Sapporo

A city on a grid

Walk around central Sapporo and you'll notice the streets meet at near-right angles. Running east–west through the middle is Odori Park. It began in 1871 as a firebreak splitting the center into north and south, and today it stretches about 1.5km, from Nishi 1-chome to Nishi 12-chome. At the park's eastern end, in Nishi 1-chome, stands the Sapporo TV Tower. The Sapporo Clock Tower, sitting low among the office blocks, was built in 1878 as the drill hall of the Sapporo Agricultural School, where students did military training and PE. It went up less than 10 years after the first streets were drawn, and it still stands on the same grid.

Odori Park through the year

Odori Park becomes a different venue every season. The Sapporo Snow Festival in February began in 1950, when local junior high and high school students built six snow statues on the Odori 7-chome plaza, where residents used to dump their snow. Since the 6th festival in 1955, the Self-Defense Forces have helped build the giant statues. In mid-May, the Lilac Festival is held among the park's roughly 400 lilac trees. It started in 1959, and the following year the lilac was named Sapporo's city tree. From late July to mid-August, beer gardens run by each brewery fill Nishi 5- to 11-chome. With more than 10,000 seats, it's Japan's largest beer garden. The White Illumination on winter nights began in 1981 with about 1,000 bulbs on the Nishi 2-chome plaza.

Getting around in the snow

As you'd expect in a city this snowy, Sapporo has routes underground. Chi-Ka-Ho, a walkway of about 520m between Sapporo and Odori stations, opened in 2011 and takes about 10 minutes end to end. From Odori Station, the Pole Town shopping arcade runs 400m south to Susukino Station, so you can get from Sapporo Station to Susukino without going outside. Above ground, busy crossings have pedestrian sand boxes. They hold anti-slip sand, and anyone can scoop some out and scatter it on icy patches. If you see sand on a crosswalk, someone ahead of you spread it for whoever came next.

A city you remember by the bowl

Sapporo miso ramen began in 1958, when Morito Ohmiya, the first owner of Aji no Sanpei, introduced his miso broth. The noodles — medium-thick and crinkly — were developed specifically for miso ramen, too. One block south of Susukino Station, Ganso Sapporo Ramen Yokocho has been going as a ramen alley for more than 70 years. Soup curry pairs a light broth with spices. You choose the heat and how much rice you want, then fish out big pieces of Hokkaido-grown vegetables. Jingisukan is lamb grilled on a skillet with a domed center. Some places marinate the meat first; others grill it plain for you to dip in sauce. A newer Sapporo habit is the shime parfait — ending the day with a parfait after work. Start your mornings at a market. At Nijo Market, founded in the early Meiji period, restaurants open at 6am and serve seafood bowls and sushi. At the Curb Market, with around 60 stores, you can pick out crab and other seafood and eat it right there. It's busiest from 8 to 11am, and stock starts running out after that.

Looking down on the grid from Mt. Moiwa

Rising 531m in the middle of the city, Mt. Moiwa gives you a wide view of Sapporo's lights at night. From the base station, the ropeway covers 1,200m in five minutes; at the midway station, you switch to the Mo-risu Car mini cable car, which carries you through the forest to the summit. A round trip on both costs ¥2,100 for adults. At the Night View Summit in October 2015, Sapporo was named one of Japan's New Three Major Night Views, alongside Nagasaki and Kobe. From the top, the lit-up grid running straight out from Odori Park is easy to read, and you'll find yourself tracing the streets you walked that day. The mountain's forest was the first in Hokkaido to be designated a natural monument, in 1921.

Beer history, and beyond downtown

Sapporo's beer story begins in 1876 with the development of Hokkaido. The Sapporo Beer Museum, the most historic beer museum in Japan, is housed in a Meiji-era building designated as Hokkaido Heritage. Admission is ¥1,000 for adults. The guided tour (¥2,000, including admission and two tastings) needs to be booked ahead. Moerenuma Park was designed by sculptor Isamu Noguchi so that the whole park works as a single sculpture. Once a waste disposal site, the land was reborn as an art park over 23 years. Mt. Moere is 62m tall, and whichever path you take, you'll reach the top in 10 minutes. With an extra day, add Jozankei Onsen, in Sapporo's own Minami-ku. The hot spring was discovered in 1866 by an ascetic monk, Miizumi Jozan, and it's under an hour's drive from downtown. The Kappa Liner shuttle bus (reservations required) runs 13 times a day from Sapporo Station, Odori and Susukino. Otaru and Biei are covered in our Hokkaido guide.

A 3-night, 4-day plan

Day 1 — New Chitose Airport → JR Rapid Airport to Sapporo Station (fastest 37 min) → follow Chi-Ka-Ho to Odori Park and the Clock Tower → dinner at Ramen Yokocho Day 2 — Breakfast at Nijo Market → Moerenuma Park → Sapporo Beer Museum → jingisukan dinner Day 3 — Breakfast at the Curb Market → Jozankei Onsen (book the Kappa Liner) → Mt. Moiwa night view → shime parfait Day 4 — Odori Park stroll and the underground malls → airport

What to eat

• Miso ramen (Ramen Yokocho)
• Soup curry (choose your spice level)
• Jingisukan (Sapporo Beer Garden)
• Kaisendon seafood bowl (Nijo and Curb markets)

Handy tips

• On weekends, holidays and Dec 29–Jan 3, the Donichika Kippu subway day pass costs ¥520. The regular subway day pass is ¥830, and both are cash only.
• From March 29 to April 28, 2027, annual maintenance closes the Mt. Moiwa ropeway and mini cable car, plus the scenic road and the summit souvenir shop, so there's no way to ride or drive up.
• The 77th Sapporo Snow Festival runs February 4–11, 2027, at three sites: Odori, Susukino and Tsudome.