Read Day 2 here - Sapporo TV Tower, Otaru Lantern Festival
Read Day 3 here - Mount Teine, Jingisukan
Read Day 4 here - Odori Park, Susukino Ice Festival
Read Day 5 here - Ishiya Chocolate Factory
Read Day 6 here - Bonus Day! Strawberry Farm
Day 5 was supposed to be my last day in Hokkaido but it didn�t turn out that way. More on that later. With an evening flight, we still had time to explore after checking out of the hostel. We left our bags there and went to find breakfast. We had a surprisingly good pancake breakfast which served pancakes the size of small plates. This was considered big compared to Japanese sized hotcakes.
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| Pancake breakfast |
Then we walked to Odori (??) and took the Tozai Subway Line (???) to Miyanosawa Station (????). It only took about 15 minutes (280 yen). It was snowing quite heavily today so the 10 minute walk from Miyanosawa Station to Shiroi Koibito Park (???????) seemed longer than it was. However, in the snowy mist we could clearly see the words �chocolate factory� on top of the red brick building that we were heading to.
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| Ishiya Chocolate Factory in sight |
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| Shiroi Koibito Park |
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| Passport and biscuit given at admission |
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| Fountain inside the chocolate factory |
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| Hot chocolate cups |
Naturally, the next part of the self-led tour was the cafe with a view of the mountains and the gift store downstairs. It�s a superb marketing strategy. First they intrigue you to pay admission and inhale the sweet aroma while looking at the history of chocolate. Second they show you the production of their biscuits and third they give you the opportunity to buy as much as possible and ship overseas!
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| Production of Shiroi Koibito |
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| Stairs leading to gift shop |
I have never heard of this brand until I came to Hokkaido and everyone was talking about it. It is only sold in this prefecture and is one of the top omiyage (souvenirs) in Japan. I resisted the temptation to buy boxes of sweets (though I did give in at the airport later) but I did try their chocolate drink which was rich and creamy. It was like drinking full fat milk mixed with cocoa powder.
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| Ishiya Snowman-kun |
After the chocolate factory, we went back to our hostel to collect our bags and took the train to Shin-Chitose Airport (?????). My flight was scheduled for 6:20pm but I never left that night. After several delays, it was finally announced at 7:30pm that the flight was cancelled along with many other flights due to the snow storm. We were directed to line up for the airline�s counter which turned out to be a two hour wait with all my luggage. Fortunately my flight was rescheduled for the next day but my friends flying with another airline got rescheduled for two days later.
Finally by 10pm I was able to leave the airport with a new flight. The airline did not give anybody accommodation or food stipend because they claimed it was due to the weather which is uncontrollable for them.
So for anyone visiting Hokkaido for the Snow Festival, be aware that your travel plans could change with the unpredictable weather! Flying in was a smooth process for me since it was a sunny day but flying out became a huge, delayed hassle including finding last minute accommodation during this extremely busy week. If possible, allow yourself a day of flexibility before and after your planned winter Hokkaido trip.
Anyways it all worked out in the end and I now have a Day 6 of the trip to share.
Read Day 1 here - Sapporo Snow Festival, Ramen Theme Park
Read Day 2 here - Sapporo TV Tower, Otaru Lantern Festival
Read Day 3 here - Mount Teine, Jingisukan
Read Day 4 here - Odori Park, Susukino Ice Festival
Read Day 5 here - Ishiya Chocolate Factory
Read Day 6 here - Bonus Day! Strawberry Farm
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