| Admission | Free |
| Opening Hours | Open 24 hours |
| Contact | - |
| Notes | Sightseeing spot , parking available, short walking trail |
| Location / Getting There | 12 minute drive from Toyako Onsen on the southern edge of Lake Toya Takinomachi, Machi Sobetsu, Usu District, Hokkaido 052-0101 |
The path up past the shrine.
Sobetsu Waterfall can be found on the southern edge of Lake Toya. It is a beautiful waterfall, where you can take a nice walk to its base. You can get some great photos and experience the waterfall up close. To get to the waterfall you need to follow the road down on route 2 keeping Sobetsu river on your left (coming from Toyako Onsen). At the bottom of the hill, make a U-turn and cross over the river and follow the small road keeping the river on your left. There will be parking on the left hand side. Once parked, simply follow the winding path until you reach the waterfall.
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The flowing stream
The walk to the waterfall is a nice stroll and it takes about 8 minutes to get there. On the way you can enjoy the flowing stream and the surrounding trees creating a picturesque scene. The path crosses over the river twice over small bridges. On the way to the falls you can also find a small Buddhist Shrine on the left. With the falls in the background, this small shrine is also a good spot to get some photos. The path reaches a small wooden viewing platform about 10 metres from the falls. This wooden platform can get slippery so make sure you hold on to the rail. Sobetsu Waterfall is a beautiful spot to visit.
| Admission | Free |
| Closed | - |
| Contact | 011-511-0262 |
| Notes | Buddhist temple |
| Location / Getting There | Located in central Sapporo, 2 minute walk from Hosuisusukino subway station. 6 minute walk from Susukino & Nakajima park subway station. 1-chōme-2 Minami 6 Jōnishi, Chūō-ku, Sapporo, Hokkaido 064-0806 |
Nice little garden inside the walls
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Beautiful Japanese style garden
The temple of Shinzenko has over a hundred years of history, being built in 1884. It is here, the teaching of the jodo sect focuses on the “ritual recitation of the Nembutsu” (meaning the follower is opening themselves up to light and salvation). Followers believe this recitation benefits not just the speaker, but the entire world as well. There are three floors inside the temple itself and include up to one thousand burial urns. Throughout the year, the temple has special Buddhist ceremonies on their calendar. Being in the entertainment district, the temple is not a far walk from the Susukino and Nakajima Koen subway stations making it an easy place to access.
| Admission | Free |
| Opening Hours | Open 24 hours |
| Closed | - |
| Contact | 011-621-0453 |
| Notes | Various shrines in park, restrooms in park, sightseeing spot, Hokkaido Shrine, parking available |
| Location / Getting There | Located in west Sapporo. 5 minute walk from Maruyama subway station 3 Miyagaoka, Chuo Ward, Sapporo, Hokkaido 064-0959 |
Kaitaku Shrine
There are three main parks in the city of Sapporo, Odori park, Nakajima park, and Maruyama Park. Completed in 1957, Maruyama Park (known as Maruyama Koen) is a popular park, and is a great sightseeing spot, as it is home to almost a dozen shrines of various sizes. The largest and most popular of these being Hokkaido Shrine. In its large area of 68 hectares, you can also find Maruyama Zoo plus Maruyama sports stadium and baseball field. The entrance to the hiking track up Maruyama can be found across from Maruyama Park.
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Cherry blossom season
The park is beautiful in all seasons, though it is most popular during the cherry blossom season at the start of May. With over 1500 sakura trees, thousands of locals flock to the park and enjoy the hanami (cherry blossom festival). The park is divided into two main parts, the main entrance can be found at the lower section. Taking the stone stairways up and under the huge torii (Japanese gate) will bring you to most of the shrines, the cherry blossom trees during spring, and Hokkaido Shrine, and Maruyama Zoo.
The park is a great spot to take a stroll, have a picnic, and take in the sights.The park contains virgin forest of various trees including Oak, Magnolia, Maple and Katsura (Japanese Judas tree). The park is a designated natural monument. and on the hillside of the park, there are giant Elm and Cypress trees.
| Mt Tengu Ropeway | ¥1200 Adult round trip ¥600 Child round trip *discount for groups of 20 or more ¥1500 Adults round trip ticket + ¥800 meal coupon: |
| Opening Hours | 9:30 - 21:00 |
| Closed | - |
| Contact | 0134-33-7381 |
| Notes | Observatory, gift shop, restaurants, hiking path, Squirrel park, shrine, snow gallery, Wheelchair access |
| Location / Getting There | Take the Chuo (#9 天狗山ロープウエイ線) bus from Otaru station terminal, or Otaru canal terminal. Get off at "Tenguyama" (last stop). Takes about 15 minutes. 2-chōme-16-16 Mogami, Otaru, Hokkaido 047-0023 |
Great views
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“Tengu” of Japanese folklore
Once alighting the cablecar, you will first enter the gift shop and restaurant, where you can sit and have lunch, dinner or coffee. If you need lockers, there are a few here for ¥500 for the day, and which are cheaper than the lockers at the bottom of the mountain. It is here too, you can see the Otaru Winter Museum, and the Tengu Hall which has fantastic Tengu masks on display. Outside, there is “Nausea’s Tengu”, a giant Tengu sculpture, which if you touch the nose, your wishes will come true. Behind this is a squirrel enclosure (open only during the summer), and a shrine, known as “Tengusan Shrine”. The shrine in the evening is lit by lanterns and is especially beautiful during this time.
One of the observation points
Circling around the top of the mountain is a small hiking path. It takes about 25 minutes to walk around. It is a pleasant walk and while walking around there are a couple of clear vantage points that offer beautiful views over the surrounding area. Finally, for kids and adults there is a downhill bobsled track that runs for 400 meters. The track costs ¥500 for adults and ¥300 for children. The track is closed during bad weather. All this during the summer, and during the winter there is skiing and snowboarding as well! A great place for family and friends.
Impressive views up
To get to the mountain, you can drive or take a bus. Buses leave from Otaru station, and Otaru canal bus terminal. For night viewing, there is an ‘Otaru Nightview Shuttle Bus’ (小樽夜景シャトルバス). This shuttle bus leaves from the the Otaru Grand Park Hotel at 18:50 and 19:20. It does a run through Otaru, stopping further at Hotel Otaru Furukawa, Hotel Sonia, Hotel Nord, Otaru Canal Bus Terminal, The Bank of Japan Otaru Museum, Inaho Jujigai, and the Otaru Train Station Bus Teminal. It operates from the end April until the start of November and costs ¥210 per adult, and ¥110 per child.
| Admission | Free |
| Opening Hours | Open 24 hours |
| Closed | - |
| Contact | 0139-42-2449 |
| Notes | Photography spot |
| Location / Getting There | 6 hour drive from Sapporo or 2 hour bus ride from Hakadote. Matsujo, Matsumae-cho, Matsumae-gun, Hokkaido, Japan 049-1511 |
Peaceful
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Graveyard of the Matsumae Lords
Walking among the stone pathways and moss covered gardens is a real treat. Another feature of this area is the graveyard of the local Matsumae Lords. The trees surrounding the headstones and tombs make for a fantastic setting, with which to wander and take the quiet beauty of the graveyard. There is also a fantastic 200 year old Kechimyaku Sakura (bloodline cherry). The temples are especially beautiful during late April and early May, as the cherry blossoms (with which Matsumae is famous) are in full bloom. Make sure to bring your camera as you stroll through the historic buildings and paths.
| Admission | ¥360 Adults / ¥290 Group ¥240 Students / ¥190 Group Children free *Groups of 10 or more |
| Opening Hours | 9:00 - 17:00 April 10 to December 10 |
| Closed | Winter |
| Contact | 0139-42-2216 |
| Notes | Wheelchair access April & May busy, need early reservations for hotels, weeks in advance |
| Location / Getting There | 6 hour drive from Sapporo or 2 hour bus ride from Hakadote. Matsujo, Matsumae-cho, Matsumae-gun, Hokkaido, Japan 049-1511 |
Sunset on the hill
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Great spot for photos
The castle is most popular during the months of April & May due to its vast array of stunning cherry blossom trees, during which the Matsumae Sakura festival is held. The castle is located in Matsumae Park. The park boasts 10,000 cherry blossoms of 250 different kinds of varieties. Many of these cherry blossoms descend from a 200 year old Kechimyaku Sakura (bloodline cherry) also found on the grounds. The castle is a great spot to visit, as there is a lot to see and do in the area. The seashore town of Matsumae is also steeped in history.
How to get there
Matsumae is a town located at the very bottom of Hokkaido and from Sapporo, it takes a while to get there. Having your own transport is the optimum means of getting there. To rent a car would be the cheapest and fastest way. For those who can only take public transport, train and then bus are your options.
| From Sapporo to Hakadote | Super Hokuto Limited Express Super Hokuto 12 (platform 4) 3 hours and 30 minutes | ¥8,830 |
| Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto Station to Kikonai Station | Tohoku-Hokkaido Shinkansen Hayabusa Hayabusa 34 towards Tokyo (platform 11) 12 minutes | ¥3,250 |
| Kikonai Station to Kikonai Ekimae Bus Stop | Walk 5 minutes | - |
| Kikonai Ekimae Bus Stop to Matsushiro (Matsumae) Bus Stop | 6:20, 7:38, 9:00, 11:10, 12:10*, 14:52, 15:20, 16:50*, 17:55*, 19:15 90 minutes | ¥1370 |
| Matsushiro Bus Stop to Matsumae Castle | Walk 400 meters 5 minutes | - |
How to get back
| Matsumae Castle to Matsushiro (Matsumae) Bus Stop | Walk 400 meters 5 minutes | - |
| Matsushiro (Matsumae) Bus Stop to Kikonai Ekimae Bus Stop | 5:22*, 6:21, 7:20*, 8:44, 9:50*, 10:37, 12:34, 14:22, 15:52, 18:03 90 minutes * to Hakodate | ¥1,370 |
| Kikonai Ekimae Bus Stop to Kikonai station | Walk 5 minutes | - |
| Kikonai Station to Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto Station | Tohoku-Hokkaido Shinkansen Hayabusa Hayabusa 23 towards Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto 12 minutes | ¥3,250 |
| Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto Station to Sapporo | Hokuto or the Super Hokuto Limited Express on the Hakodate Line. 3 hours 30 minutes | ¥8,830 |