Onsen & Lake Shikotsu
After you get fully satisfied with the onsen, you will journey to Lake Shikotsu stopping by several attractions. Date Jidai Village is a theme park of Edo samurai period. The Oyunuma Pond, where the high temperature onsen wells up, is created by volcanic activity and is known as an autumn leaves spot.
Lake Shikotsu is known for the clearness of its water and the nature around the lake. This 40,000-year-old lake is also the second deepest lake in the whole of Japan, with a maximum depth of 363 metres. Thanks to warmer water around the bottom, Lake Shikotsu does not freeze in most winters. The lake’s clear water quality has been ranked the best in the country for eleven straight years. There are quite a few water activities in Lake Shikotu such as kayak or SUP.
Accommodation around Lake Shikotsu or Chitose
Day 8: Return transfer & flight
You’ll have come back around Hokkaido to Chitose today. Return the car and transfer to the Airport and flight to Tokyo or your next destination.
