Hello! First of all, excuse me if my english is a little rusty, I havent practiced in a while!
We (my husband and I) are travelling to Japan in october and we are a little lost on our itinerary. We first came to Japan 6 years ago where we visited: Tokyo and Mt Fuji, Kanazawa, Kyoto and Nara, Hiroshima, Miyajima, rabbit island Okunoshima and Osaka.
We were able to come back 3 years later, where we toured a little through the south part, Fukuoka and Yufuin (really loved this place).
Luckily my husband supports my love for Japan! And we booked a trip in october, 4 weeks in total. Super excited to go back because I really wanted to visit northern Japan. I’ve been reading a lot through this forum with updates tips and looking itineraries, but everywhere I’ve looked, there is like a “gap” between Tokyo and Sapporo. We are not in a hurry and we would like to stay in towns like Yufuin for some days, and some onsen towns.
Our initial plan was to take the shinkansen from Toyko up north and make some stops before me arrived at Sapporo, but I cant find where we should visit!
I would like to ask some advice on how to plan this trip: if there are places between Tokyo and Sapporo worth visiting, and how to proceed from there. We like the combination between cities and nature, and not too interested in night life. I am sorry I dont have many details regarding our itinerary, we just started planning! Thank you very much in advance!
7 comments
Look into Sendai! Definitely an overlooked city and it’s on the way to Sapporo. It’s the city of trees.
Morioka, in Iwate prefecture, was recently listed in the NY Times as a recommended destination in Japan (#2 on their list of worldwide destinations). I haven’t been (only passed through on the shinkansen), but my friend lived there and said the natural beauty nearby is great.
I have been to Akita, Nyuto Onsen area specifically, and that was fantastic (if hot springs are your bag). Nice landscape as well.
Also, you might consider heading to northeastern Hokkaido to the Shiretoko Peninsula. The wildlife is fantastic, and I know of an amazing ryokan/onsen nearby. Literally the best I’ve ever been to (and I’ve been to a lot). It’s kind of a secret hideaway that I’m somewhat protective of, so DM me if you want the details.
I recently explored the Tohoku region for a week and it was gorgeous! I’d personally recommend staying at Sendai (from where you can visit the beautiful Matsushima bay), and in Morioka (from where it’s easy to explore Iwate and Akita prefectures). The old Samurai town of Kakunodate in Akita was one of my personal favourites
How about Hakodate?
I’m actually going to be spending about a month north of Tokyo in October also. Here’s some main spots I have on my itinerary. I’m guessing you are taking only public transport? So I will try divvying up these spots based on ease of using public transport to get to:
**Easy (basically train only):**
Matsushima, Hachinohe (for the sunday morning market), Nikko, Kakunodate, Yahiko Shrine/ropeway
**Medium (should be manageable with train & bus):**
Bandai-san, Lake Tazawa, Oirase Gorge, Okunikko, Ouchijyuku, Sado Island (needs ferry)
**Hard (might be doable to some extent but I don’t really recommend without a car):**
Echigo Tsumari Art Field
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**Some other places I would recommend, just listing this here since it’s places I’ve been to but not going on this trip:**
Hiraizumi – Chusonji, Genbikei gorge, Genbikei gorge (yes it’s a different spot), etc. This area is basically right off the track of the shinkansen going up to hokkaido so I’d definitely recommend a stop.
Ginzen Onsen – a really scenic hot springs in Yamagata, If you’re going here I would also recommend checking out the Yamadera in the same region.
I’ve spent quite a bit of time in Tohoku, it really depends on your interests and whether you rent a car what are must dos.
Since fewer people start there, let’s start further south.
I like Fukushima-ken. I think it’s underrated.
With a car, Abukumado cave system is really interesting, but don’t go without a car. We saw bats! You can go by train to Aizu-Wakamatsu. We loved Tsuchiyu onsen. We drove, but there are free shuttles by the ryokan resorts from the train station. I have a niche hobby so we usually make a trip to Ononiimachi as well. Takayu onsen is also supposed to be great. Iwaki is a trip with their Hawaiian themed resort.
Yamagata is really nice. You can get to Sakata and Tsuroka by train. From there it’s a bus trip to Haguro-san. You do really need a car for the other Dewa mountains, especially Yudono, which doesn’t really have public access as any more. Gas-san and Yudono-san have more limited opening periods, which is why I’ve not been.
Zao onsen has some great onsen and supposedly good Winter skiing, I went in April. I enjoyed Yonezawa, you don’t see it on a lot of lists, it’s good if you are interested in Japanese history because of their Uesugi Kenshin fest. Ginzan onsen is very famous and popular.
Next up is Miyagi-ken, where Sendai is located.
I too like Sendai, it’s easy to reach by train, so is Matsushima which is fabulous any time of year. I’ve heard Naruko onsen famous for their Kokeshi dolls is a good Autumn leaf area and should be accessible by train.
I have been to Morioka, it’s a nice city and easy to reach on the shinkansen. I really enjoyed the Hanamaki onsen group. You will need to use a shuttle bus or car to get to the onsen. I liked Shin-Namari but Osawa is quite famous I believe. The onsen places there often have standing onsen, aka onsen that are 130 cm deep.
I believe Hiraizumi, accessible by train and another “little Kyoto” is in Iwate-ken. You can get there by train. There are also some gorges in the area, again you can get there by train.
I’ve not been to Tono or any of the coastal areas of Iwate-ken. They’re supposed to be great, but trains are less frequent.
I wasn’t so into Akita-city, which is accessible by train, but I did like Kakunodate also accessible by train. I’ve not been but you can take the bus to Tazawako or Nyuto onsen, one of the most famous onsen areas in Japan.
And finally there is Aomori-ken. You can take a train to Aomori and see its Neputa museum or go to Hachinohe and its morning market. Towadako on the border of Aomori, Iwate, and Akita, has the Oirase Stream, famous for its fall foliage. you do need to get there by bus or car. The lake itself is very pretty. I loved Hirosaki. It has a small original castle. It’s great during sakura season. It’s a PIA to each without a car and well even with a car, but Osorezan is one of the most important Buddhist sights in all of Japan and is as sacred as Koya-san, it’s just a lot less crowded because it’s hard to reach.
There is a lot of nature, from the Shimokita Peninsula, to the Shirakami Sanchi, to the Hachimantai National Park, and Bandai National Park.
It’s a great area, but once you leave the Tohoku shinkansen or the Akita Shinkansen line, places are harder to reach, but there is a LOT you can do. I am sure I have left out tons of places. Go to Japan Guide and look up Tohoku, even they are missing tons of places.
I would highly recommend stopping in Hakodate for a day on your way to Sapporo.
There are a lot of nice things to see (Goryokau fort, mt Hakodate Observatory ), the city has a lot of interesting architecture, and a bizarre local burger chain that almost feels like a parody of MacDonalds (Lucky Pierrot).
On the way back to Tokyo, you could stop in Aomori if you like museums, the float festival museum and the art museum in this town are both excellent.