Must-see nightlife in Hokkaidō

  • Tea Shop Yūhi

    Hokkaidō

    Filling the halls of a wooden building from 1885 (actually the old Hakodate Quarantine Office) is this magical teahouse overlooking the water. It's lit…

  • Coffee Shop Tirol

    Hokkaidō

    Tirol may have only opened a few years ago, but the owner has kept the 70-year-old building lovingly intact, with a suitably vintage interior and jazzy…

  • Sapporo Biergarten

    Sapporo

    This complex next to the Sapporo Beer Museum has no fewer than five beer halls, the best of which is Kessel Hall, where you can tuck into jingisukan…

  • Teishaba

    Hokkaidō

    Inside the 90-year-old Kita-Hama Station, operating since 1986, Teishaba is decked out to look like a vintage rail car, with wood and burgundy-velour…

  • Onsen Kōbō Akan

    Hokkaidō

    This is brilliant: a cafe with an ashi-yu (foot bath) so you can soak your feet while sipping coffee (¥250). There's food available, too; try the 'zari…

  • Orchard Grass

    Hokkaidō

    This cafe is inside historic Kawayu Station (built in 1936), which retains much of its original character – in the form of high, wood-panelled ceilings,…

  • Mugishutei

    Sapporo

    At Sapporo's original hub for craft-heads you can choose from a selection of 250 beers, including many from owner Phred Kauffman's line of Ezo beers,…

  • Sprout

    Niseko

    This popular hang-out run by a former outdoor guide serves Niseko's best coffee. It's 100m up the road from JR Kutchan Station, decked out like a very…

  • Cafe Morihiko

    Sapporo

    Set in a teeny-tiny old wooden house, with red eaves and clinging ivy, this cafe delivers big on ambience. The hand-poured coffee (¥580 to ¥700) and…

  • Riviera

    Sapporo

    Glitzy shows and elaborate, pricey cocktails make this a memorable night out. ID is mandatory, so travellers will need their passports on hand.

  • Taisetsu Ji-bīru-kan

    Hokkaidō

    To try the local brew, walk east of JR Asahikawa Station for five minutes to this red-brick warehouse turned beer hall. You can drink it, buy it, try the…

  • Hakodate Beer

    Hokkaidō

    Hakodate Beer makes its beer right here on the bay with groundwater from Hakodate-yama. You can buy bottles or sample the brews on tap, served here along…

  • Brau Haus Ōnuma

    Hokkaidō

    Come here to sample the local microbrew, Ōnuma Beer (大沼ビール), on tap – or get bottles to go.

  • 500 Bar

    Sapporo

    Thanks to reasonable prices and no cover charge, this bar is usually packed with a mix of foreign and local clientele, even on weekdays. Drinks have gone…