【Sapporo White Illumination 2023-2024】Highlights of interest

``Sapporo White Illumination'', a winter tradition that colors Sapporo, will be held for the 43rd time this year. It has now become one of Japan's leading winter events, and every year many tourists from within and outside of Hokkaido enjoy the beautiful, sparkling illuminations.
We will thoroughly introduce the highlights of "Sapporo White Illumination" 2023-2024!

"Sapporo White Illumination" will be held at five venues: [Odori venue], [Sapporo Station South Exit Station Square venue], [Sapporo Kita 3-jo Square (Akapla) venue], [Ekimae-dori venue], and [Minami-Ichijo-dori venue]. It colors the streets of the city in a fantastical way.
Symbol objects will be installed at the main Odori venue, and beautiful and sparkling standing trees will be installed at the Sapporo Ekimae-dori/Kita 3-jo Plaza (Akapla) and Sapporo Station South Exit venues to the north and south, and Minami Ichijo-dori to the east and west.
In addition, at the Munich Christmas Market in Sapporo, which will be held at Odori Nishi 2-chome, there will be booths selling wine, Christmas food, and various Christmas items.

[Odori venue]
Event period: November 22, 2023 (Wed) - December 25, 2023 (Mon)
Lighting time: 16:30-22:00
*The lights will be lit until 24:00 only from December 23rd to 25th.
*Lighting hours may change without notice during the exhibition period.

[Sapporo Station South Exit Station Square Venue]
Event period: November 22, 2023 (Wed) - March 14, 2024 (Thu)
Lighting time: 16:30-24:00
*During the period, the start time will change according to the sunset time.

[Sapporo City Kita 3-jo Square (Akapla) Venue]
Event period: November 22, 2023 (Wed) - March 14, 2024 (Thu)
Lighting time: 16:30-22:00
*During the period, the start time will change according to the sunset time.

[Ekimae-dori venue]
Event period: November 22, 2023 (Wed) - February 11, 2024 (Sun)
Lighting time: 16:30-22:00
*Until 24:00 from December 23rd (Sat) to 25th (Mon)

[Minami-Ichijo-dori venue]
Event period: November 22, 2023 (Wed) - March 14, 2024 (Thu)
Lighting time: 16:30-22:00
*Until 24:00 from December 21st (Wed) to 25th (Mon)

[Munich Christmas Market in Sapporo]
Event period: November 22, 2023 (Wed) - December 25, 2023 (Mon)
Business hours: 11:00-21:00 (last order 20:45)

In order to enliven "Sapporo White Illumination", we collaborate with songs from various artists every year.
This year's collaboration song is Official髭男dism "Subtitle".
Music will be played at the venue every day during the event. This is also worth checking out.

Odori Park 1-chome to 6-chome will be illuminated with different themes.
Thoughts for someone important to you. Thoughts for a bright future. We will light the light of the future, hoping that the thoughts of people who have overcome the difficulties of the coronavirus pandemic and move on to the future with their loved ones will reach and come true.

The Odori 1-chome venue has an eye-catching symbolic object decorated with wings. The gold-based objects incorporate the motif of the cuckoo, Sapporo's city bird, and express the uniqueness of Sapporo. The contrast with the TV tower makes you feel the beginning of a gorgeous light production.

The main tree at the Odori 1-chome venue, Flapping "Wish Birds" is collaborating with Disney's 100th anniversary movie "Wish" which will be released in theaters on December 15th (Fri)!
The tree is decorated with original ornaments from the movie "Wish" and at the top is a "star" a cute character who plays a big role in the movie.
In addition, the Sapporo TV Tower will be vividly decorated in the colors of "Wish" expanding the world of "Wish" with a sense of unity. The song , which sings a heartfelt "Strong wish'' toward the night sky, will be played.
You can enjoy a special collaboration only available this year.

The "Gift of Snow" decorations that started in 2018 are now even more brilliant.
You can write your wishes on "wish cards" sold only at the venue and tie them to the main object. Gathering everyone's wishes, it will become a one-of-a-kind symbolic object that will decorate the venue.

The lilac symbol object, which is popular for its gorgeous shine, has been updated in collaboration with Sapporo's flower lily of the valley and Hokkaido's flower Hamanasu. The illuminations show a variety of expressions through the development, movement, and change of five colors of light, including not only lilac and purple, but also blue and red.

At the 4-chome venue, where you will be captivated by a tunnel of light with a snowflake motif, the illuminations are based on white and smoke is added to create a fantastic snowy corridor. Once you step into the tunnel of light, you can experience and feel immersed in a dazzling snow fantasy.

An experiential plaza with stars and space as its motif and an interactive mechanism at its core. The transparent dome is studded with glowing spheres, and a sparkling light production begins in response to people's movements. Frame domes and Shining Balls placed throughout the venue will shine blue all at once, enveloping the venue with a sense of unity.

A forest of lights that recreates the rich greenery that characterizes the 6-chome venue in the winter season. You can enjoy the popular ``Maze of Light'' in a forest of lights that has become more gorgeous, with gold illuminations interwoven with green as the base color. In addition to lighting up the trees, the entire venue is made to look green.

Satsuki Illumination
“Flowers of light” appear inside the illuminated interior.
The sound and light production program that changes four times during the event warms the hearts of viewers.

Now is the time to Sparkle ~Now is the time to shine~
In addition to decorations on the row of ancient ginkgo trees that stand tall against the backdrop of the Hokkaido Red Brick Office Building,The plaza will be illuminated with lights, creating a landscape illuminated by Akapla.

Approximately 1.5km of brilliant light surrounds the station
Approximately 1.5km from JR Sapporo Station to Susukino, the trees in the median strip are decorated with LED lights and become Sapporo's main street in winter.

Transforms into a fantastic street full of lights shining on the trees
The 46 ginkgo trees lining the north and south sides of Minami-Ichijo-dori are decorated with over 70,000 LED lights.
The approximately 300m long path of light shines beautifully with dazzling lights, creating a fantastical experience.

Smiling Christmas presents from all over Sapporo
Munich, Germany is Sapporo's sister city.The Munich Christmas Market in Sapporo was started as part of a friendship city partnership.
There will be booths selling authentic German Christmas dishes such as mulled wine and various Christmas items.
We will liven up Odori Park Nishi 2-chome with a Christmas atmosphere.

"Sapporo White Illumination 2023-2024" will be held from Wednesday, November 22, 2023.
Check out the places you want to go to in advance and enjoy the illuminations at each venue, Christmas food and Christmas items at the Munich Christmas Market!

It will be very cold during the event, so please don't forget to take measures to protect yourself from the cold.

The event information posted is as of November 17, 2023.
Event dates and times and content may change due to weather or other reasons, so please check the official website for the latest information.
*Photos used in the article are for illustrative purposes only.