Culture & Heritage Visit during your favorite season! The seasonal art created by the natural surroundings of Hokkaido

The Higashimokoto Shibazakura Park in eastern Hokkaido is a place you should definitely visit in spring. The Shibazakura Festival is held here every year from early May to early June, during which the park’s entire 10-hectare space will be covered with lovely shibazakura (pink moss) that is around 1.5cm in diameter each. You can also catch a breathtaking view of the surroundings from the observatory located at the top of the stairs after passing through the eye-catching pink torii gate! Right before your eyes are swathes of different hues of pink extending across the entire hill. You can also ride a sightseeing truck from the foot of the hill to the gazebo in the middle of the hill, where everyone from children to the elderly can relax and take in a panoramic view of the pink landscape in front of them. Free shuttle buses operate between the park and Memanbetsu Airport, as well as between the park and the station, during the event period.

Rice paddy art is a kind of natural art that utilizes the paddy field as a canvas to showcase the different colors of the leaves of the rice plant. This event has been held in Asahikawa since 2006 to promote interest in agriculture from a variety of perspectives. A different theme is chosen each year, and many people, including local elementary school students, come together to complete the design by planting seedlings of six different colors by hand: green, yellow, purple, red, white, and orange. The best time to visit is from mid-July to mid-August, when the paddy leaves start to take on vibrant colors. You can enjoy an expansive view of the massive design floating atop the paddy field from the viewing platform. The site of this rice paddy art is less than a 30-minute drive from Asahiyama Zoo, a popular tourist spot in Asahikawa, so it might be a good idea to visit both attractions as part of the same itinerary.

The local scenery of Tokachi and Biei looks like something straight out of a painting. “Bakkan rolls” refer to rolls of wheat (barley) straw scattered across the wheat fields that are used for the bedding of cattle. Bakkan rolls are made by using a machine to roll up straws that remain in the fields after the wheat has been harvested. The endearing sight of bakkan rolls rolling around the boundless fields under the summer sky has an indescribable charm that would make you want to snap a photo of them. You can catch sight of this iconic phenomenon of Hokkaido from late July through August. Don’t miss it!

Each year, Hokkaido is one of the first places where you can enjoy the autumn foliage in Japan. Fukuhara Sanso is open to the public for a limited period from mid-September to mid-October, which gives everyone a chance to enjoy some spectacular autumn foliage! With a well-kept garden that is incredibly magnificent, this private property usually does not accept visitors, but it is open to the public for only a month in autumn of every year. Around 300 maple trees are found on the vast manor grounds, and the reflection of crimson maple leaves in the pond on a windless day is a true work of art! You can also take a stroll along the well-maintained 1-kilometer walking route while listening to the murmurs of small waterfalls and mountain streams. This is the place to go if you want to experience the art that autumn in Hokkaido can offer. Fukuhara Sanso is around a 15-minute drive from Lake Shikaribetsu, the highest-elevation lake in Hokkaido.

Ice chapels are a form of ice art truly unique to the harsh winters of Hokkaido. Shikaribetsuko-Kotan is a village built from snow and ice on the frozen Lake Shikaribetsu every winter that is only open to the public for a limited time. Here, you can find its famous ice chapel, which is made by stacking clear blocks of pure ice drawn from the lake. The chapel is lit with candles at night, making the experience even more beautifully surreal. You can even hold your wedding ceremony here! There is also another ice chapel that makes an appearance for only a month every winter at Hoshino Resorts Tomamu. The altar, aisle, and other elements of this chapel are made entirely of snow and ice, with the chapel itself carved from a single seamless block of ice to symbolize the pure, everlasting love between the couple. There is no doubt that holding your wedding ceremony in a magical ice chapel like this will be an unforgettable and moving experience.

“Kaiso no Sato Rishiri” is an “island station” quite different from typical roadside stations as it was built by renovating a 130-year-old marine products wholesaler on Rishiri Island. Here, you can participate in a hands-on workshop on making kaiso-oshiba (pressed seaweed) handicrafts. The area around Rishiri Island is famous for kelp and is home to over 100 types of seaweed. The locals started to create pressed seaweed art as a way of making effective use of seaweed that had been washed ashore, something which was simply discarded in the past. They take advantage of the fascinating shapes of seaweed and combine it with pressed wildflowers gathered on the island to make creative collages. This hands-on workshop is offered year-round, and you can choose your favorite finished product from key chains, bookmarks, and postcards. Making kaiso-oshiba art is a wonderful way to keep Hokkaido’s nature close to you as a souvenir in the form of a work of art.