Sapporo ¨C When I arrive in Sapporo one mid-November evening, I¡¯m greeted by the telltale smell of fallen nuts from the city¡¯s ginkgo trees. Then in the full glory of °ì¨²â¨ (autumn foliage), these golden-leafed sentinels blanket the Hokkaido capital in an effluviant odor so unmistakable that it manages to waft through the subway tunnels I speed through on the way to the city¡¯s southerly Nakajima Park.
Here stands the newest addition to the city¡¯s skyline: the . Open from Oct. 1 and operated by Britain-based IHG Hotels & Resorts, the property represents the first luxury international brand to set up shop in the Hokkaido capital ¡ª and in several years¡¯ time, the first to massively expand the Nakajima Park area¡¯s meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE) tourism capabilities.
Just across the street from the InterContinental Sapporo sit several domestic hotels, including the 61-year-old Sapporo Park Hotel, which is scheduled to close for good in February 2027 ahead of a complete teardown. In its place, the city plans on building a new 26,000-square-meter convention center with an estimated completion date of 2033.
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