| Admission | Free |
| Opening Hours | 9:00 - 17:00 June to mid August |
| Closed | Winter |
| Contact | 0167-44-4488 |
| Notes | Best viewing times from July to early August Restaurant on site, Kirara Toilets on site Free parking Wi-fi Shops - lavender goods, light snacks, soft creams |
| Location / Getting There | 13 minute drive from Furano station 12 minute walk from Lavender Farm station. JR line 2-1 Miyamachi, Nakafurano, Sorachi District, Hokkaido 071-0753 |
Stunning views
There are plenty of beautiful flower viewing areas in the Nakafurano area, and the Choei Lavender Farm and the Flower Park are no exception. The Choei Lavender Farm is a hill covered in a kaleidoscope of color, as the summer flowers start to bloom, including four kinds of lavender, sunflower, marigold and salvia. The hill also serves as a playground for skiers and snowboarders during the cold winters. There is a single-chair lift ride to the top of the hill offering sweeping views of the carpet of flowers and also down over the Furano valley and the Tokachi mountain range. This hillside is also the venue of the Nakafurano Lavender Festival, the town’s biggest event in mid July. There is parking at the bottom of the fields of flowers plus small stalls selling souvenirs and delicious ice-cream for those warm sunny days.
Ski lift prices
Cost per person ￥400 adults
￥200 children
Opening Hours 9:00 - 17:00
June 23rd to August 31st
Closed -
Notes No pets allowed
Flower park
Directly adjacent to the Choei Lavender Farm, is the Nakafurano Flower Park. The park is a large grass area with walkways and a viewing platform that has nice sights over the park as well as the Choei Lavender Farm. There are some benches to rest your feet and take in the smells and sun during the summer, or just to take a stroll. The flower park has a fountain and you will also find a nice curry restaurant here. The restaurant, Kirara, serves up delicious lunches. Take your pick of vegetable, beef, or chicken curries. They also have sushi available. Perfect meal for a perfect day out!
Pricing Guide
(Avg. cost per person)￥600 - ￥1200
Opening Hours 10:00 - 16:00
Contact 0167-44-4488
Closed -
Notes Non smoking
| Admission | Free |
| Opening Hours | 8:30 - 17:00 |
| Closed | Tuesdays *Open every day in July & August |
| Contact | 0166-94-3354 http://www.kaikukiln.com/ |
| Notes | Free parking No photos allowed inside Ceramics for sale |
| Location / Getting There | 20 minutes by car from JR Biei Station. 20 minutes by Dohoku Bus from in front of Biei Station. Shirogane, Biei-cho, Kamikawa-gun, Hokkaido |
One of the many sculptures
Kaiku Kiln Museum is a large, quiet homestead that is home to a gallery, kiln room, workshop, and house. The Kaiku Kiln property is located between the Blue Pond, which is a five minute drive away, and the ‘Biei Shirokanebiruke’ road station. The Blue Pond and road station can get quite crowded during the summer, so the gallery is a nice place to take a pleasant stroll and look at the sculptures, and get away from the crowds. The grounds are covered in various sculptures created from wood, clay, and metal, and there is a small rock path that crosses through the trees.
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One of the buildings
The gallery itself is located on the left of the entrance. The sculptures displayed at the gallery, are by local prominent artists. The gallery also serves as a shop where you can buy some fantastic ceramic dishes and serveware. These works are not cheap but they are high quality. Photos of the works in the gallery are not allowed, though photos outside are permitted. There is free parking available for those with transport. To getting to the gallery is a twenty minute drive from Biei station. There is also the Dohoku bus that stops in front of the station.
| Admission | Free admission |
| Opening Hours | All day |
| Closed | - |
| Contact | 0166-94-3355 0166-92-1181 : sightseeing taxi service 'Biei Hire' |
| Notes | Parking available Rental car recommended to visit |
| Location / Getting There | It takes about 20 minutes by car from JR Biei Station. A 2 and a half hour drive from Sapporo Shirogane, Biei-cho Kamikawa District, Hokkaido 071-0235 |
Beautiful colors
The Blue Pond (known as Aoi-ike in Japanese) is a man-made pond that can be found in the scenic province of Biei. After the eruption of Mount Tokachi in 1988, work was carried out on the Biei river dam to prevent the destructive effect of volcanic mudflow on the town of Biei. The Blue Lake is just one of a number of ponds that were artificially born as a by-product of the dam construction. The amazing blue color of the pond comes from minerals in the water, colloidal aluminium hydroxide. This means absolutely no swimming, but you can enjoy the beautiful scenery of the pond.
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Peaceful
The blue hue of the water has subtle changes depending on the weather and the season. In the winter you can get some beautiful photos of the pond in the snow. And on a nice sunny day the blue sky is reflected stunningly in the Blue Pond waters. To get to the pond you can drive, but if you don’t have your own access to transport, then there are tour buses that run during the summer. Alternatively, a rental car is a good choice as there is plenty to see while in Biei and the Furano area. For trains, the JR Furano Line connects Furano with Biei and Asahikawa. Trains run roughly once per hour, and the one way trip between Furano and Biei takes about 40 minutes, costs ￥640 and is covered by the Japan Rail Pass and Hokkaido Rail Pass.
Getting there from Sapporo
From Sapporo get on the Hokkaido Expressway at the Sapporo interchange (IC) and get off at Mikasa IC, then go pass Katsurazawa Dam and through Furano (about 150km).
A smooth journey here will take around 2½ hours.
Getting there from Chitose Airport
From the New Chitose Airport, use the Dōtō Expressway and get off at Shimukappu, then head north through the town of Furano.
Getting there from Chitose Airport
From the New Chitose Airport, use the Dōtō Expressway and get off at Shimukappu, then head north through the town of Furano. The distance of this route is around 160km, and will take about 3 hours.
Getting there from Asahikawa
From Asahikawa, drive south towards Furano and go through Biei to reach the Blue Pond. From Asahikawa Station, it takes around 1 hour 10 minutes (about 45km), and from Asahikawa Airport, it takes roughly 40 minutes (about 30km).
| Admission | ￥300 Adults ￥100 Children |
| Opening Hours | 9:00 - 16:30 |
| Closed | Mondays Winter (November to mid April) |
| Contact | 0135-22-5600 |
| Notes | Parking available |
| Location / Getting There | Located on main road in Yoichi region. 1 hour 30 minute drive from Sapporo. 150−1 Hamanakachō, Yoichi-chō, Yoichi-gun, Hokkaidō 046-0021 |
During the Edo period, the coastal waters off Hokkaido in the Sea of Japan once flourished with herring. It was here in Yoichi that the fishing buildings were built. The fishing buildings and grounds were repaired and restored by the Fukuhara family until 1868. Now, you can take a step back in time and get a real sense of what life was like one hundred and fifty years ago. This valuable historic site can be accessed by car and is a must see while in the town of Yoichi.
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Inside the old treasury
The very reasonable price of admission will get you into the large grounds where you will find around half a dozen large buildings. Four of these you may enter. The largest building at the center of the grounds, is the first building that is noticeable from the road as you are driving along. This three story building used to serve as a secure treasury building for the local towns money and gold, hence the fortified windows around the building. Now it serves as a museum for artifacts over the last century. It overlooks the old grounds that were used for cutting and processing the herring.
Living quarters
The other buildings that may be entered include the fishing storage, that contains dozens of paintings, dioramas, and a fishing boat. It is a great building to stop by to study the history and folklore. The other, and equally fascinating building is also an old style home, that upon entering, shoes must be taken off. This house gives an interesting insight into living conditions in the past. They have tea rooms, old household items, and photographs of life One of the rooms has an antique hairdesser’s chair that was handled by some barber, now long gone.
So, for a nice (and cheap) day out, the Old Fukuhara Herring House is a great spot to visit. Not only, is the road out a nice drive, or ride, along the coast, but the Herring House is a place steeped in history. To get there, follow the Yoichi National Highway (route 5), which is a turn off to the right, after you pass through the small city of Otaru.
| Admission | Free |
| Opening Hours | 10:00 - 12:00 14:00 - 16:00 *Tuesdays are mornings only |
| Closed | Mondays Stormy weather |
| Contact | 011-511-9624 http://www.ssc.slp.or.jp/planet/sapporo-obs |
| Notes | Observatory has day time & night time viewings. Planet viewing depending on schedule |
| Location / Getting There | Located in Nakajima Park. 5 minute walk from Nakajima koen subway exit 3 1-17 Nakajima-koen,Chuo-ku,Sapporo 064-0931, Hokkaido |
Located in Nakajima Park
If you enjoy sightseeing and checking out the sights, then this is the ultimate in sightseeing. Instead of seeing the local sightseeing spots in Hokkaido, you will be gazing in wonder at the planets and stars! If you have never been to an observatory before, it is a must see. Built in 1960, it is easily accessed in Nakajima Park, which can be found just to the south of central Sapporo. It is free to enter in the mornings and afternoons, and is manned by super friendly staff/astronomers who are more than happy to help and show you the wonders of the skies.
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A close up of Venus!
Throughout the year, there are cosmic events that are constantly on show. Whether it be a comet, a blood moon, a planet in close orbit with the earth, or a meteor, to name a few. During these times the observatory is open for the public to come in and get a close up view of these marvels. For the annual schedule you can check their website, or pick up a flyer at the observatory. If there are no other visitors, and you have a Canon camera, then the staff can attach it to their telescope for some great shots! While in Sapporo, the observatory is a place to see.
| Admission | Free |
| Opening Hours | 10:00 - 16:00 Old Kitami Station 8:30 - 22:00 Takinoue Culture Center |
| Closed | Winter (November to April) - Museum |
| Contact | 0158-29-3735 (cultural center) |
| Notes | Train museum Part of the cultural center |
| Location / Getting There | Located next to the Takinoue Cultural Center Sakaemachi, Takinoue, Monbetsu District, Hokkaido 099-5605 |
Train apparatus
Even though Takinoue doesn’t have a train station, they do have a small museum dedicated to train memorabilia known as the ‘Old Kitami Takinoshi Station’. Opened in 1990, it’s an interesting place with plenty of exhibits with information about the station, and over three hundred items from the train stations of old. All the signs are in Japanese but you can still enjoy these items from over fifty years ago. The train museum is located right next to the Takinoue Cultur Center so it’s easy to find. Just look for the small blue train engine on the tracks.
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Culture center
The Takinoue Culture Center is located only a few minutes drive from the center of town. The culture center is used in Takinoue for events and for concerts that are held monthly. Apart from the stage area that is on the second floor, there is the Takinoue Library on the first floor. There are lounges and a tea area and restrooms. It is also here you can find information on local events and festivals. There is plenty of parking and also a bus stop so access is easy. If you have some time, and are interested in a bit of history (and trains), then the Old Kitami Takinoshi Station is a cheap and quick sightseeing spot.
