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Japan’s famous Sapporo Snow Festival is cancelled again this year

There won’t be any snow sculptures at Odori Park, but the 2022 edition of the Hokkaido festival will go online

Tabea Greuner
Written by
Tabea Greuner
Writer
Sapporo Snow Festival
Photo: Hassaku/PixtaAn undated stock photo of a snow sculpture on display at Sapporo Snow Festival
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The Sapporo Snow Festival, Japan’s most famous winter event, has been cancelled once again. The event, which was going to kick off on February 5, was scheduled to be held on a smaller scale this year with only a few small- to medium-sized snow sculptures. However, due to rising cases of coronavirus across the country, the organisers have decided to turn it into an online event – just like last year’s festival.

Sapporo Snow Festival
Photo: 中村 昌寛/Photo-ACAn undated stock photo of a snow sculpture on display at Sapporo Snow Festival

Pre-Covid, the annual festival was especially famous for its large re-creations of iconic buildings from around the world as well as popular anime characters and mascots lined up along the 1.5-km stretch of Sapporo's Odori Park.

Details on the online events are still being finalised, but  the festival’s official website says there will be videos on how the city’s famous snow sculptures are made, so you can still enjoy the spectacle from anywhere in the world. If you’re in Japan, you’ll also be able to shop online for special goods made by local brand Sapporo Style. And if you’re lucky enough to live in Sapporo, you can even participate in a special photo contest. 

This blog will be updated as soon as more details are announced.

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