Hikking in Hokkaido

Your journey begins in Tokyo aboard the iconic shinkansen, gliding through Northern Honshu's diverse landscapes before traversing the Seikan Tunnel to reach Hakodate. Savor lunch and explore this historic port city, known for its charming blend of Japanese and Western influences. 

Afterwards, a local train delivers you to Sapporo, Hokkaido's dynamic capital, with its wide avenues and vibrant atmosphere. Your hotel, conveniently located near the station, provides easy access to the city's bustling entertainment district, where you can discover a world of restaurants, bars, and nightlife.

Breakfast in your hotel. You pick up your hire car and drive away from the city towards the interior of the island and its vast expanses. Your first stop is an astonishing spot from which you can look down on the clouds. 

After lunch you cross a pass offering breathtaking views to reach a valley lost at the foot of a volcanic group. Here, we suggest you leave your car behind for a short walk along a path dotted with wild thermal pools. 

Here you can relax and watch the wildlife before returning to your accommodation, which also has natural hot baths.

Breakfast in your hotel. Head for Lake Akan, famous for its strange marimo, a kind of foamy algae ball living in colonies and a protected species. Akan has 14 thermal springs. They are said to be beneficial for curing certain ailments. 

On the way you pass through a village where you can buy a picnic lunch, as on this day we propose climbing a superb active volcano and its impressive crater with lakes of sulphur. This is an easy hike with some extraordinary views. 

A hot bath and an excellent meal will get you back in the mood before assisting at a show of traditional Ainu dance and music ; the indigenous people who ruled Hokkaido until the 19th century. Check-in at your 3* hotel overlooking the lake.

Breakfast in your hotel. Continue eastwards through Akan National Park. First stop at the observatory of Lake Mashu, the devil's lake of the Ainu. The tip of the island of Hokkaido is home to one of Japan's most beautiful lakes.

In the heart of a volcanic formation, some of the clearest water on the planet under the northern skies of ancient Ezo. Its waters are so transparent that only the magnificent Baikal can compete.

A short hike to Mount Io, dotted with more than 1,500 steam-breathing fumaroles steam. Mount Io literally means 'mountain of sulphur' and is characterised by its intensely sulphurous smell. 

The fumaroles are constantly spewing. You can then enjoy a hot bath overlooking Lake Kussharo before lunch. You then head back west to reach the famous waterfalls with the poetic names of Milky Way and Shooting Star. Your hotel is nearby, in a small spa town nestling at the foot of the mountain.

Breakfast in your hotel. Walk from your hotel to the cable car station. Once at the top, you will be treated to a magnificent panorama of the Asahidake massif, the highest peak in Hokkaido.

After a short 2-hour hike, you return to your hotel and pick up your vehicle. Enjoy lunch en route before discovering the strange site of the Biei blue pond, one of the island's must-see places.

This unusual blue colour is not only due to the sky, which is reflected in the pond. Its secret comes from the nearby Shirahige waterfalls. Other substances, such as sulphur, reach the bottom of the pond, bleaching the stones.

Now it's time to return to the city of Sapporo which we suggest you explore from Mount Moiwa. This night view is reputed to be one of the 3 most beautiful in Japan!

Breakfast in your hotel. We suggest you drive further west to discover the charming historic port town of Otaru. A little further on, you will reach the famous Yoichi whisky distillery.

Built in the early 1930s, its founder wanted to get as close as possible to the climatic conditions in Scotland, where he had married a clan daughter. When his single malt was twice elected the best in the world, it was a real thunderclap in the highlands.

After lunch, we suggest you to visit another extraordinary site, a 180-hectare cemetery created by the genius of Tadao Ando. Not to be missed at any pretext! You will then drive to the airport where you will return the vehicle before flying to Tokyo.