Sapporo, on Japan’s northernmost island of Hokkaidō, is getting its only North American route thanks to Air Canada. Japan has been an extremely popular destination in recent years, helped by the poor value of its currency. There were already 11 existing routes from Canada to the lovely East Asian country (and so many more from the US), but they were all to Tōkyō or Ōsaka-Kyōto.
Now, a city outside of the main island of Honshū finally gets a route to North America. It’s actually the shortest route between Asia and North America! And Sapporo is a very popular destination, whether it’s for skiing, for other winter activities, for ramen, or for beer!
I personally much prefer flying in a luxurious business class lie-flat seat across the Pacific (at the guaranteed fixed price of 75,000 Aeroplan points per direction), but many travelers aren’t flexible with their routing. Flytrippers aims to help everyone travel for less through our 3 types of content, namely flight deals, travel rewards, and tips/inspiration/news.
Here are the details of the new Canada–Sapporo route (and the reasons to visit this destination).
What is the new Canada–Sapporo route?
The new Canada–Sapporo air route is between Vancouver (YVR) and Sapporo (CTS) on Air Canada. The airline just announced this very first route between the popular Japanese winter destination and all of North America.
Here’s the essential info about the new Canada–Sapporo route:
- Offered by Canadian airline Air Canada
- Global full-service airline (Star Alliance member)
- Between Vancouver (YVR) and Sapporo (CTS)
- Vancouver is Air Canada’s largest transpacific hub
- Sapporo is the capital of the island of Hokkaidō
- Accessible from several other cities in Canada
- With a connecting flight
- Air Canada serves 50+ domestic destinations
- Only route between North America and Sapporo
- And even all of Japan’s islands other than Honshū
- Prices are a bit more expensive than alternatives
- From cities other than Vancouver
- From Vancouver, it’s more expensive than with a connection
- But it’s way too in advance to get good prices
- And only the first few weeks of the route are on sale
- Around 1350 CAD roundtrip (connecting)
- Or 135,000 points of the more simple type
- Or 1350 CAD/135,000 pts (Vancouver)
- Also bookable with Aeroplan points
- But rarely a good deal (as with all flights on Air Canada)
- Aeroplan points should be redeemed on partner airlines
- With fixed pricing (it’s dynamic pricing on Air Canada)
It’s not a particularly useful route for those who want to save money (like most direct long-distance routes on Canadian airlines). It’s great for those who value convenience over price. But it’s always great news for the market overall when airlines add new routes, as it forces other airlines to offer lower prices on their connecting flights to that destination.
It’s also worth noting that, like in almost every country except Canada, domestic flights in Japan are pretty cheap. For example, you can fly from Tōkyō to Sapporo for just 66 CAD one-way. So if you want to experience Tōkyō as well, transpacific flights to the capital are often cheaper (it’s the self-transfer trick).
As for the rewards angle, if you want to fly business class, you’ll find way more seat availability at the guaranteed fixed prices if you search for Tōkyō. As for this specific route, depending on how it performs, maybe the dynamic prices on Air Canada will sometimes be decent. We’ll check, and we’ll definitely put them in our new business class deals section if they’re close to partner airline pricing.
What are the details of the new Canada–Sapporo route?
Here are the details of the new Canada–Sapporo flights on Air Canada:
- New winter seasonal route
- Not year-round
- From December 17 to March 26
- Only 3x per week
- Monday/Thursday/Saturday to Japan
- Tuesday/Friday/Sunday to Canada
- Scheduled with the overnight on the return
- AC55 YVR-CTS (9h10): 1:25 PM to 3:35 PM (+1)
- AC54 CTS-YVR (8h15): 7:55 PM to 11:10 AM
- Distance of 6,901 kilometers (4,288 miles)
- About equivalent to Toronto–Vienna
- Operated by a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner (widebody aircraft)
- 214 seats in economy class
- 21 seats in premium economy class
- 20 seats in business class (AC Signature Class)
- No additional fee for ski bags and equipment
- On Air Canada long-distance flights
- Part of regular checked bag allowances
- Including with the Air Canada free bags benefit
A frequency of just 3x per week is low, but it’s pretty common for an all-new long-distance route. It’s certainly still better than no flight at all. I’ve listed all Canada–Japan routes at the end of this post, if you’re interested.
As for the onboard experience, I’ve had a few long-distance flights on Air Canada B787 Dreamliners (to/from Brazil, and to Greece), and it was very good for both the soft product (the food and the service), and the hard product (the seat). And for ski trips specifically, the Air Canada free bags benefit is certainly a big plus.
Someday, I will probably try the Signature business class when the price is close to the partner pricing, but I haven’t done it yet. It’s a lie-flat seat with direct aisle access, so it’s probably great, but the almost-always higher price is just not worth it to me (compared to partner airlines).
Why visit Sapporo?
Unlike the new routes we told you about recently (to Albania and to Senegal), I can’t share my own first-hand experience this time; I’ve never been to Hokkaidō.
However, I’ve heard great things from travelers who love winter trips (I am most definitely not one of them) and who love Japan in general.
Niseko is a very popular ski destination. It’s considered Japan’s ski capital. And is not very far from Sapporo.
It’s known for its high-end hotels, which will be way more appealing once you join us Canadians who have US-issued credit cards (step-by-step guide coming very soon).
There are many other nice natural attractions in the area if you like that kind of thing and the cold, like Mount Maruyama and the Jozankei Hot Spring.
The city of Sapporo itself is known as a winter haven (it hosts a popular snow festival in February) and especially a culinary capital.
It’s also a much more approachable way to experience urban Japanese life, with a population of about 2.6 million in the metropolitan area. That’s about the size of Vancouver, and is a bit less imposing than the 37 million in Tōkyō and 19 million in Ōsaka-Kyōto.
If you want rich, warming Japanese food, you’ll love Sapporo. It’s even the birthplace of miso ramen! Soup curry is another local favorite, and the fresh seafood is apparently great, too. Susukino is a popular neighborhood for great eats.
Dessert-wise, the Shime Parfait, a soft-serve ice cream topped with cream, is another local specialty. About a third of all Japanese dairy farms are located on the island of Hokkaidō!
Beverage-wise, Sapporo is probably the one Japanese beer brand you know. It’s the country’s oldest.
It was first brewed in the city of Sapporo, unsurprisingly (although the company is now headquartered in Tōkyō; it also owns the Canadian Sleeman brand, by the way). The Sapporo Beer Museum is a must if you enjoy beer.
Sapporo also has a unique feel among Japanese cities, as it was established much more recently. It has nice urban parks and landmarks like the Sapporo Clock Tower.
Japan is certainly not as affordable as Southeast Asia, but it can be a little more affordable than most people expect for such a popular and developed country (again, the weak yen helps us travelers; even though it’s not great for them, of course).
For example, The Knot Sapporo hotel (rated 8.5/10) with a great city center location is just 59 CAD per night (30 CAD per night per person with a travel companion) during the peak winter season.
If you want to splurge on a nicer property, you can use your Marriott free night certificates and get a great value of 512 CAD at the Courtyard by Marriott Sapporo!
Remember, brands like Courtyard are much higher-end outside of North America (just like everything in travel is better outside of North America, in case you sadly didn’t know).
I personally would much rather go visit in the summer, but I know many travelers love winter activities, and Sapporo is a great destination for them.
What are the other Canada–Japan routes?
There are now a total of 12 Canada–Japan routes operated by 5 different airlines: 2 Canadian (Air Canada, WestJet), and 3 Japanese (ANA, JAL, ZIPAIR).
These routes connect 3 different cities in Japan (4 airports, as Tōkyō has 2 international ones) and 4 different Canadian cities (Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, Montreal).
Let’s look at the full list.
From Vancouver (YVR):
- Tōkyō-Haneda (HND) on ANA (All Nippon Airways)
- *Tōkyō-Narita (NRT) on ANA (All Nippon Airways)
- Tōkyō-Narita (NRT) on JAL (Japan Airlines)
- Tōkyō-Narita (NRT) on ZIPAIR
- Tōkyō-Narita (NRT) on Air Canada
- *Osaka (KIX) on Air Canada
- *Sapporo (CTS) on Air Canada
From Calgary (YYC):
- Tōkyō-Narita (NRT) on WestJet
From Toronto (YYZ):
- Tōkyō-Haneda (HND) on Air Canada
- Tōkyō-Narita (NRT) on Air Canada
- *Osaka (KIX) on Air Canada
From Montreal (YUL):
- Tōkyō-Narita (NRT) on Air Canada
*Seasonal flights
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Summary
Air Canada is launching a new Canada–Sapporo route, and it’s actually the only air route between a Japanese destination outside of the island and all of North America! Sapporo is a winter lover’s dream destination, and also a foodie’s dream destination. It’s now a bit more easily accessible for Canadians.
What would you like to know about this new Canada–Sapporo route? Tell us in the comments below.
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Featured image: Mt Yotei, Japan and a bowl of ramen (photo credit: Luis Reid & Anna Jakutajc-Wojtalik, edited by Flytrippers)
