{"id":38599,"date":"2017-07-03T23:13:24","date_gmt":"2017-07-03T15:13:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lifestinymiracles.com\/?p=38599"},"modified":"2019-05-24T08:19:48","modified_gmt":"2019-05-24T00:19:48","slug":"hokkaido-diy-holiday","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lifestinymiracles.com\/2017\/07\/hokkaido-diy-holiday\/","title":{"rendered":"Hokkaido: The Complete DIY Itinerary"},"content":{"rendered":"
Creating Unique Core Memories:<\/strong><\/p>\n We believe in travelling together as a family because of the global exposure it provides for ourselves and the kids. Despite the hassle and costs involved in travelling with children, many of these can be mitigated through early, careful holiday planning. We\u2019ve travelled the world with our daughter since she was 7 months old and she’s since gained a travel buddy in her brother three years ago.<\/p>\n We\u2019ve heard so much about the powdery snow in Hokkaido; besides, the temptation to experience Japanese hospitality and cuisine was too much to resist. From the wife\u2019s meticulous research, she discovered that Hokkaido is very much DIY-able as that would cut down cost quite a bit. So, for our inaugural trip to Hokkaido in December 2016, it would be a very much walk on our own and drive on own trip. It turned out to be simply splendid. You may view more of our Hokkaido travel photos on Instagram if you follow us at @lifestinymiracles<\/strong> and @doting_dad. <\/strong>Click on this hashtag #ohanadoeshokkaido.<\/strong><\/p>\n The Complete DIY Itinerary:<\/strong><\/p>\n Here\u2019s our DIY itinerary:<\/p>\n Day 1: We flew JAL which transited in Tokyo. Upon arrival in Chitose Airport, Hokkaido at 8pm, we realised that the airport shuttle busses have ended their services so we made our way to Sapporo via train. A little more tiring but at least we don’t have to spend a bomb on taxis.<\/p>\n Accommodation: Keio Plaza Sapporo Hotel<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Tips:<\/p>\n Day 2: Day Trip to Otaru <\/strong><\/p>\n We decided to take the day slow and went on a DIY day trip to Otaru using public transport. Famed for its canal, food and quaint shops and not forgetting the legendary Le Tao Cheese Cake.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Tips:<\/p>\n How to get to Otaru <\/strong>From Sapporo<\/strong><\/p>\n There are multiple trains per hour between Sapporo and Otaru along the JR Hakodate Main Line. The one-way trip costs 640 yen and takes 30 minutes by rapid train or 45 minutes by local train. Most of Otaru’s attractions are located less than a 30-minute walk from Otaru Station, making the city convenient to explore by foot. Otaru offered us a glimpse into the local life in Hokkaido. We spent a relaxed afternoon there and headed back to Sapporo before dusk. Do remember that its winter so it gets dark and cold around 4+pm.<\/p>\n Highlights from Otaru:<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Tips:<\/p>\n Day 3: Day Trip to Asahiyama Zoo<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n This zoo gave us one of the best zoo experiences with its wide range of \u2018arctic\u2019 animals in its natural landscape. We spent a full day there and only managed to cover half the exhibits. Read our comprehensive review of the Asahiyama Zoo in this post<\/a><\/strong>. <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Day 3 Night: Sapporo Winter White Illumination <\/strong><\/p>\n We read from online forums that the Winter Illumination in Sapporo is quite phenomenal so despite spending a full day at the Asahiyama Zoo<\/a><\/strong>, we commuted to Odori Park to see the winter lights and German Christmas Market.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Tips:<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Day 4: Self-drive to Lake Toya (from Sapporo)<\/strong><\/p>\n Finally, the day came when we were to take our rented car to start our self-drive journey to Niseko. We stopped at Lake Toya and Noboribetsu <\/strong>to break our journey. Driving in Hokkaido during winter is neither for the faint-hearted nor inexperienced. You are driving on the opposite side of the road and the icy, snowy conditions can reduce visibility and make it difficult to control the vehicle. We share our winter self-drive tips in this post<\/a><\/strong>. Do read if you\u2019re planning on a self-drive holiday too.<\/p>\n Lunch at Lake Hill Farm<\/strong><\/p>\n Seeing this place was like seeing an oasis. After a nail-biting introduction to winter driving in Hokkaido (through the heaviest snowfall in 50 years no less), I was really pleased we could stop and get something warm for our tummies.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n This little quaint cafe serves really delicious custard-filled cream puffs that are baked crisp on the outside but oozing sweetness from the inside. It was seriously delicious. We loved their pizza and coffee too. The environment also so scenic we were reluctant to leave if not for the fact that we had to locate our hotel before the sky gets dark. Highly recommended pit stop!<\/p>\n Accommodation<\/strong>: Lake View Toya Nonokaze Resort <\/strong><\/p>\n Lake Toya is one of many volcanic lakes in a caldera of volcanic lakes which never freezes even in winter! We arrived at the Lake View Toya Nonokaze Resort in the late afternoon and were immediately awestruck by the view. The Lake View Toya Nonokaze Resort<\/a> is a luxury boutique hotel but alas, we found its service impersonal. Anyway, the view and its rooftop onsen did make up for the shortfalls. We enjoyed dining in the hotel\u2019s restaurant with high floor to ceiling windows, offering us an unobstructed view of the scenery outside. So picturesque and calming. Before checking out, we took a quick family photo using the camera’s self-timer mode in our Japanese-styled room which turned out to be a keeper! <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Lake Toya Volcano Museum<\/strong> <\/p>\n Tips:<\/p>\n Day 5: Self-drive to <\/strong>Noboribetsu (<\/strong>Sulfur Place)<\/strong><\/p>\n This is one of the places I can\u2019t forget\u2026In fact, it hits you the moment you are near: the unmistakable smell of sulfur. Yes, welcome to Hokkaido\u2019s Hot Spring Hell Valley \u2013 the nearby attraction of sulfur steam and surreal landscape that attract hordes of tourists to this hillside town. However, for us (families with young children), Noboribetsu offered a better surprise \u2013 the Noboribetsu Marine Park Nixe<\/a><\/strong>! Read on.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Accommodation: Hotel Mahoroba, Noboribetsu<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n We chose this hotel for its hot spring \/ onsen baths but found them quite basic. The staff are generally helpful although they were struggling to converse with us in English. The onsen facility in the hotel is one of the biggest we\u2019ve seen but not surprising as it is Hokkaido\u2019s Hot Spring town. But the onsens are a tad dark and dinghy, particularly their \u2018outdoor\u2019 onsen, which has an indoor concrete slide that slides into the murky onsen. I didn\u2019t feel it was safe. The outdoor onsen was also nothing to shout about as it was covered and fenced up (yes, it was outside but so fenced up and steamy, it felt indoors). It\u2019s dark and slippery. Consider yourself warned.<\/p>\n Tips:<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Highlights of <\/strong>Noboribetsu Marine Park Nixe:<\/strong><\/p>\n After visiting Sapporo, Lake Toya and Noboribetsu, it was time to drive to our final destination \u2013 Niseko, where we would spend the next 5 nights skiing, caf\u00e9-hopping and soaking in more onsens! Read about our Niseko experiences below:<\/p>\n DIY Winter Holiday to Hokkaido, Japan (Dec 2016)<\/strong><\/p>\n Post 1 \u2013 Self-Drive Hokkaido: Winter Driving Tips<\/strong><\/a><\/strong> <\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Creating Unique Core Memories: We believe in travelling together as a family because of the global exposure it provides for ourselves and the kids. Despite the hassle and costs involved in travelling with children, many of these can be mitigated through early, careful holiday planning. We\u2019ve travelled the world with our daughter since she was 7 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":38656,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[67,411,323,25,282,418],"tags":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lifestinymiracles.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/LakeToya05.jpg?fit=1140%2C761&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p59hHF-a2z","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lifestinymiracles.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38599"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lifestinymiracles.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lifestinymiracles.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifestinymiracles.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifestinymiracles.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=38599"}],"version-history":[{"count":82,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifestinymiracles.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38599\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":46070,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifestinymiracles.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38599\/revisions\/46070"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifestinymiracles.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/38656"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lifestinymiracles.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=38599"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifestinymiracles.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=38599"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifestinymiracles.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=38599"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\nPost 2 \u2013 GoSnow Niseko: Ski School for Kids<\/strong><\/a><\/strong>
\nPost 3 \u2013 Ki Niseko Hotel Review<\/strong><\/a><\/strong>
\nPost 4 \u2013 Keio Plaza Sapporo Review<\/strong><\/a><\/strong>
\nPost 5 – Asahiyama Zoo, Hokkaido<\/strong><\/a><\/strong>
\nPost 6 – Hokkaido \u2013 The Complete DIY Itinerary<\/strong><\/a><\/strong>
\nPost 7 – Where to eat in Niseko<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n