Festival that you don't want to miss in the Winter of Otaru, Hokkaido, Japan.

Otaru in Hokkaido.

The Canal.

    Otaru is a small fishing village located about 30 minutes by train away from Sapporo. It is a popular tourist destination with many historical buildings. The Canal is the iconic sightseeing spot of Otaru.
Most of the people who visit this city also visit the Canal, due to the alluring of the sightseeing pamphlets which could be found in every tourist information center as well as the train station.

The lantern in the water.

Otaru Snow Light Event.

    The Snow Light Path Festival is a winter festival held every early of the February in Otaru, and 2016 is its 18th year. This event is run by the nongovernment organization of Otaru and volunteer from the world such as Korea, Taiwan, and others, thus the festival is filled with the “warmth” of people.

Snow lantern.

    The city decorated with lanterns and snow sculptures during the event, which is being lighted up by million of candles. The combination of the silent snowy town and the glittering lanterns bring you a very romantic atmosphere.

Temiyasen Kaijo.

Volunteers from overseas.

    "Making hands by Hands" is the main idea of this festival since the beginning. Many volunteers from Korea and China are working together with local people to support the Snow Light Path preparation when the festival draws near. 

    Working in the harsh environment, they are shivering and chilled to the bone. They need to relight the candles one by one when the lights are extinguished by the sudden blizzard. They have nothing to do with the harsh weather but deal the environment with human wisdom and passion.

Light up snow Tunnel.

The main light up area.

   There are two main event areas: the Unga Kaijo (the canal) and the Temiyasen Kaijo (The abandoned railway route) . Both locations are only a short walk (about 5~15 minutes) from the JR Otaru Station. 


    The festival itself is free of charge, so you barely have to spend any money. Try to keep yourself warm along the romantic journey, I suggest you use warm pad which you can get from any drug store in Japan.

Snow Sculpture.

Light up schedule.

    The city is cheerfully light up daily from 5:00PM to 8:00PM at the Unga Kaijo and Temiyasen Kaijo, since the initiation of the event. This festival will occur on every early of February, and the area that offers the best experience is the Unga Kaijo. The date of the event may change in every year due to the weather, but the date maintains around 5th to 15th February which not later than 15th.

Tengu Yama.

Various light up area.

    The illumination area is not only available at Unga Kaijo and Temiyasen kaijo. A total of more than 100,000 private candles illuminates many other places of the city during the festival period,  such as the Asahigawa hot spring village and Tengu Yama, which are located at the city outskirt. They are hard to access without a car but public transport still able to lead you there, it just takes you extra time to visit the place. You will feel it is worth to climb a mountain to see the outstanding view.