Common myth: 'Furano has nothing to do.'

Wrong. Sure, as we all know, when you're doing deep dives on google, most web pages come up with terms like ‘quiet’, 'less crowds' and 'rural farmland', but does that mean you’re out in the sticks with nothing to do but eat ramen, lap pow or ride bikes?

Absolutely not. If anything, it couldn’t be further from the truth, with Furano’ offering up epic activities to keep the fam’ entertained year-round. So we decided to give you the inside scoop, breaking down some of our picks for the best activities in Furano. 

Note: for quite a lot of these activities and attractions, you’ll need some wheels. If you’re visiting over summer, we recommend picking up an E-Bike rental. Winter visitors, you'll will likely need a car. With that in mind, if you don’t feel super confident driving on icy roads, we recommend visiting in March when the snow has cleared from the roads, but not the slopes.

Ningle Terrace

A winter wonderland that feels straight out of a Disney movie. Ningle Terrace is an entire village of tiny log cabins, each offering up local souvenirs and restaurants, Ningle Terrace is nighttrip after a day out cruising the slopes or town. 

And, it’s open year round, so if you’re keen to check it out but don’t know how the kids will fare walking through a winter landscape, you can check it out in spring or summer when the nights are much warmer!

Kamifurano Trick Art Museum

The sights and scenery of Furano are already something you can look at for hours on end, but sometimes, it’s fun to look outside the realms of reality. Cue, Furano’s Trick Art Museum. 

A collection of interactive paintings which feel like they are stepping right out of the frame, the Kamifurano Trick Art Museum will have you second glancing at everything for the rest of the day. 

And before you start thinking, ‘that just sounds like a gimmick,’ we can assure you, the paintings on display will even have the most seasoned art snobs in awe. 

Miyamatoge Art Park  

Finished up at the Trick Art Museum and unsure what to do next? Good thing it’s located inside the Miyamatoge Art Park. Offering a small selection of restaurants, attractions such as live wood carving and a massive ferris wheel, the Miyamatoge Art Park is an epic way to kill some time with the fam. 

For this one, we recommend visiting in summer. Not only does the ferris wheel not operate over winter, during summer, it's also overlooking the world famous lavender fields – talk about a view.

Bowling

An epic fam' activity to help get the kids off the slope and away from the iPad.

Misaka City Museum

If you’ve ever driven between Niseko and Furano, you may have noticed something… there’s a lot of dinosaurs. Like, a weird amount of faux dinosaurs scattered all over the prefecture. 

But why is it? 

Well, Hokkaido is actually very well known for being the site of quite a lot of cretaceous fossils, including one of the biggest dino-skeletons ever found in Japan, the Kamuysaurus japonicus. 

Which is where Mikasa ties in. A small town about half an hour from Furano, Mikasa is known as the birthplace of ‘ammonite’, a fossil-rich marine strata from the Mesozic era. Naturally, the Mikasa city museum holds heaps of them, displaying Japan’s biggest collection of ammonite – alongside a stack of really cool dino fossils.

It’s only a small museum, but it’s one that’ll have you looking at Furano’s natural landscape with a whole new lens - we guarantee it – the kids will be spending the rest of your trip trying to imagine how the region actually looked millions of years ago.

Karaoke

If you haven’t experienced karaoke in Japan, you haven’t lived yet. Simple as that. It’s the ultimate family activity, and one that’ll undoubtedly be remembered forever, with every Christmas and birthday celebration going forward being filled with stories of:

‘Hey, remember that time that Dad sang Frozen’s ‘Let It Go’ in the snow in Japan?’

Will it lead to lifelong debates about whether or not he did a good job singing Frozen? Yes. Will it constantly be a memory that you always cherish? Also, yes. 

Shirogane Blue Pond (Aoiike)

‘Do you mean THE blue pond that was my Apple Macbook desktop background?’

That’s the one! Formed as a happy accident, the Shirogane pond was originally created to stop mudflows from Mt. Tokachi. Then, somehow in the process the water turned cobalt blue, and is now a world famous tourist attraction. 

As it’s located in Furano Biei, it’s one that you’ll need a car to access, but the good news, it’s also located next to Shirahige Falls.

Shirahige Falls

A waterfall known as the ‘White Beard,’ Shirahige is known for its 30 meter long cascading white water – which then also turns cobalt blue once it reaches the basin. In winter, an epic day trip opportunity. In Summer, the ultimate camping spot.

Fukiage Open-Air Onsen

If there’s one essential experience you have to tick off before leaving Japan, it’s an onsen. Especially if you’ve spent the day ripping around on a bike or smashing pow on the slopes. But we also get that visiting an onsen can be intimidating if you’ve never been before. 

Not at Fukiage. An open-air onsen that’s free to use, Fukiage is an epic way to dip into the onsen lifestyle, especially with its mandatory bathers requirement and co-ed baths making it easy for newcomers to feel comfortable. 

The best part? It’s open 24 hours a day. So if you’re finding that the fam is restless getting to sleep because they’re too revved up from a couple of hours at karaoke, a quick late night trip to Fukiage under the stars is the perfect option.

Cheese, Butter or Ice Cream Making

After a few days in Furano, you’ll come to realise how epic their local food scene is, with the majority of businesses stocking either homemade or locally sourced ingredients to provide customers with unique dishes that can only be sourced locally. 

Although, what people don’t realise is that you can actually have a hand in it – literally. At the Furano Cheese Factory, you and the family can get involved in cheese, butter or ice cream making experiences, allowing you to make your own out of Furano’s locally sourced ingredients. 

Asahikawa Day Trip

Escape to the city, with a short one-hour drive to Ashikawa, Hokkaido's second largest city. There, you'll find an awesome spot for a day of activities, whether you want to spend an arvo at the cinema, visit their famous zoo to see seals, polar bears and penguins, or do a little bit of retail therapy at their big shopping district.

Summer Only Options

Park Golf

To answer your first question, no, park golf and mini-golf are not the same thing. Park golf sits somewhere in between regular golf and mini golf, with courses on actual greens, but much larger (and more user friendly) balls and holes.

It’s also one of Japan’s favourite summer pastimes, so if you’re visiting Furano over the green season months, we 100% recommend getting out for a few holes! 

Baseball

Hot take here: going to the baseball in Japan is actually more of an experience than a day out at the MBL. 

Beer girls, huge singalong chants for each individual player, massive inter-inning attractions (such as a kids sushi races), it’s memory like no other.

If you’re visiting Furano over spring, it coincides with the beginning of the baseball season. Meaning you can either dip into Sapporo for a night at the ball seeing the Hokkaido Ham Fighters, or visit one of the local HBL (Hokkaido Baseball League) to catch the Furano Blue Ridges'. 

A Bike Ride To The Lavender Farms

While most of the activities listed above are equally as fun whether you’re visiting in summer or winter, viewing the world famous lavender fields of Furano is 100% an activity you can only enjoy during the warmer summer months. 

Unsure where to go? We offer scenic bike tours, allowing you to see the best sights and scenes of Furano without ever needing to look at a map.

The Rhythm Furano Activity Hub

A cafe and bar, rock climbing wall and mini-ramp all located in-store?

Yep, over the summer months our Rhythm Furano store fully transforms into a fully fledged activity hub, offering the kids epic indoor activities and a cafe and bar for mum and dad to enjoy!