Hokkaido Dream Summer Trip with a 1 year old

Hokkaido Dream Summer Trip with a 1 year old

Don’t travel to Japan in summer. You probably heard that before. It’s excruciatingly hot and humid, and it’s kind of worse than Singapore’s heat. Well, unless you’re heading to Hokkaido, where it might be a little cooler up north. Hi everyone, I’m Sean, just someone from Singapore who loves to travel and document his life. One year ago, I had my first born, and I was really excited to finally see the day I get to travel with Kieran. So, now we’re heading to Hokkaido in the thick of summer in July to see some beautiful summer scenery. I’ve heard how tough it is to travel with a young toddler. So, please, please, please let this go on smoothly. [Music] So, here’s the plan. We’re going to explore Sapro for about 2 days, then head on out on a road trip to Furano and BA to check out all of the stunning summer colors and flowers for about four to 5 days. Guys, we are finally right here in Sapuro >> and we are right in front of the iconic Sapuro TV tower. Wo, >> there’s like flowers everywhere. We are really feeling summer here. But the great thing for summer in Hokkaido is it’s a lot cooler compared to like the main island like Tokyo, Osaka. Currently, it’s about 26° Celsius. So, it’s actually very comfortable. Fun fact, I’ve actually been to Hokkaido like three times already and all of it is during winter. Personally, I still feel winter is the most magical in Hokkaido still, but summer is just a very different feeling. Everything’s just green. There’s a lot of pretty flowers everywhere. We are right now at Nij Market. It’s a seafood market, a prominent seafood market here in Sapuro. >> We only here for one thing. We are not here to like look at seafood. We have one goal here and that is to have Kaido king crab. [Music] >> We’re at Condo Nou Show. This one was recommended online and we have for starters. We’re going to have a sashimi don. We are having salmon and chuturo. It looks so good. [Music] M. It’s so soft. Oh my gosh. And the best part is this fella is asleep. Perfect. Chutro. Am I eating fatty tuna? Chutro is the medium fatty tuna. And this one just disintegrates into your mouth and has a very light sweetness to it. Wow. >> Okay. Moment of reckoning is here. Oh my gosh. >> Melissa’s first king crab. [Music] >> Oh my god. >> I want to cry. I’m going to cry. >> It’s so sweet. >> Oh, >> and salty. >> Moment of reckoning. Hokkaido king crab. Yo, the feeling of just being able to bite one big chunk of flesh, you know, like there’s no holes bar and it’s like fleshy, sweet, and salty at the same time. It’s the best feeling in your mouth ever. Sounds wrong. >> Cheers. [Music] [Music] Saporro. It’s a very modern aquarium here. Why are you observing me vlogging? Pick up. Okay. Learn. Okay. So, it just opened like in 2023, so it’s relatively new. Very stoked to see this new new space. And maybe you can see some penguins. [Music] [Music] Oh, there’s so many here. This is like the coolest penguin exhibit ever. So cute. And the exhibit is just so beautiful in aesthetics. You can see them in the water and you can see them like face to face like open air face to face with them. These are northern rockhopper penguins. They’re absolutely adorable. Oh, Kieran. >> Oh yeah. [Music] [Music] And we are having soup curry. It’s kind of a key signature here in Hokkaido or or rather saporo. And it’s pretty much like curry but not thick at all. It’s like a soup base. I am very keen to try. I have not tried this before. We are at um soup curry king. It’s quite popular. We found from Google. Ordered the stewed pork soup curry. Mine is spicyish. And then the chicken soup curry is zero spiciness. Oo. Let’s go for it. Soup taste test. [Music] M. It’s like Japanese curry but like very soup. Soupy. >> Yeah. Soupy consistency. And it’s very flavorful. The soup base is like has a bit of that creaminess to it. I definitely prefer this over Japanese curry. So easy to eat and so appetizing. >> Finish. >> And I just love that there’s a lot of ingredients inside. Well, the chicken is really good. [Music] >> We didn’t even know it was this popular. It’s a whole line right now. Lucky we came earlier. If you remember the very classic white chocolate cookie souvenir from Japan called Biseran in Mandarin or Shuri Koibito, this is where it’s made. [Applause] [Music] The park is very beautiful with a lot of scenic spots to take photos, although I would say it’s a little small. [Music] So when you’re here, you definitely have to have their soft serve. Their Shiroyic Shirroy [Music] Koto soft serve. Hocado milk ice cream Hokkaido milk. Hokkaido milk. It’s so milky and creamy and smooth. There’s also a cookie making class, which I guess the older kids would love, but ours is a little too young. >> Yummy food on for dinner. >> Yay. And now it’s finally time for our summer road trip out to Furano. It’s time for a road trip. >> Yay! >> Road trip. So I rented my car from Cluke. So Cl is a travel experiences booking platform. It’s very fast free. Prices are very competitive. The earlier you book, the more affordable the prices are. So remember to book early and we are ready for our road trip. >> Yay. Road trip. [Music] [Applause] [Music] Oh, [Music] our first order of business, we’re going to check out the area of BA and an Apple wallpaper. [Music] >> So beautiful. We’re finally here at the VA with that unique tree branches. >> Very picturesic. This is very touristy cuz it’s so famous. [Music] about the blue pond. It’s actually not natural. It’s a man-made pond, which is a bummer to stop the mud flows from Mount Toki. That’s a bit disappointing. It looks so natural, but yeah. Officer coupon officer. >> What’s it? >> Soda. Soda. Blue soda. Feels good in the hot weather. Today is 30°, so it’s pretty hot. It’s pretty hot, I have to say. >> Kira, I’m sorry you’re too young. I would love to give you Kira. [Music] So, we chanced upon this cafe called Birch. just along the road. And the vibes, >> immaculate. We ordered hamburger steak with rice, homemade pasta. Yeah, you can just taste freshness from the ingredients. >> Produce is >> it’s just pasta and tomato sauce, but the the tomato is homegrown, I think, at the back somewhere. And you can really taste the freshness. It’s so good. Just like that. Simple. [Music] So, and I’ve been here during winter back In 2018, it was a different view altogether. All totally frozen and now it’s flowing. The water is so blue, different kind of beauty. We then went to check out another postcard view. And this spot is called Christmas tree with just that lone spruce tree in the middle of a field. What a view. So, here’s the thing that surprised us when it comes to dining with a baby in Japan. I understand not every restaurant is baby friendly, but the ones that have a baby chair, they don’t have any safety straps. And this made dining really challenging for us, especially if Kieran does not really enjoy the food. I mean, are all Japanese babies so well behaved at one year old? And some places like this only offer a baby stool. Oh, how to see you how this guy is. Tell me how. Today is a beautiful day again and we are currently at Farm Toita. This place is known for the biggest lavender fields in Japan >> everywhere. >> And it’s everywhere. It’s in full bloom right now. It’s so beautiful. Blue skies, dense purple lavender with bit of flowers here. It’s very popular, but it feels like a fairy tale. The only thing is it’s so hot. So hot right now. >> Scratching hot. Look at the lemento. [Music] [Music] M. So, when at Farm Toita, you definitely need to try the lavender soft serve. >> It’s so good. >> Ooh, >> it’s not too overpowering. >> It’s very lightly scented. Yeah, >> a good balance of the scent and that fresh okado milk. I could have this every day. Yo, this is so good. Oh my gosh, I’m in ice cream haven right now. This is perfect. Melon. So, summer is Yubari melon season, so this is the only time you can really taste yubari melon. Got ourselves two slices. It’s quite expensive at about 500 yen per slice. I’m so looking forward to this. Cheers. It just disintegrates into melon juice. It’s so sweet. It’s so soft. And it’s so juicy. Currently [Music] at Ningle Terrace. Very, very beautiful. Giving me that Vancouver, Canada vibes. It’s littered up right now. It’s around 5:00 p.m. And there’s a lot of boutique shops, coffee houses, so we’re just like taking a nice stroll and bringing in some zen while we still have it. >> Very zen. Yeah. [Music] We love you, too. And now it’s time for our first family hike at Daetsuan National Park to Hokkaido’s highest mountain, Mount Asahi. [Music] Okay, we’re not climbing to the top of the mountain. Yeah, we’re going to just take the cable car up and then do a simple 1.6 km hike around the area, which is a Sugatami pond loop hike. It’s a relatively easy hike. I hope it’s easy. [Music] [Music] We’re here. We finally reached Sugatami Pond and that is Mount Asahidake. There’s a lot of sulfur smoke going on. Tallest mountain in Hokkaido. >> I got cheated. Sean told me. Easy. Very easy. >> That’s what they say on the website. It’s not me. Feel alive, right? >> I feel dead. >> Look at that. A volcano at the back. Woo! Beautiful day, man. Perfect day. Blue skies, green grass, summer mountain flowers. [Music] This was a really beautiful hike away from the crowds and just us in raw epic nature. And on our way back for dinner, we got greeted by a very pleasant surprise. [Music] Wow, we just saw a wild fox on the road. How cool is that? And it’s like a baby fox. So cute. Another one. Another one. >> Huh? >> Is it? >> Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. >> Oh my gosh. This one bigger. This one bigger. Oh my gosh. Unfortunately, I didn’t catch that adult fox on camera, but I did have a very cool bowl of udon that night. Straight from the pawn of the air. Two porn udon. Still fungus and some seaweed kelp. Let’s go. M. Strong dashy flavor. A little bit to the salt inside. It’s very good. And I ordered a cold udon. So, it’s very flavorful. M. [Music] For our last stop, we went to one of the most notable and postcardw worthy attractions here in the Furano area. Today, we are at another flower field. This is Shikisai Noa. It has the very famous flower carpet, which looks like it’s not fully bloomed yet. [Music] Now we’re going to try the melon soft serve. >> Hokkaido. [Music] >> So at this flower farm, there’s also an alpaka farm. >> Alpaka. Alpaka. Alpaka. Alpaka. This one is [Music] >> okay. [Music] For dinner, the tuna. [Music] This guy is waving to everyone. A little embarrassing, a little bit too extroverted. So, this is the end of our Hokkaido summer road trip. And I want to be honest here. Yeah, a lot of beautiful memories were made, but at the same time, this was one of the most challenging trips I’ve ever been on. I knew it was going to be different bringing a one-year-old, but I didn’t know it would be this hard. There were days where it was really stressful. We had to deal with, you know, the usual tantrums at times, but our biggest challenge was really the meal times. Meals were a hit or miss for the young toddler. And when it was a miss, ooh, it’s over, man. And having no baby straps on Japanese baby chairs made things really, really hard. If you knew about this, we would have bought a portable baby strap, which would be a lifesaver. You know, at times I question if we did the right thing by going on this self-indulgent trip. But then again, after reflecting, I think both of us as parents and our one-year-old toddler leveled up quite a lot from this experience. Kieran became more adaptable to new environments and food, and we learned a lot more about our toddler, his preferences. And of course, we have this priceless memory together where Kieran will only be this young in this moment in time. So, would I have done it all over again and put myself through the stress? Of course. Yes. going to take me far. [Music] [Laughter]

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Travelling with an active 1 year old was a lot more challenging than I expected to be. There were moments where I was really on the edge but can’t really show it on social media. Nonetheless looking back on this 9 day trip, this was such a beautiful memory that is absolutely priceless. We were very lucky with the weather and it was truly a summer dream in Hokkaido.

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*CHAPTERS
0:00 Intro
1:48 Nijo Market
4:19 AOAO SAPPORO Aquarium
5:52 Soup Curry King
7:10 Shiroi Koibito Park
8:43 Road trip begins
9:39 Biei Blue Pond
10:55 Cottage Cafe
11:56 Shirahige Waterfall
12:17 Christmas Tree
12:28 Unexpected challenge
13:18 Farm Tomita
15:37 Ningle Terrace
16:25 Daisetsuzan National Park
18:54 Blue Pond Udon
19:23 Shikisai-no-oka
21:02 Amazing sashimi don
21:28 Honest thoughts