Travel plans/Winter 2025

Friday 2025/02/14

Ideas for Kawaguchiko:

• Onsen guide

• Hotel Mifujien: [1] "This aging hotel is the only one of the ryokan and hotels along Lake Kawaguchiko's northeastern shore which opens its baths to non-staying guests during the day. Its gender separated bathing facilities have seen better days, but the views of Mount Fuji are quite nice." Seems it's open to non-guests at 1pm but [TODO] we should call to confirm.
  • ~2k walk (should be <30m) or we can take the tourist bus which comes ever 15m and costs ¥230
• Onsen "This new facility is run by and located next to Fuji Q Highland. Its baths are a modern take on traditional wooden bathhouses with both indoor and outdoor baths for each gender. Unfortunately, the baths do not face Mount Fuji, but there is a good view of the mountain from the restaurant."
  • access page
  • Get there with free shuttle bus that comes every hour or so at :52 from Kawaguchiko station or go to Fuji-Q-Highlands stop and walk from there. It's not so bad from there.
  • Maybe take direct bus back? This page has description: https://www.fujiyamaonsen.jp/en/access.html#sect02 [2] [3] Seems like the likely options are ~13:30, ~15:30 (every two hours) direct from Highlights.

Dinner in Tokyo:

• Kome Kome maybe for drinks early? Template:DONE call for reservations
• Then maybe the curry place? [TODO] call for reservations

Saturday 2025/02/15

• Okada Garlic
  • Template:DONE get reservations?

Sunday 2025/02/16

• train to Yokohama Kahala
• run before dinner
• Azur:Fancy French restaurant in Yokohama w/ vegan dinner menu (¥12000): https://www.icyokohama-grand.com/data/restaurant/en/2/restaurant_menu08.pdf?20250102075538

Ideas:

• Yokohama Bay Brewing
• Doria
• Chinese food?

Monday 2025/02/17

• train to Tokyo
• run
• ? JR pass for Mako?
• ? JR pass for Mika?
• ? Dinner

Hokkaido trip

Tuesday 2025/02/18

Mika class at 7AM

• travel: fly to Hokkaido. Depart at 15:30 (HND) and arrive at 17:00 (CTS)
• stay (Sapporo): Sapporo Hotel Gracery Sapporo (RESERVED)
• eat:
• fun:

Wednesday 2025/02/19

• travel: train from Sapporo to Obihiro
  • Tokachi line: Sapporo station to Obihiro station 167 mins (no transfer)

• stay (Obihiro): APA hotel Obihiro Ekimae

• eat:

• fun:

CANCELLED: Samurai Produce will pick us up at 4:30AM (2/20). We'll be back around 11:30AM, so we should check out at 4:30AM. Bring cash.

Thusday 2025/02/20

• travel: Obihiro -> Kushiro -> Tsurumidai -> Kushiro -> Kawayu-onsen

Obihiro （帯広）at 9:19AM Ozora Line to Kushiro (釧路) at 10:56AM;

Bus from Kushiro 1:15PM to the cranes at 2:30 PM; 4:10PM from the cranes to Kushiro at 5:13PM

Leave Kushiro 5:54PM to Kawayu-onsen 8:33PM

• stay (Kawayu-onsen): Hotel Parkway
• fun: アトサヌプリ Atosanupuri - hike up to the mouth of the volcano. Get off at Kawayuonsen Stataion. It's a 25 minute walk from the station.

• extra info

Akan International Crane Center in Kushiro this map leaves at 12:13 from Ohibiro and gets to the crane center by bus at 4pm which is an hour before closing

CANCELLED: 4:30-11:00AM: do jewlery ice (samauraiproduce https://digjapan.travel/en/blog/id=11862) (RESERVED)

Kayanuma station, where we may be able to see tancho cranes. It's a tiny town with an unattended station. Oji Coffee in town seems nice, so if we don't see cranes, we can wait for the next train there. It's 1:51 to Shiretoko Shari. There's also a cottage.

(For future reference, there's an SL train that runs from Kushiro to Shibecha on weekends but it's all booked for our travel dates.)

Tancho Crane at Kayanuma station

Drift ice walk seems less likely

Friday 2025/02/21

• travel: 10:29AM Kawayu-onsen to Abashiri at 12:00PM
• stay (Abashiri): [TODO] hotel: need good wifi and late checkout

Dormy Inn Abashiri Natural Hot Spring ドーミーイン網走 late checkout at noon

• eat:
• fun:

RESERVED Abarshiri Aurora Ship at 16:45 (bring cash; arrive early because we need to sign some forms) Reservation number:　250221166524 Ship# 006便　16:45

• overnight plans 2/21-22

Mika Academic retreat zoom call from 23:00-02:45.

Mako 2/22 4-10:30AM work

Saturday 2025/02/22

Mako work until 10:30AM.

• do: day in abashiri
• travel: Abashiri to Asahikawa (5 hours, leaving at 9:30pm)
• stay (Asahikawa): [TODO] hotel
• eat:
• fun: Takikawa latern festival in a town that's halfway between asahikawa and sapporo on that saturday night

Sunday 2025/02/23

• do: day in Asahikawa
• travel: Asahikawa to Sapporo
• stay (Sapporo): Air Terminal Hotel (reserved?)

Monday 2025/02/24

• flight back at 7:45AM-9:25AM CTS-HND
• M to Seattle at 8:25PM departure HND-SEA