• Day
• 1

• Western-style Hotel
• Welcome Dinner

Meet at the tour hotel in the centre of Kushiro. Enjoy a welcome dinner at a local robatayaki restaurant. Robatayaki is a style of cooking on an open hearth called an irori and said to originate in Kushiro. Our dinner is grilled seafood of the highest quality.

• Day
• 2

• 6.8 km / 4.2 mi
• negligible ascent and descent
• 3 hours
• Onsen ryokan (hot spring inn)
• Breakfast, Dinner

Travel this morning by private vehicle to Kushiro Marshland, Japan’s largest wetland area with a diverse ecosystem and Japan’s first Ramsar Site. The area is home abundant wildlife, including the red-crowned crane, a national treasure and loved by birdwatchers. Walk through the forest to the observatory overlooking the vast marshland and then continue on trails through the marsh, exploring the local flora and fauna. After the walk, we head onwards in our vehicle to Lake Akan, a crater lake in Lake Akan National Park. The area is home to the largest community of indigenous Ainu people in Hokkaidō. We stay here for two nights in a lovely onsen hotel in a lakeside setting.

• Day
• 3

• 6.6 km / 4 mi 
• 110 m / 360 ft of ascent and 110 m / 360 ft of descent
• about 2 hours
• Onsen ryokan (hot spring inn)
• Breakfast, Dinner

Today, we walk around the picturesque Lake Onnetō at the foot of Mount Meakandake. With colors ranging from green blues to emerald, clear blue, and more, Lake Onnetō is known as ‘The Lake of Five Colours’ due to its ability to seemingly change colour depending on the level of sunlight and time of day. The trail is mostly flat, and in this peaceful and untouched wilderness, we will enjoy views of the iconic Mount Meakandake, an active volcano whose peak reaches 1,499 m that has formed the landscape around Lake Akan, including Lake Onnetō itself. In the afternoon, we explore Lake Akan Ainu Kotan Village to learn about the history and culture of Hokkaidō’s indigenous inhabitants, the Ainu, and watch a traditional dance performance, officially recognised as an important feature of Japan’s cultural heritage.

• Day
• 4

• 5.7 km / 3.5 mi (Including optional walk)
• negligible ascent and descent
• 2 hours (Including optional walk)
• Onsen ryokan (hot spring inn) or onsen hotel (hot spring hotel)
• Breakfast, Dinner

Travel by private vehicle to Kawayu Onsen and enjoy a lovely walk to Mount Iō, known as Atosa Nupuri or ‘Naked Mountain’ in the Ainu language. Today, Mount Iō is a very active volcano and we will watch as sulphur rises from the more than 1,500 fumaroles covering its slopes.
Our lodging tonight is a charming onsen ryokan or onsen hotel in the area near Lake Kussharo. The area is famous for having some of the highest-quality thermal waters in the whole of Hokkaidō. Both lakes are some of the most pristine and largest calderas in the world. Return to your hotel or, if you wish, join your guide on an optional walk to the Wakoto Peninsula.

• Day
• 5

• 11.4 km / 7.1 mi
• 335 m / 1,099 ft of ascent and 799 m / 2,621 ft of descent
• 5 hours
• Onsen ryokan (Hot Spring Inn)
• Breakfast, Dinner

After a short journey by private vehicle, we reach a mountain hut that marks the starting point of our hike up Mount Nishibetsu. We will ascend the mountain, enjoying amazing views of Hokkaidō’s landscapes and alpine plants along the way. After summitting, we descend the other side of the mountain, toward Lake Mashū. This lake, known as one of the clearest lakes in the world and one of the most beautiful in the whole of Japan, is often shrouded in mist during the summer months, giving it an air of mystery. We continue on by private vehicle to Abashiri, a modern town which relies on its fishing industry. Our accommodation tonight is a lovely onsen ryokan.

2026: Walk Bihoro Pass, then Travel to Lake Mashu

• 9.9 km / 6.1 mi
• 150 m / 490 ft of ascent and 595 m / 1,950 ft of descent
• 3.5 hours
• Onsen ryokan (Hot Spring Inn)
• Breakfast, Dinner

After a short journey by private vehicle, we reach Bihoro Pass, part of the Kussharo Caldera Trail. This trail follows the outer rim of Lake Kussharo, Japan’s largest caldera lake. Weather permitting, you can see as far as Mount Iō, Mount Shari and Mount Tokachi, enjoying a magnificent panorama sometimes referred to as ‘the best view in the world’. We will then travel by private vehicle to Lake Mashū. Known as one of the most transparent lakes in the world and one of the most beautiful in Japan, Lake Mashū is shrouded in mist in the summer season, creating a mysterious atmosphere.

​​​​​​​We continue on by private vehicle to Abashiri, a modern town which relies on its fishing industry. Our accommodation tonight is a lovely onsen ryokan.

• Day
• 6

• Optional Cycling/Walking up to 20 km / 12.5 mi
• negligible ascent and descent
• 2 hours
• Onsen Ryokan (Hot Spring Inn)
• Breakfast, Dinner

Today we enjoy optional cycling or walking through one of the largest wildflower nature reserves in Japan. Located beside Lake Saroma, Japan’s third-largest lake with a length of 20 kilometres, in the Wakka Nature Centre we can spot hundreds of different types of flowering plants. Later, we visit the Museum of Northern Peoples and learn more about the indigenous peoples inhabiting the north. The Ainu have a history stretching back over 2,000 years to the time of their arrival in Hokkaidō from Siberia; the area also has mysterious traces of an even earlier culture called the Moyoro. We make our way to Utoro Onsen, a pleasant hot-spring town and gateway to the vast Shiretoko Wilderness. This is a perfect base for our next three nights in a local hotel, enjoying the onsen baths and regional delicacies.

• Day
• 7

• 3.0 km / 1.8 mi
• Negligible ascent and descent
• About 2 hours
• Onsen hotel (Hot Spring Hotel)
• Breakfast, Dinner

If the weather is kind today, we enjoy a boat ride on the Sea of Okhotsk. From the sea there are stunning views of the Shiretoko Peninsula’s dramatic coastline and perhaps even glimpses of Hokkaido brown bears and their cubs, as well as deer, foxes, and marine life such as dolphins and whales. If the weather is not calm enough for the boat ride, we’ll stay on land and hike a lovely waterfall path instead.
In the afternoon we travel by local bus to the famous Shiretoko Five Lakes, spending time on the picturesque nature trails there.

• Day
• 8

• 6.3 km / 4 mi
• 187 m / 613 ft of ascent and 187 m / 613 ft of descent
• 3 hours
• Onsen hotel (Hot Spring Hotel)
• Breakfast, Farewell Dinner 

Today begins with a private coach journey to the start of today’s walk past picturesque lakes and onwards to Lake Rausu, recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the largest lake on the Shiretoko Peninsula. Here, there are stunning views of Mount Rausu, highest peak of the peninsula. We provide boots for the uniquely enjoyable hike along the mud trail before returning to our lodgings in Utoro Onsen.

• Day
• 9

• Breakfast

After breakfast, your guide will help you to the airport limousine bus from Utoro Onsen to Memanbetsu Airport for your return flight to Tōkyō or Ōsaka.

Due to the schedule of the airport limousine bus, Oku Japan is only able to arrange airport transportation for guests with flights departing Memanbetsu Airport in the afternoon or later. Guests with early flights will need to arrange their own transportation.