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I have looked up on ways to get to Hokkaido from within Japan (particularly from Tokyo or Osaka) or even directly to Hokkaido first before travelling to other parts of Japan, but they all seemed rather expensive. Taking the train seems to be the most popular way to get to Hokkaido, but the the train ticket is pretty expensive. This is only transportation. I will be travelling to Japan in February and the accommodation during this time at Hokkaido isn't cheap too because of their winter season.

Are there other cheaper alternatives to travel from within Japan to and tour around in Hokkaido?

xenon
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2 Answers2

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Take a look at Japan's many low-cost carriers!

From Tokyo:

  • Vanilla Air, Narita-Sapporo fares from Y5,500.
  • Skymark flies from Haneda/Narita to Sapporo and Asahikawa from Y10,000.

From Osaka:

  • Peach flies Osaka-Sapporo fares from Y4,950 one-way.

Hitchhiking is generally a surprisingly viable alternative, but not in winter, and the sheer distance to Hokkaido (~1200 km from Tokyo to Sapporo) means it's a multi-day venture.

lambshaanxy
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I recently read you could go by ferry directly from Tokyo to somewhere in Hokkaido (somewhere near Sapporo). It takes quite some time (something around 18h), but if you're ok with sleeping on a tatami mat in a big room with other people (apparently mostly truckers) it's probably a lot cheaper than trains (¥8,500 off season, ¥11,000 peak season).

The person describing the travel wasn't too pleased with his journey, though. It all depends on your standards. And of course to tour around Hokkaido you'd still have to take trains and buses.

Have you considered the JR Pass? If you travel a lot it will most probably be worth it.

fifaltra
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