For tourists from abroad, the main point of entry into Japan via air is the Narita Airport, which processes almost all international flights into Tokyo. From there, you can easily find a connection to Sapporo. Since Sapporo is the main hub into the island of Hokkaido, the best airport to land at to get to the city is the New Chitose Airport located just south of the city. There are several dozen jumbo jets flying to this airport from Tokyo every day, making the Tokyo-Sapporo route the most frequently traveled in the world, and tickets for this flight are quite inexpensive. Japan Rail trains, which run every 15 minutes, will take you into the center of the city in about half an hour for roughly ¥1000.

You can even take a train directly from the main island, Honshu, via the underwater Seikan Tunnel, the longest in the world. Getting from Tokyo to Sapporo entirely by rail is fairly popular. Most people opt for the sleeper trains, so book your tickets far in advance. The Cassiopeia, probably the best-known train service between Tokyo and Sapporo, takes over 16 hours and is quite expensive. Try the Hokutosei service if you are aiming to save some money. Yet another, faster option is traveling by Shinkansen and Limited Express trains, but this still takes about 10 hours. To get to Sapporo from the more southerly city of Osaka, take the Twilight Express or the Nihonkai.