Japan in Winter, from Australia and New Zealand: Snow Country, the Sapporo Snow Festival and the Quiet Kyoto

Most travellers from Australia and New Zealand meet Japan in spring or autumn, when the blossom and the maple leaves draw the biggest crowds of the year. Winter is the season many return for. From December to February the north of the country sits under deep snow, the mountain villages look the way they do on postcards, the hot-spring towns come into their own, and, outside the New Year holiday, many of Kyoto's major sights are generally less crowded than at the blossom and autumn-leaf peaks.

This guide covers the winter regions worth building a trip around, what the Sapporo Snow Festival in February 2027 actually involves, the fixed dates that shape the season, getting there from Australia and New Zealand, and how to pack and move around comfortably in snow.

Why winter suits a first or second trip

Winter turns the usual Japan itinerary on its head. In spring and autumn the cities and their gardens are the main event and the countryside is a side trip. In winter the balance shifts north and into the mountains: Hokkaido, the Japanese Alps and the snow-country villages of central Honshu become the highlights, and the cities are the comfortable bases in between.

A winter trip doesn't have to be a ski holiday. Hokkaido is best known for its skiing, but an itinerary built around snow scenery, traditional villages, hot springs, festivals and food can be just as rewarding without a single day on the slopes.

It also suits travellers who find the busiest seasons hard work. Outside the festival weeks and the New Year holiday, many of the main sights in Kyoto and Tokyo are generally less crowded than at the April and November peaks, and clear, cold days can be good for photography, although fine weather is never guaranteed. Snow is also generally more dependable in January and February than in December in some areas. The trade-off is shorter daylight and the need to plan around weather, particularly in the mountains.

Hokkaido: powder snow and Sapporo

Hokkaido, Japan's northernmost main island, has a reputation among skiers for light, dry powder snow, and the resort towns of Niseko and Furano are the best known. Niseko has a well-developed international village with English widely spoken; Furano is generally quieter and feels more like a Japanese country town. Both are reached from New Chitose Airport near Sapporo, by road or a combination of train and road.

For travellers who don't ski, Hokkaido in winter is still worth the trip. Sapporo has its own snow-covered parks, a food scene built on seafood, ramen and soup curry, and easy day trips to the canal town of Otaru, which hosts the Otaru Snow Light Path, a lantern festival usually held in February. Further east, the drift ice of the Sea of Okhotsk and the red-crowned cranes of eastern Hokkaido are specialist trips that need more time and careful planning.

The Sapporo Snow Festival, 4 to 11 February 2027

The 77th Sapporo Snow Festival runs from Thursday 4 February to Thursday 11 February 2027. It is one of Japan's best-known winter events and is spread across three main sites. The detailed 2027 programme is still being finalised, but the sites follow a familiar pattern:

• Odori Park, the long central park, which holds the large snow sculptures, many of them illuminated in the evenings.
• Susukino, Sapporo's entertainment district, where the ice sculptures line the main street.
• Tsudome, a community dome site on the edge of the city, with snow slides and activities aimed at families.

A festival week is less about a single day out than about being based in Sapporo while it is on. Most visitors walk Odori Park by day, return after dark to see the sculptures lit, spend an evening in Susukino and fit the rest of the week around the city's food and a day trip or two. Three or four nights in Sapporo is usually enough to see the festival without rushing.

Two points are worth planning around. First, the festival week draws large numbers of domestic and international visitors, so Sapporo's hotels are in high demand for those dates. Second, Lunar New Year falls on Saturday 6 February 2027, in the middle of the festival week. It is an important holiday in several Asian markets, and holiday travel can add to visitor numbers in Hokkaido that week.

The snow monkeys of Jigokudani

In the mountains of Nagano Prefecture, Jigokudani Monkey Park is known for the Japanese macaques that sit in a natural hot-spring pool through the coldest months. January and February are usually the most photogenic time to visit, when snow is lying around the pool and the monkeys are most likely to be bathing. Sightings depend on the monkeys themselves, so nothing is guaranteed.

The park is reached by a walk of around half an hour along a forest track, which can be icy in winter. Many visitors stay a night in Yudanaka or Shibu Onsen, two small hot-spring towns nearby, rather than visiting as a long day trip from Tokyo. The park has been introducing online ticketing and may limit entry on its busiest winter days, so check the current ticket arrangements before setting out.

Shirakawa-go and the snow-country villages

Shirakawa-go, in the mountains between Kanazawa and Takayama, is a UNESCO-listed village of steep-roofed gassho-zukuri farmhouses, built to shed the heavy snow. Under a winter blanket it is one of the most photographed scenes in Japan. Daytime visits are straightforward from Kanazawa or Takayama by bus or as part of a touring itinerary.

The village's evening light-up events are a different matter. For the 2027 season they are scheduled for 11, 17, 24 and 31 January, from 5.30pm to 7.30pm. Attendance is strictly by advance reservation, with different arrangements for overnight guests, private vehicles and organised bus tours. Booking accommodation in the village does not necessarily guarantee event access, so the arrangements need to be checked carefully before building an itinerary around one of these evenings.

Nearby, Takayama's preserved merchant streets and morning markets, and Kanazawa's gardens and samurai district, make natural companions to Shirakawa-go and are both atmospheric in snow.

Kyoto in the cold

Outside the New Year holiday, many of Kyoto's major sights, including Kinkaku-ji, Kiyomizu-dera and the Fushimi Inari shrine, are generally less crowded than during the cherry blossom and autumn foliage peaks, although the city now draws large numbers of visitors year-round. In winter its gardens take on a spare, graphic beauty. Snow does fall in Kyoto in some winters, usually lightly and briefly, and a morning with snow on the Golden Pavilion is a rare and memorable sight, but it is never something to plan around.

Winter is also a good time for the indoor side of the city: tea ceremonies, museums, kaiseki dining and the warmth of a neighbourhood izakaya on a cold evening.

Onsen towns

Hot springs are at their most appealing in winter, and an onsen night in a traditional ryokan, with an outdoor bath, a multi-course dinner and futon bedding, is a highlight of many trips. Options range from the lakeside and mountain resorts within reach of Kyoto and Tokyo to the snowbound towns of northern Honshu.

Some of Japan's most photographed onsen towns now manage visitor numbers during winter. Ginzan Onsen in Yamagata Prefecture is one example. For the 2026/27 season, from 19 December to 7 March, day visitors arriving by private vehicle must park outside the town and take a designated shuttle bus, which runs during the day, and booking the shuttle in advance is advised. Guests staying overnight in the town are exempt. Arrangements can change from season to season, so check the latest requirements before travelling.

Getting there from Australia and New Zealand

Qantas operates seasonal direct flights between Sydney and Sapporo during the northern winter, with services scheduled from December 2026 to March 2027. That makes an open-jaw itinerary practical for travellers from Sydney: fly into Tokyo and home from Sapporo, or the reverse, rather than travelling the length of the country twice. Frequency varies through the season, so the itinerary should be built around the operating days. Travellers from Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide usually fly to Tokyo or Osaka and connect domestically, or connect through another Asian hub.

From New Zealand, Air New Zealand flies direct from Auckland to Tokyo, with additional seasonal services. From late November 2026, direct Christchurch–Tokyo flights are also scheduled three times a week, subject to government approval. Sapporo is then a short domestic flight from Tokyo. Travellers from Wellington and other centres can connect through Auckland or Christchurch.

A sensible shape for a winter trip

For a first winter trip of around two weeks, one possible shape starts with a few nights in Tokyo, then takes the bullet train to Nagano for a night or two near the snow monkeys, continues by bullet train to Kanazawa, and travels by road through Shirakawa-go to Takayama. From Takayama, the train runs via Nagoya to Kyoto for a few nights, and a domestic flight from Osaka to Sapporo leaves three or four nights in Hokkaido to finish. This order avoids doubling back, although the transfers still need planning. It can be adjusted around flights and, in January, around the Shirakawa-go light-up dates; flying to Sapporo at the end, rather than going north first and coming back south, saves a long day of travel.

Adding Seoul on the way home

Seoul is a short flight from Tokyo, Osaka or Sapporo, and a stopover of two or three nights adds a second winter city to the trip. The Joseon-era palaces are atmospheric in the cold, the restored city wall makes a fine walk at dusk, and Korean food is at its most comforting in winter. Travellers adding Korea should check the K-ETA requirements for their passport close to departure.

Packing and getting around in snow

• Layers rather than bulk. Trains, shops and hotels are generally well heated, so thermal base layers under a warm, waterproof outer jacket are easier than a single heavy coat.
• Boots with grip. Footpaths in Hokkaido and the mountains are often compacted snow or ice. Waterproof boots with a good sole make the biggest difference to comfort; clip-on ice grips are sold widely in Japan.
• Send the suitcase ahead. Japan's luggage forwarding services can send suitcases between hotels and airports, often taking one or two days depending on the route and service. Check delivery times before travelling and keep an overnight bag with you, which is far easier on snowy platforms and station stairs.
• Use an IC card. A rechargeable transport card works on most city trains, subways and buses and in convenience stores, although not on every rural service.
• Plan around New Year. Many restaurants, shops and attractions close for several days around 1–3 January. Check opening hours in advance, particularly in smaller towns.
• Leave room for weather. Heavy snow can delay flights, roads and some rail lines, particularly in Hokkaido and the mountains. A spare half-day in the itinerary, and not booking the last domestic connection of the day before an international flight, keeps a delay from becoming a problem.

Planning a January or February trip

The fixed points of the season are the New Year holiday at the start of January, the Shirakawa-go light-up evenings in January, Lunar New Year on 6 February, and the Snow Festival week from 4 to 11 February. For travellers in Australia and New Zealand, Snow Festival week also falls around the start of the school year, although dates vary by state and school, so families often look at January instead. Trips built around these festivals and snow-country villages benefit from early planning. Accommodation in Sapporo during festival week and access to the Shirakawa-go light-up are the most date-sensitive parts, so it makes sense to start arranging them as soon as travel dates are settled rather than leaving them to the last few months.

Frequently asked questions

Is Japan very cold in winter?
It varies by region. Hokkaido and the mountains of central Honshu are properly cold, with regular snow. Tokyo and Kyoto are cold but usually dry and often sunny, with snow only occasionally. Indoors, Japan is generally well heated.

Do I need to ski to enjoy Hokkaido in winter?
No. Sapporo, Otaru, the Snow Festival, onsen towns and the food of the region make a full trip without a ski day, although a day of skiing or snowshoeing can be added easily.

How many nights should we allow for the Sapporo Snow Festival?
Three or four nights in Sapporo is usually enough to see the main sites by day and night and fit in a day trip, such as Otaru.

Can we see the snow monkeys on a day trip from Tokyo?
It is possible, but it makes for a long day. Staying a night in one of the nearby hot-spring towns is more comfortable and allows an early visit to the park.

Is it better to visit Japan in January or February?
Both months usually bring dependable snow in the north and the mountains. January suits the Shirakawa-go light-up evenings and avoids Lunar New Year week; early February is the time for the Snow Festival.

Dreaming of snow country this winter?

Whether you already have the Snow Festival in your diary or you simply like the idea of a hot spring with snow falling outside, Pack Ya Bags would be glad to help shape the trip. They plan Japan for travellers across Australia and New Zealand, and can add a Seoul stopover if Korea is tempting too.

Let them know roughly when you could travel, how many of you there are and which parts of a winter in Japan appeal most. You'll find them at info@packyabags.com.