Hokkaido Private Photo Tour Winter 2024: Minimal Landscape & Wildlife

DATES

from February 24 to 29, 2024

TOUR’S HIGHLIGHTS

• Picturesque minimalist snow landscapes
• Steller’s sea eagles from a boat
• Japanese red-crowned cranes in the winter landscapes
• Owls in the winter forest
• Whooper swans in the frozen lake
• Fox and Deer
• Surreal landscape of the sulfur smoking volcano
• Stunning frozen lakes

ITINERARIES

Day 1 // February 24: Asahikawa, Hokkaido

Official meeting point is Asahikawa Airport in Hokkaido. Participants should book a flight with the destination to Asahikawa Airport from your city via Haneda (Tokyo). We will pick you up at Asahikawa Airport and we will stay in a hotel nearby. At night we will have a dinner together at hotel.

Day 2 // February 25: Biei, Hokkaido

In the morning, we will drive through the amazing snow-covered hills of Biei and photograph very beautiful and artistic minimalist winter landscapes. We might encounter with foxes on the hills. Biei is full of minimal landscapes and every corner is picturesque. In the late afternoon, we will leave Biei to another town to stay a night.

Trees in Biei, Hokkaido. ©Akashi Photos

Trees in the snow field in Biei, Hokkaido. ©Akashi Photos

Iron structures for farming covered with snow in Biei, Hokkaido. ©Akashi Photos

Fox in Biei. ©Akashi Photos

A small house on a hill of Biei, Hokkaido. ©Akashi Photos

Hill of Biei, Hokkaido. ©Akashi Photos

Fox in the hill of Biei, Hokkaido. ©Akashi Photos

Day 3 // February 26: Japanese red-crowned cranes

After breakfast we will move to Kushiro, to photograph the Japanese red-crowned cranes in the wildness, one of the greatest attractions of Hokkaido for wildlife photographers. We will dedicate the whole day to photograph the majestic Japanese red-crowned cranes, visiting two different places.

Japanese red-crowned cranes in Kushiro, Hokkaido. ©Akashi Photos

Japanese red-crowned cranes dance in Kushiro, Hokkaido. ©Akashi Photos

Day 4 // February 27:  Red-crowned cranes at dawn, and owls in the winter forest

We will wake up before dawn to photograph picturesque landscape with red-crowned cranes in the river covered with the reddish mist just before sunrise. It all depends on the weather condition, but we will try to capture this amazing romantic moments. After this rising sun hour shots, we will go back to our hotel to have breakfast. After breakfast, we will go back to photograph red-crowned cranes arriving on a field from the river where we have just photographed this morning. We could photograph them flying or dancing after their landing. Then, we will head to a winter forest to look for owls. After photographing owls, we will head to the frozen lake famous for whooper swans, stopping by to photograph winter landscape.

Red-crowned cranes in the river at dawn in Kushiro, Hokkaido. ©Akashi Photos

Red-crowned cranes flying to land on a field, Kushiro, Hokkaido. ©Akashi Photos

Owls in a winter forest in Kushiro, Hokkaido. ©Akashi Photos

Winter landscape of Hokkaido. ©Akashi Photos

Whooper swans on a frozen lake, Hokkaido. ©Akashi Photos

Day 5 // February 28: Winter landscapes, volcanic mountain, stunning frozen lake, and whooper swans

After breakfast, we will go back to the frozen lake to photograph whooper swans landing on the frozen lake. If you want, you will be able to bathe in an outdoor hot spring bath just in front of the shore with the swans! After swans, we will photograph the winter landscapes around the frozen lake shore, then we will head to Notsuke Peninsula to photograph wildlife such as fox and deer.

Whooper swans, Hokkaido. ©Akashi Photos

Fly fishermen on the frozen lake, Hokkaido. ©Akashi Photos

Winter snowy landscape on the lake. ©Akashi Photos

Fox ©Akashi Photos

Deer ©Akashi Photos

Deer moving together in the evening. ©Akashi Photos

Flower in the snow landscape. ©Akashi Photos

Bridge in the snow landscape. ©Akashi Photos

A family of deer at dusk. ©Akashi Photos

Day 6 // February 29: Boat trip for Steller’s sea eagles 

Today we will wake up very early before dawn, and we will go back to photograph white-tailed eagles and Steller’s sea eagles on a boat. This time we will photograph them with early morning warm light. After the two-hour cruise, we will go back to our hotel for breakfast, then we will go to a local airport, Nakashibetsu Airport, and our tour ends here. If you go back to your country directly after this tour, please look for a flight from Nakashibetsu Airport to your town.

Dawn off the coast of Shiretoko Peninsula. ©Akashi Photos

Stellar’s Eagle in Shiretoko Peninsula. © Akashi Photos

Steller’s sea eagles in Shiretoko. ©Akashi Photos

Steller’s sea eagles on the drift ice, Shiretoko. ©Akashi Photos

White-tailed eagle in Shiretoko. ©Akashi Photos

Orca in the ocean of Shiretoko. ©Akashi Photos

Shiretoko Peninsula. ©Akashi Photos

SUMMARY OF THE TOUR

Toru Morimoto and Tina Bagué, both professional photographers, have organized a dream trip to Hokkaido to explore the northernmost island of Japan,. Hokkaido is the second largest island of the four main islands that make up Japan. Located to the north of Honshu, the northernmost point of Hokkaido is just about 40 kilometers south of the southernmost point of Sakhalin Island, Russian territory. Despite of occupying a fifth of the entire country, Hokkaido barely has 5% of the population of Japan. Its population multiplies exponentially in summer when Japanese tourists look for cooler weather to enjoy summer. However, from our point of view, and after traveling to the area both in summer and winter, we believe that there is no better time to enjoy nature and wildlife of Hokkaido than in winter. Hokkaido is absolutely magical place during this season. Akashi Photo Tours will take you to places with difficult access in Hokkaido to discover all the wonders of Hokkaido.

Hokkaido is synonymous to nature, pure wildlife and breathtaking landscapes. Traveling through its snow-covered minimal plains with trees, walking on frozen lakes or photographing Japanese cranes dancing in the snow are priceless experiences. The silence, the crunching of the drift ice or the whistle of the wind is Hokkaido’s daily soundtrack. For the all attractions that offer to people who love nature and photography, Hokkaido is often described as “the magic island”. Hokkaido keeps attracting travelers and photographers from all over the world.

We will travel in our private car or van, so we can stop anywhere we like . To compensate for the icy temperatures that usually occur in the winter months, Hokkaido offers many accommodations with hot springs that will be a real balm for the body at the end of a day to have a good sleep. Bathing in indoor and outdoor baths with its hot springs at 40ºC, with an outdoor temperature of -15ºC is an unique experience that you have to live at least once in your life! We will stay in some ryokans (traditional Japanese inns) with hot springs as well as in western hotels. We will also enjoy traditional Japanese cuisine, as well as authentic local food.

This photo tour is recommended for participants with adequate photo equipment for wildlife photography. We recommend to take at least 300mm lens with you. If you have 500mm it would be better.

PRIVATE TOUR

This is a PRIVATE TOUR which means this is a tour for a couple, family, group of friends. Participants do not travel with other people who they don’t know each other.

ACCOMMODATIONS & MEALS

During our photo tour to Japan we will combine nights in ryokan and western hotels. Whether they are traditional Japanese inns or western hotels, all of them are mid class with good reputation or selected by tour leaders from their experiences. The rooms will be basically single twin room (with two beds) or tatami room with futon on the tatami mat.

In this tour, all breakfasts and dinners are included. Any lunch is not included. Since we normally go to a restaurant together for lunch, you just choose what you would like to eat and you pay for it. Normally each lunch costs less than 2,000 yen.

If anybody has allergy or food intolerance problems, or is a vegetarian, we will try to make the necessary changes in the menus when it is possible.

Since this is the private tour, we can upgrade hotels and meals if you wish.

PRICE

The tour price will depend on the number of participants. And the prices below are estimated price since the hotel and transportation fees vary depending on when we make a reservation. Basically the earlier is the cheaper.

• • • • Price for 8 persons: from ￥254,000 per person
      • Price for 7 persons:  from ￥275,000 per person
      • Price for 6 persons:  from ￥302,000 per person
      • Price for 5 persons:  from ￥343,000 per person
      • Price for 4 persons:  from ￥403,000 per person
      • Price for 3 persons:  from ￥486,000 per person
      • Price for 2 persons:  from ￥676,000 per person

  *The tour price is fixed in Japanese yen (￥). When you make a payment, depending on the exchange rate with your currency,  tour price in your currency will change.

   

  RESERVATION

  • • • To make the reservation it is necessary to make a payment of the deposit of ￥100,000. Payment can be made by credit card.
      • Payment of the total cost of the trip must be made 2 months before the starting date of the tour.
      • All transaction fees that occur for reservation are paid by the payer of the reservation.

   

   

  The MIN. and MAX. NUMBER of PARTICIPANTS
  

  For the trip to be carried out, there must be at least 2 participants and maximum of 8 participants. This is a private tour, which means all participants are your friends or family.

   

  TRAVEL INSURANCE
  

  It is mandatory to have comprehensive insurance cover for cancellation, medical expenses, personal accident, emergency evacuation, repatriation of remains, dismemberment, and accidental death. You have to give us a copy of travel insurance before the trip.

   

  CANCELLATION
  

  If the cancellation is made more than 61 days before the start of the tour, deposit will be refunded in full only if the place(s) is/are filled with another/other participant(s). Deposit will not be refunded if the cancellation is made within 60 days before the start of the tour. For more details of cancellation and conditions of refund of the balance due after 60 days, please read our terms & conditions.

   

  DRIFTING ICE & WILDLIFE
  

  The drifting ice and wildlife can not be guaranteed in any case. Drift ice comes and goes each year depending on the currents, the temperature, and many other factors that cause this natural spectacle. Sometimes we find wild animals very easily, but other times it is difficult to find them. It is important to keep it in mind that the organizers will not have any responsibility if there is no drifting ice or wildlife during the specific dates of the tour.
  

   

  MORE QUESTIONS
  

  If you have more doubts about any topic related to the photo tour to Japan, send us an email to: info@akashitravel.com