The 2027 Sapporo Snow Festival (さっぽろ雪まつり), the 77th edition, runs for eight days from Thursday, February 4, to Thursday, February 11. The Odori, Susukino and Tsudome sites all share the same dates, and admission to each is free.
The organizing committee announced the dates in July 2026. Site-by-site details and exact times are scheduled to come out from mid-December 2026. Until then, anything below that comes from the 2026 festival is labeled as such.
The sculptures are lit until 10 p.m. at Odori and 11 p.m. at Susukino (10 p.m. on the final night). One night in Sapporo is enough to see both sites lit up and reach the Tsudome snow park the next morning. If you arrive Saturday the 6th, a second night moves Tsudome to Monday, a weekday.
2027 at a glance
Item | Details |
|---|---|
Dates | Thursday, February 4 – Thursday, February 11, 2027 (8 days) |
Sites | Odori Site (大通会場), Odori Park blocks 1–11 (West 1-chome to 11-chome), Susukino Site (すすきの会場, Ekimae-dori between Minami 4-jo and Minami 6-jo), Tsudome Site (つどーむ会場, Higashi Ward) |
Admission | Free at all sites |
Official site |
The weekend falls on February 6–7, and the last day, February 11, is a Japanese national holiday (National Foundation Day).
Hotels around Sapporo: availability and rates
Odori, Susukino and Tsudome compared
Short on time? Odori and Susukino are what most people picture when they think of the festival, and both are at their best after dark. Tsudome is a daytime snow playground, worth the trip mainly if you have kids or want the slides.
Odori and Susukino are in the city center, one stop apart on the Namboku Line (南北線). Tsudome is out in Higashi Ward, away from downtown.
Site | Nearest station | Hours | What's there |
|---|---|---|---|
Odori | Odori Station (大通駅), about 3 min on foot | Open around the clock Feb 4–11; lit nightly until 10 p. | Large and mid-size snow sculptures, plus citizens' sculptures |
Susukino | Susukino Station (すすきの駅), about 3 min on foot | Open around the clock Feb 4–11; lit nightly until 11 p. | Ice sculptures |
Tsudome | Sakaemachi Station (栄町駅, Toho Line/東豊線), then a shuttle bus or a 15-minute walk | 10 a. | Snow slides and other snow play |
These hours come from what the official site currently lists. The 2027 site pages are scheduled to be updated from mid-December.
Odori Site: the big snow sculptures
Five large snow sculptures are planned for 2027, in blocks 4, 5, 7, 8 and 10 of Odori Park. There are also mid-size and small sculptures. Block 2 is set to host the Sapporo International Art Festival 2027 (札幌国際芸術祭), and block 11 the International Snow Sculpture Contest.
About 80 citizen-made sculptures are planned across blocks 3 and 9. Because Odori is a public park, you can walk through at any hour during the festival.
What I'd do: walk the whole stretch, block 1 to block 11, once by daylight, and save the evening for the one or two big sculptures you liked most.
In 2026, the block 5 sculpture had projection mapping shows between 5:30 and 9:45 p.m., each about three minutes long. There's no word yet on whether it returns in 2027.
Susukino Site: ice sculptures in the nightlife district
The Susukino Site lines Ekimae-dori with ice sculptures from Minami 4-jo to Minami 6-jo. There were 60 in 2026.
Carving starts about three days before opening and happens at night. If you arrive in Sapporo just before February 4, you can watch the carvers work on the street in the evening.
During the 2026 festival (February 4–11), Ekimae-dori became a pedestrian zone: 3–11 p.m. on weekdays, 10 a.m.–11 p.m. on the weekend, and 10 a.m.–10 p.m. on the final day (a national holiday). The 2027 hours haven't been announced.
Tsudome Site: snow play and the shuttle bus
Tsudome is where you go to play, not to look at sculptures. In 2026 it had outdoor tube slides, a sledding hill and an ice slide. Indoors, the Tsudome Kids Park had "Titan," a giant slide about 12 meters (40 feet) tall.
Hats and gloves were mandatory for every attraction. Entry is free, but some things cost extra.
In 2026 that included outdoor snow rafting (¥1,200 adults, ¥600 elementary age and under), the indoor Kids Park including Titan (a points system, ¥130 per point), and feeding and photos with the Sapporo Machibasha (札幌まちばしゃ) horses (¥1,000 per person).
On busy weekends and holidays in 2026, the Chicken Ramen Tube Slider (one of the two tube slides) needed numbered tickets: 1,500 were handed out from 10 a.m. and another 500 from noon.
From Sakaemachi Station, take the shuttle or walk about 15 minutes. There is no public parking, and there's no drop-off point for private cars.
The 2026 shuttle cost ¥200 one way for adults, cash only (no IC cards). Children of elementary school age and younger, and people 65 and over with proof of age, rode free. It left from Exit 2 on weekdays and Exit 1 on weekends and the holiday.
The last 2026 shuttle from Sakaemachi left at 2:30 p.m.; buses back from the site ran until 4:20 p.m. After 2:30, getting there meant a walk or a taxi, and taxis could drive into the site. The 2027 timetable hasn't been published yet.
How many nights to book
Odori and Tsudome are closed to visitors until opening day (through February 3), and the sculptures come down on the morning of the 12th. Plan your sculpture-viewing days between February 4 and 11.
Tsudome is the deciding factor. The sculptures are at their best after dark, but Tsudome is daytime only, and in 2026 the last shuttle there left at 2:30 p.m. Tsudome is easiest in the morning, and that means sleeping in Sapporo the night before.
I'd book one night: Odori and Susukino lit up on the evening you arrive, then Tsudome the next morning and Odori by daylight in the afternoon.
Whether that morning is a weekday depends on when you arrive. If you arrive on February 4, 7, 8 or 9, the next day is a weekday.
Arrive the 5th, 6th or 10th and it's a weekend day or the holiday, when the Chicken Ramen Tube Slider switched to numbered tickets on busy days in 2026.
If you arrive Saturday the 6th, a second night moves Tsudome to Monday the 8th. If you arrive the 5th or 10th and the 2026 times hold, you can go the same day as long as you make the 2:30 p.m. shuttle.
If you're skipping Tsudome, your arrival time matters less. If you reach Odori while it's still light, you can see Odori by day and then both Odori and Susukino after dark. One night still saves you from racing to a late flight.
From New Chitose Airport (新千歳空港), the JR Rapid Airport train reaches Sapporo Station in as little as 37 minutes. The fare is ¥1,230.
If you're staying past the 11th, the Sapporo Snow Sports Park 2027 (さっぽろスノースポーツパーク2027), an affiliated event of the festival, runs February 12–14 at Daiwa House PREMIST DOME. It's a separate venue from the three festival sites, and its program and prices haven't been announced.
Since April 1, 2026, Sapporo has charged an accommodation tax. With the Hokkaido prefectural tax added, the total is ¥300 per person per night for rates under ¥20,000 per person, ¥400 for ¥20,000–49,999, and ¥1,000 for ¥50,000 or more.
You pay the tax to the hotel, so check whether your booking site's price includes it.
February cold and what to wear
The festival committee puts Sapporo's average February temperature at −2.3°C (about 28°F). It recommends layers under a coat, a hat or ear warmers, gloves, and winter shoes with deep tread, or slip-on traction cleats if your shoes are smooth-soled.
The city says it will run temporary luggage storage during the festival. The official FAQ doesn't say where.
For Sapporo's other big winter illumination, see Sapporo White Illumination 2026-2027: Each Venue's Dates, from November 20.
For a winter day trip from the city, see Asahiyama Zoo in Winter (2026–2027): Penguin Walk Schedule, Hours, and Access from Sapporo.
The sculptures are on display from February 4 to 11 and start coming down on the morning of the 12th, so plan to be in Sapporo by the 11th at the latest. I'll add the 2027 site details and times here once they're published in mid-December.
This article was translated from the original Japanese with AI assistance and reviewed by our editorial team. The Japanese version is authoritative.
