Slow Life Hokkaido 0: Getting There

- September 25, 2018

It's never easy task planning a family trip especially when my sister has her kids to consider, my brother is working in Singapore, and I have my own work commitments. Our last trip together was in 2012 to Hong Kong. In order to make things work, my sister took the lead and declared that she would be ditching her kids and hubby. Just the four of us. That made travel arrangements a lot easier. Secured our tickets three months before our flight period in late May. Another summer in Hokkaido for me, which was low season (cheaper flights, cheaper lodging). Temperatures are still generally pleasant, but flowers aren't in full bloom yet.

On the day of departure, my brother flew in from Singapore and he practically camped at KLIA2 for half a day (since he was there early, he helped me collect the TravelRecommends WiFi hotspot). Mum, Sis and I took a cab from home after dinner. I was hoping for my usual cab driver's Estima, but for some reason, he sent his brother instead and didn't tell me. Best thing was, his brother even had a friend in the car. Fortunately, we could fit everyone including the luggage.

Our flight out to Hokkaido wasn't very full. Tried to get some sleep after the lights were dimmed. Dozed in and out of sleep, and by 5 AM we were awake. Breakfast was strange-- Spaghetti Bolognese. Landed at New Chitose Airport at 8:30 AM. Immigration procedures had changed since I was last there. Foreigners were now herded into an area with a cluster of photocopy-like machines just to capture face photos and thumbprints. Then it was another queue to the immigration counters. Clearance was slow. And if you're filling in the arrival card with an AirBnB address, you must also provide the owner's name (not practical as AirBnB doesn't provide the full name). Easier to just say that you're staying at a hotel. With a lot hoo-hah going on with the legislation of AirBnB in Japan (minpaku), things might change again.

Once we got our luggage, we had to clear customs. Because we were a family, I think they did not bother to check our bags for prohibited items. FYI, Hokkaido does not allow passengers to bring in meat and meat products. When walking in, we were also made to go through disinfectant mats to ensure that we don't bring in 'alien' germs.

From the arrival hall, we went down one floor to get to the car rental counter. Once they sighted my reservation, they gave me a number and arranged for a free transfer to Toyota Poplar which is just ten minutes away. An important thing to note is that they will only rent you a car if you produce an international driving license that is issued in accordance with the Geneva Convention. The lady at the counter went to great lengths to explain all the details to me. I got the full coverage (insurance and road side assistance), English GPS, and the unlimited usage ETC card. Total damage was JPY77,000.

Another lady showed us to our ride for the next 7 days-- a silver Toyota Corolla Axio. It wasn't as big as I had hoped, but we managed to stuff all our suitcases into the boot. We put a red lucky crane (that Sis took from the counter) on the dashboard and we were ready for our Happy Hokkaido adventure!