Sapporo

Sapporo is Japan's great northern city — the capital of Hokkaido, the country's fifth-largest city and the gateway to the archipelago's wildest island. Founded only in 1868 during the Meiji-era colonisation of Hokkaido, it is one of the few Japanese cities built on an American-style grid plan, which gives it a legibility rare in the archipelago. Its wide avenues, generous parks and half-Nordic, half-Japanese architecture lend it a visual identity very distinct from Tokyo or Osaka.

Sapporo is world-famous for its Yuki Matsuri (Snow Festival), held each year in early February: for one week, monumental snow and ice sculptures — some several storeys tall — fill Odori Park and the Susukino district in an illuminated nocturnal spectacle that draws more than two million visitors. It is one of the world's largest winter events and one of the most memorable experiences available anywhere in Japan.

But Sapporo is also a serious food city. Miso ramen — now popular across Japan and around the world — was invented here in the 1960s: the rich, complex, umami-loaded broth that characterises this style of ramen is a speciality best appreciated in Sapporo itself. The Sapporo Brewery, founded in 1876 and Japan's oldest major brewery, houses a museum and tasting hall in its original red-brick factory building — an unmissable stop. Nijo Market, a short walk from the centre, overflows with Hokkaido produce: sea urchin (uni) of incomparable freshness, king crab, giant scallops, salmon — the best address for discovering the island's maritime riches.

In the evening, the Susukino district — one of Japan's largest entertainment quarters after Kabukicho in Tokyo — deploys its neon signs, izakaya, whisky bars and seafood restaurants in a warmth that the cold outside makes all the more welcoming. And just 30 minutes by JR, the small city of Otaru completes a perfect day trip: its romantic canal lined with converted stone warehouses turned restaurants and hand-blown glass shops is one of the finest urban scenes in Hokkaido.