Did you know that there are hundreds of varieties of cherry blossom trees and the earliest variety blooms from February each year? This species of cherry blossom is called ‘Kawazu Sakura (河津桜)’ and can not only be found in its’ originating town called Kawazu on the Izu Peninsula, but also in a few spots close…
Category: Winter in Japan
Snowboarding in Nozawa Onsen
Early in January, we decided to go on a 3 day snowboarding break to the accessible-from-Tokyo resort of Nozawa Onsen in Nagano. Just a 15 minute bus ride from Shinkansen station Iiyama, we were there in what felt like no time and checked into Lodge Matsuya. Immediately striking were the huge snow drifts and incredible…
Hokkaido Winter Tales: Sapporo
Being Hokkaido’s capital, Sapporo has lots to offer from culinary experiences to spectacular viewpoints, a vibrant nightlife and nature in the city. In this article, we would like to introduce you to the top five things to do in Sapporo in winter. Experience a nature winter wonderland If you love long snow walks, snow activities…
Hokkaido Winter Tales: Lake Toya
Having visited Lake Toya 4.5 years ago on a summer trip from Shanghai to Hokkaido, we were especially excited to visit this beautiful area again. Toyako is situated just a 2 hour drive south of Hokkaido’s capital Sapporo and famous for having hosted the G8 Hokkaido Summit at the Windsor hotel on a mountain top…
Hokkaido Winter Tales: Niseko
CRUNCH goes the powder snow as I walk to one of the world’s best ski slopes in Niseko, Hokkaido. Ski and snowboard enthusiasts seem to agree that the snow here is made of 10% water and 90% love or maybe it’s just pure magic. Once we entered this winter wonderland, I knew it would be…
Japan Winter Tales: Karuizawa
’twas a bleak night in January and we spontaneously decided to get away from Yokohama to the nearby winter wonderland Karuizawa in Nagano. Our friends have been recommending Karuizawa for the past years to us, as it’s famous four its autumn leaves, cute town and large outlet shopping mall. Well, it wasn’t quite autumn season…
Learning to snowboard in Hakuba! (and deciding not to ski)
Should I ski or should I snowboard? Before we went on our recent snowboarding trip to Hakuba, we had loooonnng debates on which winter sport to learn. For a couple of years I skiied on a dry ski slope in the UK as a teenager and also went on a week long ski trip to…
Japan Winter Tales: Snowboarding in Hakuba
While Tokyo, Kanagawa and a few other densely populated cities in Japan have declared a state of emergency until the 7th of March, life goes on as usual in all the other prefectures. And so, on a long weekend in February, we decided to track out to one of Japan’s most famous ski resort towns:…
Jitensha Adventure 