Hokkaido by Rail
July 19 - 30, 2008
$3,500 per person
(based
on double occupancy)
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Tour Includes:
• Tour Escort from Hawaii
• Hotel Accommodations as indicated
• Airfare from Honolulu to Japan roundtrip
• Ground Transportation as needed
• Meals as indicated
• Admission to all sights, attractions, and tours as indicated by
itinerary
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July 19 (Sat)
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Day One
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Honolulu/Nartia
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| We
leave Honolulu in the morning on our flight to Tokyo. |
| July
20 (Sun) |
Day Two
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Narita/Chitose
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| Upon
arrival in Tokyo, we will clear immigration and
customs formalities before connecting to our next flight to Chitose. When we arrive in Hokkaido we will head to
our hotel for the night. |
| July 21 (Mon) |
Day Three
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Chitose/Furano/Asahikawa
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Unless otherwise noted breakfast will be
served daily
at 7:00 am. Today we begin our tour by
heading to Asahikawa. Along the way we
will stop at Furano, at the foot of the Tokachi mountain range with
land that
is very fertile and ideal for growing grapes, potatoes, beans, beets
and
asparagus. At Nakafurano we see potato
flowers; then, at the Tomita Farm, we see lavender flower fields which
are can
be processed into such products as perfume and a delicious lavender ice
cream.
They also grow poppies and Japanese roses. At
Flower Land Kamifurano, we can
see Iceland Poppies and Lupines. As time
permits we will visit the Trick Art
Museum. It highlights visual illusions
in 3D pictures and photographs.
Meals:
Breakfast, Dinner |
July 22 (Tue)
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Day Four
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Asahikawa
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Today we
will explore Asahikawa’s cultural offerings. Starting
with the Asahikawa Zoo,
Japan’s most famous zoo. Just ten years
ago this zoo was struggling
to stay afloat, but after a massive redesign people from all over the
country
flock to see the animals in their fascinating habitats.
The animal habitats were
redesigned to
better spotlight the animals and give everyone a closer look at their
behaviour
in a more natural environment. From
there we would go to the Hokkaido Dento Bijutsu Kogeimura.
This area is actually home to
three museums,
the International Dyeing and Weaving Art Museum, the Snow Crystal
Museum, and
the Yukaraori Folkcraft Museum. The
first museum highlights the craft of weaving from around the world
focusing on
tapestries and clothes created in the 18th and 19th
centuries. The Snow Crystal Museum
features snow crystals in all manner of objects from its architecture
to a
variety of crafts. The last musuem
features the unique Yukara fabric created in Hokkaido.
Yukara typically focuses on nature
scenes in
Hokkaido, such as lavendar fields or snow. They
are noted for their intricate
detail. Closing the day would be a visit
to an Ainu Village, featuring
handcrafts that seek to preserve the culture of Hokkaido’s indigenous
people.
Meals:
Breakfast, Dinner |
| July 23 (Wed) |
Day Five
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Asahikawa/Soya |
This
morning we leave by train for Wakkanai. Upon
arrival, we will visit an
onsen to relax. Tonight’s hotel, Pension
Tom Soya, welcomes us with a special
dinner. Iroribatayaki is the style in
which dinner will be cooked featuring a pit in the floor around which
you sit
and your food is cooked over charcoals in the pit.
For this meal we will be cooking
King crab, scallops, Hokke, tako
shabu shabu kaisei ryori.
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
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July 24 (Thu)
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Day Six
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Soya/Toyotomi Onsen
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In the
morning we may have a chance to look at konbu harvesting.
Hokkaido’s konbu is considered the
best in
Japan, which a large portion goes to Okinawa for its high consumption. Then we leave for Wakkanai, where we will
take a scenic tour of the area including Soya Misaki, Nossap Misaki,
and
Wakkanai Park. Of interest as well is
the memorial to the Korean Air jetliner that was shot down by a Russian
MIG
jet. Our destination for the day is
Toyotomi Onsen. Toyotomi is a spa area
off the beaten path where you can have a relaxing bath.
We will also stroll through
beautiful
Sarobetsu Park.
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
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July 25 (Fri)
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Day Seven
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Toyotomi Onsen/Sapporo
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A morning
train ride takes us to Sapporo, capital of Hokkaido.
Upon our arrival we will take in
the city. First is the site of the 11th Winter Olympics in 1972 and the annual
Sapporo Snow
Festival, where we can ride the ski lift to the location just above
where the
skiers launch from. Then there we head
to Mt. Moiwa for a ride on the ropeway for a magnificent view of
Sapporo. To end our day we will visit the
Sapporo
Beer Factory.
Following
dinner, weather permitting, we will watch
Sapporro’s famous fireworks display. We
end our day with a visit to one of Sapporo’s fabulous night club shows.
Meals: Breakfast
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July 26 (Sat)
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Day Eight
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Otaru Excursion
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Today we
journey to Otaru, a western coastal city where we will see the Music
Box
museum. At this museum, you will see
and hear antique music boxes. At a
nearby store, you will be able to buy a music box that plays a song of
your
choice or design the box itself. Next
is the Museo Del’Arte Veneziana, an imitation of the Glass Palace in
Venice. On display are over 20,000
works of glassware with its décor reminiscent of the luxury of
Venice. There is even a steam powered
clock for us
to see. Our last stop is at the Ishiya
Chocolate Factory which is famous for its Shiroi Koibito or while loved
ones, a
cookie with two thin wafers with a layer of white chocolate between. It is sold only in Hokkaido.
Meals:
Breakfast, Dinner |
July 27 (Sun)
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Day Nine
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Sapporo/Niseko Onsen
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A
late checkout today takes us to Niseko for the next couple of evenings. We will enjoy a relaxing local train ride
from Sapporo to Niseko.
Our hotel has a private onsen
in
your own room for you to enjoy and is also noted for its fabulous
buffet filled
with local cuisine. The beautiful
mountains surrounding the hotel create a peaceful environment for you
to relax.
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
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July 28 (Mon)
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Day Ten
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Yoichi Excursion
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Today we head to Yoichi. First we will stop for a self-guided
tour
of a Nikka Whiskey Distillery. Of
course, you can sample some of their products for free and buy some to
bring
home. Next we will head to a fruit farm
to do some cherry picking. On our way
back we will stop at Kuchan Town for a little shopping.
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
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July 29 (Tue)
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Day
Eleven
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Niseko/Hakodate
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We have a morning
train ride taking us from
Niseko to Hakodate. Upon our arrival,
our bus will pick us up and take us on a tour of the city.
Hakodate, today a principal
Japanese
fisheries center in the North Pacific, is actually older than Sapporo. Included in the tour is a ride up Mt.
Hakodate via tramway. The 335 meter
mountain offers an excellent view of the city. The Torapischinu Convent
(Japan’s first convent for Catholic Trappist nuns) was established in
the
1890s. We stop at this religious
community which engages in farming, making handicrafts, and baking
their famous
cakes and cookies. Goryokaku Park,
Japan’s first western-style fort, was built to defend Ezo.
Completed in 1864, it is
surrounded by a
moat and takes its name from the fort’s five-pointed star shape. Here you may buy some boiled corn on the cob
and grilled ikka.
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
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July 30 (Wed)
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Day
Twelve
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Hakodate/Honolulu
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| We leave the hotel in the
late morning to catch our afternoon fight to
mainland Japan. From there we have a
few hours before our flight back to Honolulu. |
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