Hokkaidō
Unlike other museums, where artefacts are kept behind glass, exhibitions here consist of replicas, handmade by members of Sapporo's Ainu community using their own family heirlooms as models. As a result, you can touch everything on display, feeling, for example, the linen-like softness of textiles made from tree bark. The strangely shaped centre is in Kogane-yu, 3km east of Jōzankei.
The Sapporo–Jōzankei bus stops at Kogane-yu (¥650, 50 minutes); the museum is a short walk up from the bus stop.
18.9 MILES
Historic Otaru canal is lined with warehouses from the late 19th and early 20th centuries when this port city served as the financial centre of Hokkaidō…
10.57 MILES
This legendary Sapporo attraction is in the original Sapporo Beer brewery, a pretty, ivy-covered brick building. There's no need to sign up for the tour;…
9.55 MILES
This haven in the heart of the city is fully 13 blocks (1.5km) long, with the TV Tower at its eastern end. Among the green lawns and flower gardens are…
6.84 MILES
This ski-jump slope was built on the side of Ōkura-yama for the Sapporo 1972 Winter Games. At 133.6m it's just slightly shorter than Sapporo TV Tower,…
15.52 MILES
This expansive collection of historical buildings (and some recreations), in Nopporo Shinrin-kōen east of central Sapporo, shows the diversity of…
15.3 MILES
Completed in 2005, this former waste-treatment plant to the northeast of the central city is now an impressive reclaimed green belt. It was originally…
15.58 MILES
This museum does an admirable job of explaining Hokkaidō's multilayered history, from the age of the woolly mammoths to the age of the steam locomotives,…
9.65 MILES
Beating Tokyo Tower by two years, Sapporo TV Tower (147m) arrived in 1956, bringing with it the modern television age. It was designed by 'Dr Tower' Naitō…
2.5 MILES
This small temple fronts a 120m-long cave that has 33 statues of Kannon, the Buddhist deity of compassion, and is dedicated to road workers who lost their…
2. Ōkura-yama Ski Jump Stadium
6.84 MILES
This ski-jump slope was built on the side of Ōkura-yama for the Sapporo 1972 Winter Games. At 133.6m it's just slightly shorter than Sapporo TV Tower,…
7.2 MILES
At 531m, Moiwa-yama has fantastic, panoramic views over the city. Part of the fun is getting there. First you take a gondola for five minutes, then switch…
7.59 MILES
Dating back to 1869, this is one of the oldest shrines in Hokkaidō and is known for its spectacular cherry and plum blossoms in spring. It's inside…
5. Hokkaidō Museum of Modern Art
8.63 MILES
Hokkaidō's top collection of modern art includes many works from artists who were born here, lived here or were inspired by the northern island…
6. Old Sapporo Court of Appeals Building
8.8 MILES
This impressive building at the western end of Ōdōri-kōen was built in 1926, of tuff stone, to serve as Sapporo's High Court. Inside are a few galleries…
9.11 MILES
This sculpture in Ōdōri-kōen by Japanese-American artist Noguchi Isamu is hands-on art at its best: made of black stone to stand out in the snow, the…
8. Hokkaidō University Botanical Garden
9.31 MILES
Among the highlights of this meandering, 14-hectare outdoor garden maintained by Hokkaidō University, is a collection of 200 plants and herbs historically…