Why go?

During winter, the capital of Japan’s northern island of Hokkaido is a mecca for winter sports enthusiasts – its slopes less than an hour away by bus from the city centre. When the season changes, around April, cherry blossom brightens up the streets and parks. Japanese also travel to Sapporo, Japan’s fourth most- populous city, just to taste the super-fresh crab or the legendary miso ramen – and to escape the summer heat in Tokyo.

What to do

Gastronomy is where Sapporo excels, so start your visit at Curb Market near Nijuyonken subway, which is the public part of the wholesale market. Wander around 60 stores selling Hokkaido produce, including its famous melons and seafood. Sapporo is the home both of Japanese beer and whisky. The former is celebrated at the Beer Museum and Beer Garden (sapporobeer.jp), though in truth, mainstream Sapporo beer is fairly bland (seek out craft brews instead). That is not something that can be said of the best local whiskies, some of which – particularly those from Nikka Whisky’s Yoichi distillery 50km out of town (nikka.com) – are considered among the world’s best. Miyanomori International Museum of Art (miyanomoriart.jp) is housed in a shiny white building and displays a range of late 20th-century art from Japan and around the world. The landmark Sapporo TV Tower is located in Odori Park, a mile-long promenade in the city centre where locals meet and stroll. There are plenty of festivals held here in warmer months too. For a blast of Sapporo nightlife, the central Susukino district offers pretty much all the fun of Tokyo.

Where to stay

Sapporo offers generally much better value hotels than Tokyo, though many are somewhat staid in comparison. Cross Hotel (00 81 11 272 0010, crosshotel.com) is the city’s trendiest option. Located a few minutes’ walk from Odori Park, Susukino and the main railway station, it boasts a contemporary Japanese design. Also central, and more personal, Nakamuraya Ryokan is a traditional B&B with tatami rooms and dinner served in your room (00 81 11 241 2111, nakamuraya.com). The city’s flagship hotel, in business since 1934, is the four-star Sapporo Grand (00 81 11 261 3311, grand1934.com). It is connected by tunnel to the railway station and boasts the usual impressive range of high-end Japanese hotel facilities, including a gym, shopping mall and several restaurants.=“http:>

Where to eat and drink

Sapporo has its fair share of fine dining establishments – such as legendary ‘kaiseki’ (multi-course) restaurant Nakumi (00 81 11 210 6858), or Sushi Tanabe (00 81 11 520 2202, sushitanabe.com) – but it does casual that much better. Hokkaido salmon is famous in Japan and some of the country’s best sushi can be found in Sapporo. Its other specialities are crab, Mongolian barbecue and ramen. Renowned crab restaurant Kani-Honke in Susukino (00 81 11 222 0018, kanihonke.jp) offers delicate snow, hairy and king crabs. Ramen Alley in Susukino is an accessible way into the local soup-noodle scene, with 17 different ramen joints. Make sure you go to the older, original half of the Alley – which is bisected by a road – as the first half, in the ground floor of an office block, is less atmospheric. Hokkaido is the home of miso ramen, one of the most addictive substances on Earth, and the butter-corn ramen is good too. Don’t miss the locally caught sea urchin and salmon roe at the great-value seafood restaurants in 100-year-old Nijo fish market near Odori station. Jingisukan (Genghis Khan), the Japanese answer to the Mongolian barbecue, is another Hokkaido favourite, in which mutton is cooked over a domed hot plate, along with fresh vegetables. It gets pretty smoky, as do your clothes. Mini- chain Jingisukan Daruma Rokuyon has a few of these restaurants located around the Susukino district (00 81 11 533 8929).

Time running out?

Mount Moiwa, 531m up, is where locals and tourists gather to marvel at Sapporo by night. The peak boasts incredible panoramic city views and can be reached by cable car

Travel Information

Travel Information

Currency is the yen. Sapporo is nine hours ahead of GMT. Sapporo is a 16-hour journey from London. Vanilla Air (vanillaair.com) offers inexpensive domestic flights from Tokyo.

Getting There

British Airways (ba.com) flies from London Heathrow to Sapporo via Tokyo daily.
Japan Airlines (jal.com) also flies daily from London Heathrow.

Resources

Japan National Tourism Organisation (jnto.go.jp) has a range of itineraries and information on festivals and events.