We will take you to see more of Hokkaido island than any other company. Visit national parks in their winter splendour, see Steller's sea eagles, ice carving festivals, dancing Japanese Red-crowned Cranes, cruise on an ice breaker, ride a steam train in the snow, enjoy a wide selection of Japanese dinners and traditional ryokan accommodation.
AND ... You can add a 4 night / 5 day extension to visit the Snow Monkeys of Honshu Island.
Tour Departs : February 7, 2010 Land only price AUD$ 4,988 ( about US$2,900 ) Sapporo to Sapporo ( Subject to currency fluctuation )
For Qantas and Japan Airlines flight prices ex Australia please contact our office.
Click on any photo to
enlarge it.
The following video of Japanese Red-crowned Cranes was taken by Anna Osetroff during our Toursgallery Winter Festivals Tour. Click on the arrow in the centre of the frame to start the movie.
Each
destination has been chosen so that you will see the biggest variety
of winter scenes including an international ice sculpture competition
, small houses and castles made of ice, illuminated from inside at night,
beautiful scenes of nature, forests, mountains and marshlands covered
in snow and frozen lakes .
February is the best
month for bird observing of the Japanese Red crowned Crane as well as
Steller`s Sea Eagle, Whooper Swan and Bewick Swan. We will be visiting
Kushiro Marsh where local members of the Japan Wild Bird Society will
show us the best locations for birdwatching that day.
Northern
Pintail, Great Spotted and Japanese Pygmy Woodpeckers, White-tailed
Eagle, Goldeneye and Harlequin Ducks could also be found as we look
around each location.
This
is a vacation package for those people who enjoy nature and want to
do something completely different .
Cruise on an Ice Breaker
Take an Icebreaker cruise through the drift ice along the Shiretoko
peninsula . Here resting on the floating bergs of pack ice in the Sea
of Okhotsk , drifting down from the Arctic, we usually see Northern
Fur Seals and numerous eagles on the lookout for a feed.
For any of our warm climate friends , this is a perfect opportunity
for some great photos that nobody else back home will have .
Ainu wood carving
& Steam Train across the snow fields
Another
unusual and just for fun event will be a Steam Locomotive ride across
the snow covered fields around Kushiro Marsh . We will also stop in
at Lake Akan to visit the wood carving craft shops of the Ainu people.
Snow Monkey extension.
Extension Price AUD$2,677 ( subject to change ) Tokyo to Tokyo
An
optional 5 day / 4 night EXTENSION has been especially created for you
to visit the Snow Monkeys of central Honshu island. This includes 2
nights in the 5 star western style Palace Hotel in Tokyo and 2 nights
of traditional Japanese Ryokan style accommodation in the mountains
near Nagano. Bullet train tickets from Tokyo, private charter bus transfers
from and to Nagano station, all breakfasts and 2 Japanese banquet dinners
and your Japanese English speaking guide are all included in this journey.