Compare Cheap Flights to Sapporo
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Flight Guide to Sapporo
What’s on in Sapporo?
Sapporo Snow Festival
The Sapporo Snow Festival is a weeklong event celebrating the winter season in Hokkaido. The 1.5-kilometre (0.9-mile) Odori Park comes alive with ice and snow sculptures, an ice skating rink, light shows, live music, and breathtaking displays by freestyle skiers and snowboarders. There’s also a food park where you can warm up with classic Japanese dishes like ramen, zangi fried chicken, and butadon pork bowls. You can even accompany your meal with a shot of locally-brewed sake. Book tickets to Sapporo for travel in early February to attend the annual Snow Festival.
Hokkaido Shrine Festival
Plan to travel on flights to Sapporo in mid-June to attend one of Hokkaido’s largest annual events. The Hokkaido Shrine Festival is held for three days outside of the city’s Hokkaido Shrine. It celebrates both Shintoism and the culture of the Heian period in Japanese history. Many locals dress in colourful Heian-era clothing and parade through the centre of Sapporo. The parade is one of the main events, but you can also watch traditional ceremonies outside Hokkaido Shrine and browse a series of festival stalls. Vendors sell all different types of local cuisine, drinks, and souvenirs.
Sapporo Autumn Fest
Attend the Sapporo Autumn Fest by travelling on return flights to Sapporo in September. The event takes over the city for almost the entire month to celebrate the many different flavours of Hokkaido. Chefs set up food markets and pop-up restaurants where you can try specialty dishes from around the island, including seafood donburi, Ishikari Nabe hot pot, and soup curry. The festival is broken up into several sections, and each one focuses on a different aspect of Hokkaido food and drink. Try different ramen dishes, grab a Hokkaido sake, order a drink at the beer garden, or tuck into savoury dishes in the meat-lover’s area.
What is the best way to get around Sapporo?
Public transport is widely available across Hokkaido, and it’s the best way to get around while holidaying on cheap flights to Sapporo.
JR Hokkaido is a high-speed train that operates across the island. You can catch this train into the city centre if your flights to Sapporo land at New Chitose Airport (CTS). The train will get you into the centre in about an hour. JR Hokkaido is also a great option if you’d like to take day trips in between return flights to Sapporo. Catch the train to places like Otaru, Furano, and Asahikawa.
There isn’t a direct link between Sapporo Okadama Airport (OKD) and the city, so a taxi is the easiest way to reach the centre. Another option is to catch a bus from the airport to Sakaemachi Station, then board a train into the city.
A subway and a streetcar operate around central Sapporo, and these are the best ways to travel between attractions. There are three subway lines that reach most major tourist attractions around Sapporo. The subway map isn’t posted with a Latin alphabet translation, but each stop is assigned its own number. This makes it easier for non-Japanese speakers to navigate while visiting Hokkaido on cheap flights to Sapporo. The only part of Sapporo that isn’t well-connected by subway is the southwestern suburbs; however, a streetcar travels in a loop around this area.
When is the best time to visit Sapporo?
The Hokkaido region has four distinct seasons, and each one has positive aspects to look forward to when you book airfare to Sapporo. The summer season is the best time to plan return flights to Sapporo if you’re hoping to explore nature around Hokkaido. Daytime temperatures reach about 25°C, and there’s much less humidity and rain than many places further south in Japan. The summer is also when Hokkaido’s famous lavender fields are in full bloom. Summer is the peak season to holiday on flights to Sapporo, so get the best price on accommodation by booking early.
Autumn and spring are the two shoulder seasons in Hokkaido and a great time to travel with tickets to Sapporo to avoid the crowds. Average temperatures range between 10° and 20°C throughout each season. You can take in vibrant colours around the Hokkaido countryside by travelling on cheap flights to Sapporo in autumn or spring. Autumn comes alive with beautiful foliage, and cherry blossoms bloom in the spring, peaking in May.
Come prepared for freezing weather if you book airfare to Sapporo for a winter getaway. Temperatures average 0°C during the day and drop to around -8°C at night. There’s a lot of snow, but this makes winter a popular time for winter sport enthusiasts to travel on flights to Sapporo. Skiing and snowboarding are popular across Hokkaido, there are several winter festivals, and hot springs are a popular way to warm up from the cold.