Activities & Experiences
Explore Lake Shikaribetsu in a canoe, hike the crater rim of a collapsed volcano, or spot wildlife on walking tours of the park’s forests, rivers, and freeze-thaw-weathered mountain slopes. Local guides and tour operators offer a wide range of experiences that introduce the unique geological, natural, and cultural heritage of Tokachi Shikaoi Geopark.
Many of the experiences are seasonal. Warmer-weather activities are typically offered between April and October, but Lake Shikaribetsu can stay partially frozen until around mid-May. At the Lake Shikaribetsu Nature Center, visitors can don watertight dry suits and join tours out onto the lake’s ice floes between mid-April and early May. In winter, dogsledding tours operate across vast snowfields, and the Shikaribetsuko-Kotan igloo village opens on the frozen surface of Lake Shikaribetsu. The igloo village features an ice bar, an ice chapel for weddings, an ice hall for concerts, ice lodges, and an open-air hot spring bath. The igloo village event typically runs from the end of January to mid-March.
Information about these and other park activities is available at the Tokachi Shikaoi Geopark Visitor Center and the Lake Shikaribetsu Nature Center. Reservations are required for most tours and experiences.
