10 Things To Do in Hokkaido During Summer

Hello Trippino peeps!

Well, since Blog Beer has published not long ago, we all know summer has arrived. Lots of you might have no idea what to do in Hokkaido during summer, since this place is mostly famous for the beauty of snow in winter. Well, apart from being a Winter Wonderland, Hokkaido can also be a Summer Paradise! You’ll experience Hokkaido’s nice weather, stunning green sceneries, great transportation services, and tons of outdoor festivals and activities. Let me show you some interesting ideas of what to do in this Summer Paradise…

10) Beer Garden

Beer Garden in summer time is an awesome idea. Drinking beer outdoor in tropical warm weather could be so refreshing. Besides, Hokkaido is famous for a specialty called “Genghis Khan” which is a grilled mutton dish. Having beer with Genghis Khan outdoor is one of the most amazing experience.

Are you wondering where is a good place to go?

Follow this link > click <

Odori Beer Garden

9) Driving and Biking through the Greenery

You don’t have to worry about driving or biking in Hokkaido during summer time. Snow is gone, the weather is warm, the roads are safe quite easy to drive and ride a bike. You can find lots of unique sceneries, which you won’t be able to reach by taking trains.

Let’s rent a bike or take your car, and find out the most perfect view in Hokkaido!

You can travel in “Shikisai no Oka” in Biei, even after the Lavender season

8) Epic Hiking

One of the most popular summer activities for the Japanese is hiking. Hokkaido has tons of mountains with epic sceneries on the top for you to choose. There’re a lot of hikers from all over the world coming to Hokkaido to conquer those view on the mountains, especially on the weekends or Obon Festival holidays (in the early August).There are various kinds of plants, trees, and flora in Hokkaido. If you go high enough, you might find some of them in a form of Alpine tundra on the top of some mountain. And the plus is the weather up there is not going to be too hot.

here’re also some easy trail for the beginners, which is located near the city, such as Mount Moiwa. You can reach the top within 1.30 hour, and you can take the cable car on the way down if you want.

วSapporo view from the top of Mount Moiwa, a basic trail for the beginners.

For those who want some more challenges, you can try Mount Niseko, Mount Yotei, or Mount Annupuri. As you can see from the picture down below.

mayuko.tさん(@mayu_vero23)が投稿した写真 - 2016 6月 10 8:59午後 PDT

7) Rafting in the beauty of Niseko Aside from those mentioned land activities, Niseko - a ski resort city - also has summer activities for you to try. The former ski mountains have turned into the vast green forest. Rafting down the Shiribetsu river is a must. The clear water in the river came from melted snow. You can see Yotei Mount as a background while rafting. Negative ions in the water create positive vibes and can make you feel relax. Who knows, there might be fishes swim along with you along the way! You will surely be satisfied within a 3-hour course Interesting, right?  Do you want to know where and how to register for the course? → GoodSports  is a standard travel agency of Niseko. They provide shuttle buses to and from Sapporo and hotels in Niseko. Besides the rafting, they also have lots of adventure courses for you to try, such as canoeing course, rafting course for kids, fishing, etc. Link : http://www.goodsports.co.jp/  Some of activity here. You can see more of them in Facebook. (Click the picture) 

6) Hokkaido Soft Cream

Summer can’t be fulfilled without soft cream! There’re so many choices of flavor, but the most popular one is Hokkaido milk, of course. Soft cream shops are everywhere, or you can even get some from convenient stores and have it at the park like the locals. Well, but the weather is super hot, your soft cream is not going to survive for long. So, take a snap shot and send it to your friends quickly before it’s all gone!

5)Delightful Uni Uni, a Japanese name for sea urchin, is a kind of pricey food in Japan. Hokkaido’s Uni is known to be a must to try in summer, especially in Shakotan which is located 1 hour away from the west of Otaru. Shakotan is famous for their fresh Uni, since their Uni dishes taste so fresh, sweet, and creamy. That’s the reason why a large number of tourists come to Shakotan’s coasts in summer. Even local people in Hokkaido comes to have fresh and creamy Uni at Shakotan. Cape Kamui in Shakotan is a famous tourist attraction, because of their clear blue sea. 

4)  Wearing Yukata, and enjoy Firework Festival Yukata is a Japanese traditional costume for summer. Most people might recognise it from Onsen places, but this kind of costume can also be a casual costume to wear to Japanese festival. It would be so unique and pretty to wear it as a couple or together with your group of friends. You can even buy it from department stores as a souvenir (FYI, you can get them ONLY in summer). You can wear it to firework festivals with your friends. Strike a post and take pictures! Don’t forget to use a Japanese fan as a prop. So, yeah, you should definitely go for Yukata and watch some firework this summer! FYI: It’s going to be fireworks everyday around Toya Lake until the end of October.  

Aika Amanoさん(@ai_amn)が投稿した写真 - 2016 8月 2 10:23午後 PDT

Wearing Yukawa, watching fireworks, while sipping some beer is a real spirit of Japanese summer!

3) Shopping for Summer Outfit

Well, summer outfit is the only kind of clothes that you can buy from Japan and be able to wear them in Thailand. So, let’s go shopping for cool, pretty, and unique summer outfit! You can also get colourful sneakers from Japan in summer as well.

Around Sapporo JR Station area is full of popular department stores.

2) Whales and Bears Sightseeing at Shiretoko

As well as dazzling Drift Ice in winter, Shiretoko’s summer is also noted as an amazing wildlife sightseeing. Their highlight is the whales, which are not afraid to swim around and show how graceful they are to people! According to the statistic, you can find lots of whales in summer around Shiretoko’s coasts. You'll also be able to see some bears coming around the area. And if you're lucky, you might get a chance to see a group of seals laying on the rocks. So, don’t miss an opportunity to meet these amazing creatures! Would you like to book for a tour? Here! http://kamuiwakka.jp/english-booking.php

You might be able to meet these bears chilling around the coast area.

 The whales are mostly coming around in summer! (as in the picture below).

Chika Murakamiさん(@noamu42)が投稿した写真 - 2016 8月 8 6:37午前 PDT

1) Don’t miss the Pure White Corn You can’t say you’ve been to Hokkaido in summer if you haven’t tried the Pure White corns! In addition to melons and the other things that can be harvested in summer, the Pure White corn is what we would like to recommend! The best time to harvest Pure White corn is in the middle of August, but you can get them until the end of September. You can have it raw, and let it pops in your mouth just like candies. No need to steam it like the other kinds of corn. Just peel it, wash it, and munch it!   You can get Pure White corns from supermarkets, car resting areas, or even the farms’ carts.  

Trippino Hokkaidoさん(@trippinohokkaido)が投稿した写真 - 2015 9月 9 10:42午後 PDT

You can either have it raw, or steamed. Your choice!

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