Destinations

Lake Shikotsu

"This beautiful lake was the first place I visited after arriving on Hokkaido. It makes for a great introduction to this vast rural island, with beautiful scenery and some great walking and hiking opportunities."

Harry Sargant - Tailored Department Manager

The name Shikotsu comes from an Ainu (original native people of Northern Japan) word meaning depression or hollow. It is a caldera lake, as are many of Hokkaido’s great lakes, meaning it was formed by volcanic activity, in this case over 30,000 years ago. Shikotsu is Japan’s second deepest lake at over 360 metres; and is surrounded on all sides by high mountain peaks, which provide some great walks and hikes, in turn providing fantastic panoramic views over the lake. The lake is famous for not freezing over, even in the depths of the harsh Hokkaido winters, and is in fact the northernmost lake in Japan to have this attribute!

Lake many destinations in Hokkaido, a visit to Lake Shikotsu is all about enjoying the great outdoors. The three volcanic peaks around the lake provide a range of walking and hiking options; boat trips are available from spring to autumn and in the summer further activities such as canoeing and scuba diving are available. The highlight of winter is the ice waterfall festival, which features amazing ice sculptures which are lit up at night.

Lake Shikotsu has a number of interesting options for day trips. Noboribetsu Onsen is one of Hokkaido’s most famous hot-spring resorts, while at Nibutani you can find out more about the culture of the Ainu (or Utari as they prefer), northern Japan’s indigenous people whose numbers have dwindled to almost nothing in the modern age. Nibutani village is a majority Ainu village (over 80% of the population are of Ainu blood) and therefore gives a good insight into the culture, with a number of museums housing some fine exhibits.