JAPAN
13 Oct - 8 Nov 2016
Autumn and winter view in one trip
Map of our roadtrip: New Chitose > Jozankei > Sapporo > Ashidake > Sounkyo Onsen > Kitami > Lake Mashu > Nemuro > Obihiro > Asahikawa > Wakkanai > New Chitose
Map of our roadtrip: Narita > Nikko > Niigata > Yuzawa > Nagano > Matsumoto > Tokyo > Yokohama > Kamakura > Tokyo > Mt Fuji > Tokyo > Narita
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SINGAPORE > NEW CHITOSE > JOZANKEI
Flew Scoot from Singapore (TZ216), departing 0615 hrs and arrived New Chitose Airport around 1700 hours and picked up our rental car at Budget (booked through RentalCars.com). We booked a Nissan March from 13-27 Oct for SGD1,146, but was upgraded to Honda Jazz. From the airport, we drove about 1 hour 40 mins (about 63km) through non toll road to our Air Bnb apartment in Jozankei. Air BnB |
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JOZANKEI
We woke up late and departed our apartment around noon after brunch. Jozankei onsen village is not very big and hence can be explored by walking. However, we drove instead since we had a rented car. First stop was Jozankei Obashi Bridge, where you get great view of the river and nearby mountain view. Unfortunately, the peak autumn Color was late this year and hence the leaves have not turn orange completely. Next, we walked down to the red bridge below Jozankei Obashi Bridge for more photo takings. After that, we drove about 13 mins to the Hoheokyo Dam car park and took a shuttle bus (620 yen for return trip) to the Dam. It's 2km from car park to the Dam. Hence, you can walk there if you want to. We spend about 45mins-an hour here before driving to Futami Suspension Bridge.. The walk from the car park to the bridge is about 8-10mins. Air BnB |
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JOZANKEI > SAPPORO
- drove to Jozankei Obashi bridge for some photo takings - drove to Tsukimi bridge for photo taking - Iwato Kannondo temple - Kokorono Sato Jozani (foot onsen plus free sweets and drinks for 1,500 yen each) - drove to Jozankei Dam - 45 mins drive from Jozankei to Hokkaido University. Walked around the campus and took photos of autumn leaves for more than an hour - drove to apartment and did self check in - drove out to Antique bakery (2-3 mins away) to buy some bread for tomorrow's breakfast - drove to 南鄕の湯 for onsen (750 yen for Onsen plus dinner) Air BnB |
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SAPPORO > ASAHIDAKE
- drove 20-25 mins from apartment to Nakajima Park where we spend 1hr 20 mins walking around the park and took some beautiful autumn leaves photos - next, we drove to club market for our sushi and Uni don for lunch. Departed at around 1230pm for Asahidake Onsen area - stopped at 桂沢湖 around 230pm where there's an autumn fair for the locals - continued our journey; along the way we stopped at三段滝 for more photos before setting off - arrived at our hotel in Asahidake Onsen area around. 615pm. Onsen before we had our dinner at 745pm. Rest and relax after that Asahidake Manseikaku Hotel Deer Valley |
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ASAHIDAKE > SOUNKYO ONSEN
- Drove less than 10mins to Asahidake ropeway and took the ropeway up to Asahidake 2900yen per pax. - Spent 3 hours in mountain (1.5 hrs trail) - Lunch: 3860yen - Drove to Biei town, and Blue pond - Pumped petrol: 3825yen for 27.32L - Check in 6:30pm at Sounkyo Kankou Sounkyo Kankou Hotel |
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SOUNKYO ONSEN > KITAMI
- Drove 5 mins to Kurodake ropeway. Return fare 3800yen for 2. Spent 2hr up there ( 11am to 1pm ) - The mountain top already dry leaves. Bottom very nice , peak autumn Colours - Cable car 20mins interval - The trek to Mount Kurodake peak was wet & muddy & rocky path due to the melting snow. Chairlift closed to the upper station. Only open summer till 17oct last ride. 3km from chairlift platform to 登山人口. To peak is 3.5km. - Drove 15-20 mins to Sounkyo waterfall after Mt Kurodake. Colour there also over autumn peak. Climbed up just a tiny platform to view opp waterfall. - Cafe for lunch. Drove 40mins to cafe scenic already dry leaves. Feels like winter scenery without snow. Cafe location is the Mizuko pass (check spelling) lunch bill 1400yen. - 3pm head to Dormy Inn in Kitami, 2h drive. Drive into Kitami via Kitami National Highway, autumn Colours peak too. Left right mountains all peak Colours. - Check in 5pm, parking opposite hotel 600 yen overnight (endorse by DormyInn ) Dormy Inn Kitami |
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KITAMI > LAKE MASHU
- Drove to Abashiri train museum , red grasswort (must be early Oct), passed by seafood restaurants in Abashiri on our way to Lake Mashu (sunset photo must go platform 1 & 3 ) we arrived 3pm platform 1 & left platform 3 by 4pm. - For morning sun, must go unknown platform near clear pond. - Parking at platform 1 is 500yen (include Mt Iowa parking on same day visit) and parking at unknown platform & 3 is free. - Platform 1 is tour bus & shop. Unknown platform only has toilet, and platform 3 nothing. - Checked into hotel at around 430pm. Went to therapeutic Onsen around 630pm for 30 mins. - Drove 15-20mins to Izakaya restaurant at Kawayu Onsen area for dinner around 730pm. Bill 4800yen. - Drove up to platform 3 for star Gazing (foggy started). - Drove back to hotel (20-25 mins) for Onsen & sleep. - Mixed bath nake Onsen available in Hotel Parkway. Hotel Parkway |
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LAKE MASHU > NEMURO
- Woke up 4:30am and left at 5am to catch sea of clouds & sunrise at 3rd platform. - 6:30am left lake & went to Kawayu Onsen footbath park for photography. - Back to hotel for BF around 7:45am, rested. - 8:45am Onsen till 9:15am, and checked out 10am. - Drove to Lake Kushuharro, passed by Kawayu Onsen Park again. There's 5 free open Onsen along Lake Kushuharro. 1st Onsen cannot find. 2nd free Onsen beach sand Onsen. 3rd free Onsen deserted by the lake (algae) 4th free Onsen nicest also by the lake. Very windy & cold. 5th free Onsen too far. Gave up. But it's located within campsite. - Lunch at 弟子屈 fish based soup ramen & tasty gyoza. Bill 1160yen. Dessert shop. Cookies 450. - Depart 12:50pm to Lake Furen. Started raining. 1.5hr ride. - Pumped petrol 4800 yen. Tip bits & beer 1,060 yen. Bread 430 yen. - Arrived apartment at 5plus in Nemuro apartment. Cash only payment for the room. Enjoyed beer and snacks in room before we head out for dinner at 8pm. Sushi for dinner, total bill about 2400 yen. Guesthouse Sharehouse Toyoma |
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NEMURO
- Breakfast in apartment at 940am; drove 20 mins to bird observatory shed, then passing by Aurora tower, and reaching Bokyono-misaki Park for photos and finally Cape Nosappu (all within 1-2 mins drive away only). Had Konbu ramen (700 yen) near Bokyono-misaki Park before driving towards Kurumashi at Cape Hanasaki. Then we drove to eatery Dai-Hachi for Kani ramen (1000 yen) and Kani fried rice (1000yen). After that we drove to the nearby by fishery port before heading back to apartment. Guesthouse Sharehouse Toyoma |
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NEMURO > OBIHIRO
- BF at apt. Check 10plus. Stroll around NEMURO station, exploring crab & seafood shops. Dropped by Ochiishi Cape, but did not walk in. Drop by 7eleven spend 500yen buy oden. - Stop by pizza lunch at Farm Design Restaurant. Pizza 850 yen. Ice cream 300 yen, pudding 380 yen each (all in approx 2000yen). - Drove to Kiritappu Lighthouse & Cape. 10mins walk to tip of cap from car park. - Drove pass kiritappu wetland. Checked out Akkeshi Gourmet Park which is a Rest station. Akkeshi produce oysters. Half raw oysters 1000yen. - Drove 50mins/45km to Kushiro washo market. Arrive half hour before 6pm closing time. Free parking. Stall gave discount to sashimi. Total 3400yen; rice 150yen; Beef plate 280yen. - Proceeded to BBQ tent eatery beside the Harbour. 1000yen coupon. Parked at Lawson. - Drove to Obihiro hotel Area One; depart Kushiro around 7pm. Took no toll road. Arrived 9pm. Free parking, free breakfast, free udon supper, and discounted Onsen ticket. Our room very big with sauna and Onsen shower style. Peak autumn Colours in tree line city roads. Hotel AreaOne Obihiro |
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OBIHIRO > ASAHIKAWA
- Departed Obihiro 10:30am. Petrol 3100yen for 25L. Drove to gorge 30km away (about 40 mins drive). Peak season over at the gorge. Not very beautiful. - Drove towards pyotan fall but road closed due to road damage. Stop by cheese farm. Drove to Onsen area. Back to Obihiro city centre around 2:45pm for famous Butadon. 5pc plate at 1000yen. - Stopped by yatai street for photography. 3:40pm drive to Asahikawa. 180km. Approx 3h drive. Very cold, 3 degrees. Started snowing up in the mountain road. Had dinner beside the hotel, AEON mall 盖饭1274 yen. Onsen in JR Inn. JR Inn Asahikawa |
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ASAHIKAWA > WAKKANAI
- Onsen in the morning before having complementary simple breakfast at the ground floor of AEON shopping mall. Departed 10am. - Drove to crop art spot but no crop. Drive toward Lake Kutcharo. 175km. 3h drive. Started heavy snow. Scenery from Autumn to winter background. Snow slop & every where snow covered. Petrol 2470yen , 19L @ 130yen. - Lake kutcharo , 620 geese. Sarufutsu rest station. Live scallop sashimi Kani don, 1200yen. Ice cream 280yen. - Short drive to Soya cape. Sea level. Sunset 4:30pm. - Drove about 30mins to Dormy Inn at Wakkanai city. Dormy Inn Wakkanai |
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WAKKANAI
- Drove to breakwater sight. Drove up Wakkanai park. To cape Noshappu, and bought Konbu 1080 yen 150g. Lunch 2300yen. - Drove to station mkt and bought dried scallop & Konbu. 10,200yen. Scallop 110g 3,300yen x2, Natural Konbu 700yen, 100g. Konbu sweets, 720 yen. (expensive, go another place). - Drove to 大沼 to see more migrating geese. Petrol 21L @132, 2,772yen. - Dropped by seafood 稚內丸善market next to 副港市場. Scallop 100g was only 2,200yen. Live scallops & big clams by the box very cheap. Bought Kani claws 500g 2,985yen for ramen tonight. Back to hotel around 3:30pm. View Sunset 4:30pm. Cloudy. Cannot see. Back to Dormy Inn Onsen. R&R. 10pm Kani Ramen. Dormy Inn Wakkanai |
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WAKKANAI > CHITOSE
- Morning Onsen before breakfast. Departed Dormy Inn 10am. - - Drove towards Toyotomi, and stopped by a wetland for some photos. Started to rain while in the wetland, and hence cut short the visit. - Drove to Rumoi, and had lunch along the way in a town that is popular for sweet prawn. Bought a box of Uni for dinner - Continued our drive to New Chitose, and reached the hotel around 7pm. Went for Onsen in another hotel before heading back to hotel room for my Uni-don dinner Hotel Wing International Chitose |
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CHITOSE > TOKYO > NIKKO
- Drove 15-20mins from hotel to Aoba Park in Chitose for last minute autumn colours photos before flying off to Tokyo to meet Hong and Sock. Saw a wild deer in the park! - Took ANA from New Chitose to Narita Airport and arrived Narita at 345pm. - Met up Hong and Sock and picked up our rented car from Times Car Rental. We booked a Mazda 3, and was given a Toyota Sienta, which was better for us due to the huge luggage space - Drove towards Nikko, and stopped for Shabu shabu buffet at On-Yasai restaurant in Utsunomiya-shi. - Arrived Nikko apartment around 1145pm Air BnB |
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NIKKO
- Drove 5 mins to bakery to buy breakfast and headed to Shinkyo bridge for photos (about 25 mins drive) and breakfast. - Next drove up to Akechidaira Ropeway (round trip ropeway 730 yen). It was drizzling and misty and hence we decided to skip the ropeway - Next, we drove towards Lake Chuzenji. Parked in a carpark that is between Kegon Waterfall (parking 300 yen) and Lake Chuzenji. A short 10 mins walk to Kegon waterfalls for photos. After that, we had lunch near Lake Chuzenji. More photos taking at Lake Chuzenji before we drove up to Hangetsuyama. We stopped half way because too foggy to see the lake up there. - Decided to go shopping at AEON instead due to the poor weather Air BnB |
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NIKKO > NIIGATA
- Drove 20-25 mins from apartment to Toshogu (5200 yen for 4 entry fee, parking 500 yen), where we spend about an hour walking inside the shrine - Decided to drive back to Lake Chuzenji due to the good weather. Took more photos here before driving 1.5 -2 hrs to Setoaikyo Canyon. We arrived the entrance to Setoaikyo Canyon around 340pm, 20 mins before the gate closure. Beautiful multi-colours here. Unfortunately we were not able to walk on the bridge because the time needed complete the walk to the bridge and return to the gate is at least 40 mins. Hence we only took photos from the walkway on the dam - Headed to Niigata, and stopped at Lake Ikari for a brief period (autumn colours over here). Pumped petrol, 3300 yen. - Dinner 7500 yen for first restaurant and 4,340 yen for 2nd restaurant at Aizuwakamatsu-shi. Hotel Route-Inn Niigata Nishi Inter |
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NIIGATA
- Niigata costal drive in the morning. Along the way, we stopped at Yoshihiko Shrine. From there, we drove about 42mins (31km) to Yahiko Park's maple tree walkway for autumn colours. Thereafter, we drove to Teradomarishi moaramachi, Nagaoka, Niigata Prefecture 940-2502, (fish market) for our sashimi and oyster lunch. After late lunch, we hang around near the Niigate port where Hong did his fishing. Hotel Route-Inn Niigata Nishi Inter |
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NIIGITA > YUZAWA
- Drove to Ponshukan sake museum (1000 yen sake sampling), fish market. Drove 3 hrs to Lake Okatadami for cruise (5200 yen). 2 hrs to hotel at Yuzawa. Dinner 8000 yen. Petrol 2500 yen Hotel Yuzawa Yuzawa Denkiya |
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YUZAWA > NAKANO
Yuzawa Kogen ropeway (5200 yen), Ponchukan area for lunch (4300 yen), Kiyotsu Gorge (2400 yen), short fishing at the stream, dinner near Bonzanso hotel, back to hotel Bozanso |
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NAKANO > MATSUMOTO
Snow monkey park (2,000 yen), pond, waterfall, shopping and back to hotel Super Hotel Matsumoto Tennenonsen |
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MATSUMOTO
50 mins drive to Sawando carpark and take taxi to Kamikochi (30 mins 4,200 yen one way). Spend 5 hours here and back to Matsumoto. Stopped at the castle for quick photos and went back to hotel. Dinner at yakiniku buffer (8,000 yen) Super Hotel Matsumoto Tennenonsen |
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MATSUMOTO > TOKYO
Matsumoto castle for photos, then drove 25-30 mins to Daio wasabi farm. Stopped at Mont bell shopping for 30 mins. Drove an hour to Narabi juku for lunch and photos. Then drove about an hour to Lake Momiji where the route is planted with maple tree. Drove 3 hrs to Tokyo via toll road (6,020 yen) Harumi Grand Hotel |
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TOKYO
- Send Hong to Haneda airport after breakfast in the hotel (30 mins drive) - Pumped petrol 4,148 yen - Spend the rest of the afternoon in Tsukiji market, and Kappabashi Kitchen town for kitchenware shopping - Checked into hotel around 7pm Hotel Edoya |
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TOKYO > YOKOHAMA > KAMAKURA > TOKYO
- Breakfast in hotel before heading to Yokohama. The drive was about an hour, and we arrived Yokohama around 10am+. Tried looking for the flea market near the Yokohama tower, not couldn't find any. Then we took a short 10 mins walk to Chinatown for lunch. Thereafter, we walked to the port for some photo taking before heading out to Kamakura - The drive from Yokohma to Kamakura took us about 45mins. The first stop was the old shopping belt in Kamakura, which was FILLED with lots of people. Next, we drove about 5-10mins to Kamakura Daibutsu (big buddha temple). Spend about half and hour here. - Final stop was to Enashima beach for sunset. Heavy traffic here during weekend. We had dinner at Kua Aina for burger before driving back to Tokyo (about 1.5 hrs) Hotel Edoya |
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TOKYO > LAKE YAMANAKA > LAKE KAWAGUCHI > MT FUJI 5th STATION > TOKYO
- Set off 9:40am. Took half toll, half no toll route to Lake Yamanakako. Toll 1300yen, 980yen & exited at Sagamiko 680yen (1 hour toll drive, 2,960yen total without ETC card, with ETC approx 2,050yen ). 10:40am started non-toll drive. Arrived 12noon. 1pm left for maple corridor from Lake Yamanakako. - Drove about 35 mins to Lake Kawaguchiko from Lake Yamanakako. Parked at art museum for free as short walk to maple corridor entrance. Left 3pm to 5th station. - Toll 2-way 2060yen to drive up to 5th station. Started driving up 3:30pm and arrived 5th station 4:15pm. Drive down at 4:30pm to get back to 4th station to catch sunset against the sea of clouds. - Drove back to Lake Kawaguchiko for the light-up autumn festival at Maple corridor - Drove back to Tokyo via toll-free road (mountain road) Hotel Edoya |
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TOKYO > SINGAPORE
- Pumped petrol 1,050 yen before returning car near Narita Airport |
TRIP PHOTOS - JAPAN OCT-NOV 2016