Asahikawa旭川 · Hokkaido river town日本語

Access & tips · アクセスとヒント

Plan a visit旅の準備

How to get here, how to get around, where to ask, what tickets and taxes to expect, how to stay safe in the snow and around brown bears, and where to go for the day.

Times, fares and hours are as the sources give them in September 2026. They change, so check before you go.

Getting there

Getting to Asahikawa アクセス

By train, plane, highway bus or car.

By train鉄道

  • JR Asahikawa Station, rebuilt in 2011, is the main rail hub of northern Hokkaido.⁠[1][61]
  • Four lines meet here: the Hakodate Main Line south to Sapporo, the Sōya Main Line north to Wakkanai, the Sekihoku Main Line east to Abashiri, and the Furano Line to Furano.⁠[61]
  • Limited expresses from Sapporo take about 1 hour 25 minutes and run every 30 minutes.⁠[47]
  • From New Chitose Airport, allow about 2 hours 5 minutes, changing at Sapporo.⁠[47]

By air飛行機

  • Asahikawa Airport opened in 1966 and added an international terminal in 2018. The terminal stands in Higashikagura, but Asahikawa City runs the airport.⁠[1][4]
  • JAL, ANA and AIRDO fly 7 round trips a day to Tokyo Haneda (about 1 hour 45 minutes), and Jetstar flies once a day to Narita (about 1 hour 55 minutes).⁠[47]
  • There are also flights to Nagoya and Osaka, which the city lists as seasonal.⁠[47][1]
  • Flights rarely get canceled: about 99% of scheduled flights operate.⁠[18][47]
  • The airport bus to the station takes about 40 minutes.⁠[47]

By long-distance bus高速バス

  • The Kōsoku Asahikawa-gō highway bus from Sapporo takes about 2 hours 5 minutes.⁠[47]
  • The Taisetsu Liner from New Chitose Airport takes about 3 hours and is reservation only.⁠[47]

By car車

  • Driving takes about 1 hour 50 minutes from Sapporo, and about 2 hours from New Chitose Airport by expressway.⁠[47]
  • The Dō-ō Expressway serves the city at Asahikawa-Takasu IC (opened 1990) and Asahikawa-Kita IC (2000).⁠[4]
  • Four trunk national routes meet here: 12, 39, 40 and 237.⁠[75]
Getting around

Getting around town 市内の移動

City buses市内バス

  • Two companies run the city buses: Asahikawa Denki Kidō and Dōhoku Bus.⁠[48]

Asakuru Passあさくるパス

  • The Asakuru Pass gives unlimited rides on both bus companies for one or two days.⁠[48]

Local trains市内の駅

  • There are 16 stations inside the city, including Chikabumi, Shin-Asahikawa, Nagayama, Higashi-Asahikawa, Kaguraoka and Nishi-Kagura.⁠[4]

Station to the roadside station駅から道の駅へ

  • The Michi-no-Eki roadside station is just south of JR Asahikawa Station, about 5 minutes over the Crystal Bridge.⁠[74][75]

Bikes, skis and snowshoesレンタサイクル・歩くスキー・スノーシュー

  • The station visitor center rents bicycles in summer, and cross-country skis and snowshoes in winter.⁠[42]

Cycling roadサイクリングロード

  • A riverside cycling road follows the Ishikari.⁠[39]
Visitor centers

Where to ask 観光案内所

Asahikawa Tourism & Products Information Center⁠[42]

旭川観光物産情報センター

Where
JR Asahikawa Station, east concourse
Hours
8:30–19:00 June–September; 9:00–19:00 October–May. Closed 31 December–2 January.

What they offer

  • Help in Japanese, English and Chinese
  • Large luggage storage, all year
  • Bicycle rental in summer
  • Cross-country ski and snowshoe rental in winter
  • Bear spray rental, bookable online

  • Ru-siros Ainu culture corner⁠[36]

    アイヌ文化情報コーナー「ル・シロシ」

    JR Asahikawa Station

    Part of a digital stamp rally with the Asahikawa City Museum.

  • Asa-Terrace⁠[42]

    あさテラス

    Food Terrace 2F, 5-jō 7-chōme

  • Asahikawa Airport counter⁠[42]

    旭川空港の案内所

    Asahikawa Airport

  • Asahiyama Zoo counter⁠[42]

    旭山動物園の案内所

    Asahiyama Zoo

  • Michi-no-Eki Asahikawa counter⁠[42][74]

    道の駅あさひかわ観光案内所

    Michi-no-Eki Asahikawa, Kagura

    9:00–18:00 daily in July–August; 10:00–17:00 on weekends and holidays in April–June and September–October. Usually closed on the first Wednesday of the month.

    These hours come from a city page last updated in 2021. Check before you go.

Tickets

Asahiyama Zoo tickets チケット

  • ¥1,000 adults

    Asahiyama Zoo admission

    旭山動物園 入園料

    Free for junior-high age and under. The adult price rises to ¥1,400 from 29 April 2027.⁠[44][45]

  • ¥1,000

    Omotenashi ticket

    おもてなし券

    For hotel guests. Entry from noon on the first day to noon on the next.⁠[48]

  • ¥2,000

    Yokubari ticket

    よくばりチケット

    Zoo entry plus ¥1,000 to spend on food or shopping.⁠[48]

Stay

Accommodation tax 宿泊税

Since 1 April 2026, hotels, ryokan and private lodgings charge Asahikawa’s accommodation tax of ¥200 per person per night. Hokkaido’s tax is added on top, and the city collects both.⁠[17][23]

The table shows the combined total per person per night. School trips are exempt.⁠[17][23]

City + Hokkaido tax
Room rate (excluding tax)宿泊料金（税抜）City + Hokkaido tax市税＋道税の合計
Under ¥20,000¥300⁠[17][23]
¥20,000–49,999¥400⁠[17][23]
¥50,000 or more¥700⁠[17][23]
Safety

Snow, bears and closed roads 安全のために

Winter冬の注意

  • January averages −7.0 °C and its average low is −11.7 °C. Even in recent years nights have fallen below −25 °C (−25.7 °C on 9 February 2020).⁠[22][4]
  • About 5.5 m of snow falls in a season, and the whole city is an official heavy-snow area.⁠[22][4]
  • Bring proper winter footwear, allow extra time on the roads and expect some delays in storms.⁠[22][4]
  • Storms can stop events: a blizzard canceled the Winter Festival’s stage events on 6 February 2026.⁠[5]

Brown bearsヒグマ

  • The city recorded 91 bear sightings in FY2025, up from 40 in FY2019. It posts live sightings on the Higumap system.⁠[50]
  • Hokkaido issued its first bear advisory for Asahikawa in August 2022.⁠[4]
  • Avoid walking at dawn and dusk near forest edges and riversides.⁠[50]
  • The station visitor center rents bear spray and takes online bookings for it.⁠[42]

Event-day closuresイベント日の交通規制

  • The Summer Festival closes streets around the Sanroku district, and there is no event parking.⁠[34]
  • The Tabe Marche food festival has no event parking either.⁠[35]
  • The half marathon (27 September 2026) closes roads around Taisetsu Crystal Hall and the Michi-no-Eki.⁠[36][70]
Day trips

Day trips from Asahikawa 日帰り

Many visitors use Asahikawa as a base for Biei, Furano, Higashikawa and Sōunkyō. The city has no major hot-spring resort of its own, so it is also the gateway to its neighbors’ onsen.⁠[4]

Wheat straw rolls on a golden hillside above a morning sea of clouds, Biei
© HOKKAIDO LOVE!

Biei美瑛町

Farmers rotate wheat, sugar beet, beans and potatoes, so the rolling hills turn into the famous “patchwork”, best toured on the Patchwork Road and the Panorama Road. Up the valley, the Shirogane Blue Pond glows cobalt blue among dead larch trees.⁠[83][82][84][85]

Getting there

  • Train: JR Furano Line local train from Asahikawa to Biei, about 32 minutes.⁠[51]
  • Bus: Dōhoku Bus runs from Asahikawa Station via Biei Station to Shirogane Onsen; the Blue Pond is about 20 minutes from Biei Station. Furano Bus’s Lavender-gō rapid also runs Asahikawa – Asahikawa Airport – Biei – Furano.⁠[82][87][91][51]
  • Car: National Route 237, 26 km, about 40 minutes.⁠[51]

Good to know

  • The summer-only Furano-Biei Norokko sightseeing train, which had run since 1998, made its last-ever run on 23 September 2026.⁠[89]
  • As of 21 September 2026, Tokachidake was at volcanic alert level 3. The town says the restriction covers only the crater area, and Shirogane Onsen is open as usual.⁠[88][86]
  • The fields are private farmland: never walk into them, even when they are under snow.⁠[90]
Rows of lavender in bloom on a hillside in Furano
© HOKKAIDO LOVE!

Furano富良野市

Highland Furano has the city’s largest lavender field, in bloom from early to late July. Kuramoto Sō’s TV drama “Kita no Kuni kara” was filmed here from 1981 to 2002, and the Kuroita family’s homes still stand in Rokugō.⁠[94][92]

Getting there

  • Train: JR Furano Line from Asahikawa, about 1 hour.⁠[95][93]
  • Bus: Furano Bus’s Lavender-gō links Furano with Asahikawa city and Asahikawa Airport (about 1 hour from the airport).⁠[95][93]
  • Car: From Asahikawa Airport on Route 237: about 43 km, 1 hour.⁠[95]
Steaming Asahidake and autumn tundra mirrored in a mountain pond, Higashikawa
© HOKKAIDO LOVE!

Asahidake (Higashikawa)旭岳（東川町）

Asahidake, Hokkaido’s highest peak at 2,291 m, is known for Japan’s earliest autumn colors, from mid to late September. The ropeway climbs from Asahidake Onsen to Sugatami Station in about 10 minutes, where a 1.7 km loop trail (about 1 hour) circles Sugatami Pond and the steaming vents.⁠[96][98]

Getting there

  • Bus: The Ideyu-gō (route 66) runs from Asahikawa Station to Asahidake Onsen. The first bus leaves Asahikawa Station at 7:15 and reaches Asahidake at 9:03; fare ¥1,800.⁠[52]
  • Bus: For Higashikawa town itself, Asahikawa Denki Kidō buses (routes 60, 62, 66, 67, 76 and 176) run from Asahikawa Station to Higashikawa Michikusakan-mae in about 30 minutes; adult fare ¥670.⁠[52]
  • Car: Central Asahikawa to Higashikawa is 13 km, about 22 minutes. Asahidake Onsen is about 30 km beyond the town center.⁠[53][97]

Good to know

  • Ropeway adult round trip: ¥3,500 from 1 June to 31 October, ¥2,800 from 1 November to 31 May. The published timetable shows no service from 16 November to 10 December 2026.⁠[98]
  • The Asahidake Visitor Center at Asahidake Onsen (9:00–17:00) posts trail, autumn-color and bear updates.⁠[99]
The columnar cliffs of Sōunkyō Gorge dusted with snow, Kamikawa
© HOKKAIDO LOVE!

Sōunkyō Gorge (Kamikawa)層雲峡（上川町）

Sheer cliffs line the Ishikari River for about 24 km through Sōunkyō Gorge, and its twin Ryūsei and Ginga falls are among Japan’s 100 best waterfalls. The Kurodake Ropeway and a chairlift carry you from 670 m to 1,520 m, and autumn color starts near the summits in early September.⁠[102][103][100][104]

Getting there

  • Train: Limited express Okhotsk to Kamikawa Station, about 40–45 minutes. No train runs to Sōunkyō, so take a bus or taxi from Kamikawa Station.⁠[54][55]
  • Bus: Dōhoku Bus runs Asahikawa – Kamikawa Station – Sōunkyō: about 110 minutes from Asahikawa, 35 minutes from Kamikawa. Timetables changed in July 2026.⁠[55]
  • Car: Asahikawa to Sōunkyō is 66 km.⁠[55]

Good to know

  • Kurodake Ropeway: adult round trip ¥3,000 as of September 2026; it closes for maintenance 9–30 November.⁠[103][105]
  • The Sōunkyō Onsen Ice Festival has been held every winter since 1976.⁠[101]
The Daisetsuzan range turned pink by the setting sun above snowy fields, Higashikagura
© HOKKAIDO LOVE!

Higashikagura東神楽町

A residents’ flower-filling movement began when the town was created in 1966, and it has made Higashikagura known as a “flower town”. Higashikagura Forest Park is a 57 ha lakeside park with campgrounds, park golf and an onsen hotel that looks out on the Daisetsuzan range.⁠[107][106][108]

Getting there

  • Car: About 25 minutes by car from JR Asahikawa Station (about 45 minutes by bus).⁠[56][106]
  • Bus: Asahikawa Denki Kidō routes 70 (Higashikagura Line) and 76 (Airport Line) leave from Asahikawa Station, about 20 round trips a day.⁠[56]
  • Bus: Morinoyu Hotel Hanakagura runs a free, reservation-only shuttle for its guests from Asahikawa Station.⁠[109]

Keep exploring

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