I’ve booked a trip to Japan for February 9–20, and I’d love some advice on where to explore next (preferably somewhere new). This will be my 4th time visiting Japan, and I’d like to focus on one region/prefecture, but still very open to transit! I love traveling for food, while my husband enjoys history and seeing nature. We’re not hikers, but we do enjoy light walks and museum activities.
Travel background:
I’ve visited these cities and done majority of the tourist activities: Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, Sapporo, and the Kyushu region (Fukuoka, Nagasaki, Hita, Oita, Miyazaki, Kagoshima, Kumamoto). My favorites so far have been Sapporo and Kyushu region.
My favorite trip so far was driving around Kyushu for two weeks in April! The weather was great and it was very easy driving around, vast scenery, diverse food, and I found my trip to be economical in hotel prices. I’m even tempted to go back since I didn’t spend much time in Kagoshima.
Needing Advice:
Originally, I was thinking about exploring Hokkaido since I heard it's popular to go in February. I loved Sapporo when I went in November, but we would not be equipped to drive in snowy road conditions and not sure if we should splurge on high season pricing, we’re thinking of saving to visit in Spring? We’re not snow-sport people, but I was open to do winter sightseeing and light activities. I am afraid we are missing something if we do not go in February, we might consider the later half of February to avoid the high prices and witness snow, or just come back in sunnier seasons so we can drive around. I was interested in visiting the Ainu museum too.
I’d love to hear insights from travelers who has explored various regions of Japan on where to visit next in February and why. Please feel free to provide your insight on Hokkaido too! Thank you so much!
by Tight_Firefighter_69