Sapporo Snow Festival

 Image: Sapporo Snow Festival, Makomanai - February 1981

When my brother was little, before I was born, his uncle and cousin took him to the Sapporo Snow Festival in the late 1970s. Ironically, even though he was the one who got lost, he told the staff at the Lost Children Centre that his uncle and cousin must be lost and that he was trying to find them. Eventually, an announcement was made over the loudspeakers at the venue asking them to come to the centre.

That cousin recently told me the story and laughed, saying she still thinks it was unfair, while also admitting it was impressive that he could give his personal information to the staff despite his young age. 

Unlike the current venues, the main site was at a military base in Makomanai as the ice statues were built by soldiers stationed there at the time. Ice sliders were constructed alongside each large ice statue, and young children enjoyed sliding down them on their bottoms while service members assisted them.

Map: Camp Makomani

Image: Service members standing beside the statues - February 1981

My own memory is very vague, and I only remember that I went to the Makomanai venue and enjoyed sliding when I was a preschool child. 

According to the official website, the Snow Festival started in 1950 with six statues built by local students at Ohdori Park. By the sixth festival in 1955, members of the Self-Defense Forces began participating in the construction of ice statues.

Image: Sapporo Snow Festival - February 1965

The Makomanai venue was officially introduced at the 16th festival in 1965. Since then, the number of visitors to the Sapporo Snow Festival increased, reaching 2 million by the late 1980s, when the Susukino site was opened.

Image: Susukino site - February 2015

Image: Susukino site - February 2026

Although the Makomanai military camp played a key role in this international festival, its 40-year history came to an end at the 56th festival in 2005.

Currently, the Snow Festival is held at Ohdori Park, Susukino, and Tsudome. 

Map: Tsudome

Compared with the Makomanai venue, the Tsudome site is slightly less convenitent in terms of access. The Makomani military camp is located directly in front of Jieitai-Mae Underground Station on the Green Line. Tsudome, on the other hand, requires a ten-minute walk from the nearest Underground station.

Anyway, for young children, the Tsudome site is suitable as it offers a variety of snow activities. However, many locals do not necessarily participate in the Snow Festival, apart from those who have young children. Local broadcasts introduce the statues during the festival every year, so locals are used to seeing ice statues, and the cold weather makes them hesitate to go out. As for my own situation, I never visited the Sapporo Snow Festival when I was a student, from primary school to university. 

That said, many locals enjoy the atmosphere and appreciate the transition of the seasons. When I was young, announcements in Korean and Chinese on the underground were rare and could only be heard during the Snow Festival. Nowadays, however, they are quite common, for example on services operated by JR Hokkaido and on airport buses.

Image: Multilingual signboards are now standard - July 2025

In recent years, the number of tourists from Southeast Asia has been increasing. Looking at the graph below, Visitors from Korea, Taiwan, China, and Hong Kong still account for 74% of foreign visitors to Hokkaido. However, this percentage was 86% 20 years ago. Tourists from Thai, Malaysia, and Singapore have a strong presence, reaching a total of 245,800 visitors. Moreover, tourists from the Philippines, which is included in 'other' category, account for 32,600 visitors.

Graph: Foreign Visitor Numbers to Hokkaido from April 2024 to March 2025

The graph was compiled by the author based on data from 北海道観光入込客数調査報告書, issued by the Hokkaido Prefectural Government

I assume that most people from Southeast Asia have never experienced snow, so it is heartwarming to see them enjoying it, wearing thick down jackets they are not used to, or walking carefully on the icy roads, like small children. Their behaviour reminds me of my own childhood.

Image: Ohdori Park site - February 2026

The city centre of Sapporo is modern and sophisticated. Because of this, the contrast between the snow statues and the buildings is also one of the features of the Snow Festival. If it is snowing, a trip during the festival - surrounded by modern buildings, rich nature, and snow statues - must be an experience you would never have anywhere else in the world.

Image: Susukino site - February 2026

On top of that, during the winter season, a variety of illuminations can be seen in the city centre. Driving under the trees lit up along Route 36, from Sapporo Station to Susukino Station, was my favourite activity when I was a university student in Sapporo.

Even if you cannot plan a visit to Sapporo during the Snow Festival, there is still plenty to enjoy. For those from places where it never snows, Sapporo is the perfect place to experience beautiful snow for the first time.

Image: Illumination during the winter season - February 2026