Japan

Sapporo

Snowy capital of Hokkaido

Japan's northernmost big city — beer, ramen, ski runs at the city limit, and a winter festival of city-block-sized ice sculptures.

When to go

February for the Snow Festival; June–September for cool hiking.

Getting around

Three colour-coded subway lines plus an underground arcade that beats the winter.

Sapporo highlights

The top places to start with if you only have a day or two — the essentials before you go deeper.

No. 01 · Landmark

Odori Park

The 1.5 km spine of central Sapporo

A 12-block linear park hosting the Snow Festival in February and beer gardens in summer.

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No. 02 · Museum

Sapporo Beer Museum

Japan's only beer museum, in a 19th-century brick brewery

Tells the story of Japanese beer since 1876 and ends with a tasting flight in the original brewhouse.

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No. 03 · Landmark

Mount Moiwa

One of Japan's three top night views

A 531 m peak with a ropeway and mini-cable car to the summit, looking back across the entire grid of Sapporo.

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Things to do in Sapporo

A curated mix of landmarks, neighborhoods, and museums worth your time in Sapporo, Japan — grouped by type below.