SAPPORO—The Sapporo Snow Festival, one of Hokkaido’s most popular winter events, opened here on Feb. 4, overcoming what had been a record low snowfall this season. About 140 snow statues are ...

SAPPORO—A cool reproduction of the Catbus and sisters Satsuki and May in popular anime “My Neighbor Totoro” won the top prize in the citizen sculpture event at the 2023 Sapporo Snow Festival.

Hokkaido’s Sapporo Snow Festival may be less known internationally than the ... the naming of the island and celebrated with a giant commemorative birthday cake ice sculpture designed by local pastry ...

Winter in Hokkaido comes with meters of snow, literally.

As snow fell heavily at times, Atsushi Igarashi, a company executive from Sapporo, and his friends chiseled a sculpture of "yabee bear," a mascot he invented that takes pride in spreading the ...

Hidenori Takagi, a veteran snow sculpture maker reflects ... As Tomonori Aoyama, Director General for Sapporo City Tourism & MICE Promotion Department, states, "To address the unprecedented ...

But as the climate continues to warm, the question remains: how many more years can Sapporo count on the snow? "It is an important time for local people. Many of the teams that make ice statues ...

Snow sculptures are lit up at Odori Park in Sapporo, Hokkaido, on Tuesday ... the Odori site exhibits more than one hundred smaller snow statues and hosts several music concerts and events, many of ...

As snow fell heavily at times, Atsushi Igarashi, a company executive from Sapporo, and his friends chiselled a sculpture of "Yabee Bear," a mascot he invented that takes pride in spreading the ...

Japan’s Sapporo Snow Festival, a dazzling showcase of ice ... “When that happens, the very biggest statues can become unstable and dangerous.” ...