Hokkaido Spring Day 2: Hakodate Morning Market + Onuma Park

Rise and shine at 6:30! I wasn't planning on waking till 7am but it was so bright I found it hard to continue sleeping. After taking a shower, I packed up and checked out of my hostel. I found myself at Goryokaku Koen again by 8:18 am because I just couldn't get enough of these Somei Yoshino!



I wandered aimlessly like the hopeless dreamer I am, soaking in every bit of the Sakura rays. Let my photographs show you the beauty I saw.

Hokkaido Spring Day 1: Hakodate, Goryokaku Park & Mt. Hakodate

I took a red eye flight with a layover in Kuala Lumpur on my first ever trip to Hokkaido. I had bought the tickets only 3 weeks before the trip so AirAsia’s tickets were the only ones I could get that didn’t break my bank. My return tickets cost me SGD$628.50




My flight was scheduled to fly at 8:45 pm and it was a whirlwind of a busy day! Thank God I managed to get everything together in time! After finishing all my morning and afternoon appointments, I rushed home and took the MRT to the airport because what do you think? because I’m cheap! I checked myself in with AirAsia's check-in booth to avoid having my bag weighed. I hadn’t bought any baggage space for the trip over (Cheap alert!) but I think I might have accidentally crossed the 7kg limit by one of two kilos, oops=X. I had grand visions of leisurely whizzing through the departure gates with just the booth printed boarding pass but verification of travel documents was required for entry into Japan so I was sent back to the counters to have my passport checked.





Had a brief layover at KLIA. Maybe it's the fact that I'm flying a Budget airline this time but man, the boarding gate between my flights were so far away! I also had to go through the x-ray machines twice even though it was a transfer. The last time I flew with Malaysia Airline to Osaka, I didn't have to do any of that. Was it just a difference in airline or are they stepping up security after that fiasco?

10 tips to travelling Japan for Cheap!

I marvelled my friends when I told them I travelled Japan for 15 days, covered 5 cities, 1 distant village and spent a grand total of just SGD $1730, all inclusive! I kinda cheated a little by spending 6 nights at 2 friend’s place. But given my spending record, even with 6 additional days of accommodation, I doubt I would burst SGD $2000.

And take note that within those 15 days, I did not starve. There were even days that I even splurged on restaurants (Korean Barbeque and Japanese Sukiyaki, yums!) and presents for my family and friends back home. So I'm here to share a few tips on how to travel Japan for cheap.