Furano

Furano (富良野), which is in the geographical center of Japan's northern island of Hokkaido, is an amalgamation of several quaint farming towns around a small municipal center. Furano is famous for its remarkably light and dry powder snow, beautiful fields of lavender, vineyards, and its unique Hokkaido Belly Button Festival.

This guide covers three municipalities in Furano basin: Furano, Nakafurano and Kamifurano.

Understand
Furano is known as Heso no Machi (the Belly Button Town) due to its central location. Furano's inland location (almost 100 km -- about as far inland as Japan gets) and high elevation result in a continental climate, the reason behind Furano's successful ski hill and wine industries. There is a very large temperature variation, so a light jacket is recommended even in the summer. Summer midday temperatures may exceed 30 °C, and midwinters will drop below -30 °C. Furano has very heavy snowfall in the winter.

The population is approximately 26,000, including the incorporated communities in the outskirts. The population of the main municipal area is said to be about 16,000. Don't expect to meet a large number of English speakers outside of the major hotel and tourist areas.

There has been a substantial increase in foreign skiers and snowboarders, particularly from Australia. Furano seems set to enjoy the same skiing success that Niseko has.

Meanwhile, the Furano Basin has become more and more famous for its summertime lavender fields, which draw multitudes of visitors from Taiwan and China as well as from all over Japan.

Tourist Information Sites
Guide sites by local tourism associations:
 * Furano City: Furano Index, multilingual guide site.
 * Nakafurano Town: bilingual.
 * Kamifurano Town: multilingual.

By plane
The nearest airport to Furano is Asahikawa, which has flights to major Japanese cities but only limited seasonal connections elsewhere. Furano Bus has around 7 services per day directly from the airport (1 hour, &yen;840).

During the ski season, Hokkaido Access Network also runs direct buses from Sapporo's much larger New Chitose Airport (3 hours, &yen;5000).

By train
Furano is the terminus of the JR Furano Line from Asahikawa. There are 12 direct trains daily, with the last train leaving JR Asahikawa Station at 22:37.

Furano is also on the JR Nemuro Line from Takikawa. In the winter ski season, there is one daily Ski Express Train from Sapporo at 08:04, otherwise you'll need to connect via Takikawa. All services eastward towards Nemuro have been discontinued.

By taxi
If you are arriving at New Chitose Airport after 20:00, an expensive taxi ride might be necessary. It may cost &yen;25,000-35,000 depending on season if booked in advance, and more if not.

By car
Furano is accessible by Highway 237 and Highway 38. There is no direct expressway. The closest expressway exit is Takikawa, about 45 minutes away. In good weather, it takes about 3 hours to reach Furano from Sapporo and 1 hour from Asahikawa. Driving to Furano in winter can be quite dangerous and is generally not recommended &mdash; unexpected blizzards, snow drifts, and icy roads are common.

By train
The JR Furano Line runs north to Asahikawa, through the scenic Furano Valley, full of flower fields in the summer. The Furano-Biei Norokko tourist train runs daily from June through August and on weekends into the fall. It stops at Nakafurano with its lavender slopes, at the seasonal Lavender Field station near Farm Tomita, and at Kamifurano near Flower Land Kamifurano. Yamabe Station on the JR Nemuro Main Line east (toward Obihiro) offers access to mountain-climbing trails on Mount Ashibetsu, which is located within the Taiyou no Sato park, about 45 minutes' walk from the station.

By bus
Furano Bus provides most local bus services. The office is located directly across the street from the entrance to JR Furano Station. Conveniently, their office is shared with the Furano Tourist Association, which can provide advice on how to reach tourist attractions by bus. Overall, the bus service is poor, with only a few buses each day going to many of the major destinations.

By taxi
Due to the lack of effective public transportation, taxi services in Furano are very good. The largest carrier, Furano Taxi, has a cell-phone interpretation system which can provide service in English, Chinese, and Korean. Their fleet also contains wheelchair-accessible and other special-needs vehicles. For a small group, taxi can be quite affordable, with fares to many tourist attractions under ¥2,000 per trip. There is a 20% fare increase for late night (22:00 to 05:00) or winter (Nov 25 to Mar 31) services.

By car
Furano has a high traffic accident rate and one of the highest fatality rates for accidents in Japan. Rights of way are often confusingly marked on back and rural roads, where locals will often drive in excess of 100 km/h. Driving is not recommended during the peak summer holidays (o-bon or local festival periods) due to the severe traffic congestion. If you are unfamiliar with winter driving in Japan, do not start here. A four-wheel drive vehicle is highly recommended. Many minor roads will be solid ice, and major roads may ice or drift over during the evening and early morning. The stop lines and center lines will be completely invisible at many intersections &mdash; look for the blue signs which designate them. With that said, Furano has a generally poor public transit system, and many of Furano's unique attractions are best reached by car. Be careful when drinking &mdash; even a sip of wine puts one over the legal driving limit in Japan.

By bicycle
Rental cycles may be found near the train station. With the station at your back, several souvenir shops on the left side have bicycles for rent. They may not offer a helmet (adults in Japan almost never use bicycle helmets) but helmets may be available if you ask. Many hotels and pensions will also lend out bicycles. It's safest to stay on sidewalks wherever possible.

On foot
It's quite possible to explore the small downtown area on foot. The Kitanomine ski village is also very accessible by foot, although winter conditions can be severe. Other areas, such as Rokugo, are quite spread out, with several kilometers between points of interest. During winter, one should be very careful of footing, as paths and streets are often slick ice.

See
Furano's main attractions are outdoors, though there are a few other options.



Flower gardens


In Furano area, there are many flower farms and tourist flower gardens. The best time to see is around July.



Do


Other winter activities include snowmobiling and ice-hole fishing.



Buy
Local goods include Furano Wine and carrot juice. Hotel shops and grocery stores sell these.



Drink
Alcohol can be bought from convenience stores or most hotels, either in the restaurants or via vending machines. There are several local businesses, as well.



Go next

 * Daisetsuzan National Park &mdash; Japan's largest, directly north of Furano
 * Biei
 * Minamifurano
 * Shintoku
 * Nakafurano
 * Shimizu
 * Obihiro
 * Asahikawa
 * Ashibetsu