Sapporo Snow Festival: Snow Sculptures

The Sapporo Snow Festival stands as the crown jewel of Hokkaido’s cultural celebrations. Each winter, the enchanting sight of intricately crafted snow statues fills Odori Park, transforming it into a breathtaking winter wonderland. Visitors are greeted by a dazzling array of sculptures that showcase everything from castles to beloved characters, their details expertly carved from snow. This festival not only captivates the eyes but also warms the heart, making it one of Hokkaido’s most cherished and iconic experiences.

Sapporo Snow Festival 

About the Festival 

The Sapporo Snow Festival is the largest winter festival in Hokkaido, originating in 1950 when local students created snow sculptures. The festival takes place in early February and lasts for about a week. During this time, the average temperature is around -5 degrees Celsius, with approximately 60 cm of snowfall. For this trip, I bought my son a ski suit, which I believe was just right for the weather.

The main venue for the festival is Odori Park, located just one stop away from Sapporo Station. If you prefer, there is a long underground shopping mall leading from Sapporo Station, allowing you to walk there even on snowy days.

This year, likely due to global warming, Hokkaido experienced a lack of snow until just before the festival. However, since the beginning of February, it has started snowing heavily. Even with the initial snow shortage, the Snow Festival will not be canceled, as snow will be sourced from surrounding towns. 

In Japan, many festivals are being discontinued due to a decline in population, but I hope the Snow Festival continues for many years to come!

Sapporo Snow Festival 

The various snow sculptures of the year are lined up for about 1.5 km from Odori 1-chome, where the Sapporo TV Tower is located, to Odori 11-chome. It probably the best to start from Sapporo TV Tower.  It takes about 3~4 hours to see all of them, while enjoying food and attractions. 

Although this is a big festival with more than 2 million visitors coming, we did not feel so crowded as the venue is quite big when we visited on weekdays.  We were able to enjoy the festival in a relaxed atmosphere.

It is quite amazing all those statues are made by citizens in Hokkaido. For us, who came from snow-free Kansai region, it is a wonder how such things are made. 

I guess there maybe are snow craftsman all over in Hokkaido! 

Big Snow Statues

The large snow statues are exhibited after 4-chome. All those large statues are mainly reproductions of famous characters and landmarks, and of course they are very much detailed. The largest snow sculptures are as tall as 15 meters!

The last strip of the park is 11-chome, where an international snow sculpture competition was being held. Many teams from various countries made snow sculptures.

Not only are there many venders selling souvenirs but some of them sells local cuisines of Hokkaido such as Zangi (fried chicken) and Jingisukan (mutton dish).  Maybe you need a whole day to enjoy everything! 

Also, at night, all those statues are lit up until 10 p.m. It is really beautiful, but keep in mind that it can get down to -10℃ at night, so you need to come dressed very warmly.

There are two other snow festivals venues besides Odori Park, namely Susukino and Tsu-domu!  Make sure to go there if you have a chance!!