The place you cannot miss in Sapporo! The spectacular Okurayama Ski Jump Stadium

Go straight west on the extended line from the Odori Park in downtown Sapporo, there is the Okurayama Ski Jump Stadium(大倉山ジャンプ競技場). It is a twenty-minute drive from downtown and ten to fifteen minutes by bus from the Subway Maruyama Koen station.

The Viewing Lounge is at 300 meters (984 feet) elevation and the panoramic view from the Lounge is spectacular!
Below your eyes, there is an approach of the Large Hill ski jump platform. Beyond that, you see downtown Sapporo, the Odori Park, the premises of Hokkaido University and the JR Tower at the Sapporo station straight ahead. From here you have exactly the same view as the jumpers, so use your imagination. You’ll have a taste of the jumper’s tension and experience what they experience.

There is a restaurant that serves Hokkaido’s soul food “Genghis Kahn BBQ.” In another building, there is the Sapporo Winter Sports Museum that teaches you the history of winter sports and gives you the virtual experience of winter sports.
Why don’t you come up to enjoy Sapporo’s view, Hokkaido’s foods, and cultures?

The only place in Japan to give you this view!

There are only two jump stadiums in Japan to be able to hold international tournaments –one is in Hakuba village, Nagano Prefecture and the other one is in Sapporo, Hokkaido.
When you take off at the approach of the jump stadium, you feel like you are flying toward the city and the view from there is very unique to the Okurayama ski jump stadium.
There aren’t so many jump stadiums in the world that give you this view.
If you take a ski lift up to the top, stand around the starting point and look over the steep slope of the approach dropping down, your feet will freeze!

The breathtaking view from the Observation Lounge above the ski jump changes as the season changes. In summer the ski jump stadium is wrapped in dark green of the trees, in autumn, all the trees are ablaze with fall colors of yellow and orange, in winter the whole area turns into a snowy world. You’ll enjoy stunning views everytime you visit. You can also enjoy the beautiful view relaxing over a dessert or a drink in a café in the Observation Lounge.

The venue for the Olympic Games “The Okurayama Schanze”

The Okurayama ski jump stadium is also called “the Okurayama Schanze (German)” and has been used as a site of international ski jump tournaments including historically memorable competitions.
In 1928, Prince Chichibu visited Sapporo and climbed up the Teine Mountain with the Hokkaido University ski team to share his vision of building a schanze with the team. That was how the history started. In 1931 a sixty-meter schanze was completed and a capital provider, Baron Kishichiro Okura who was the founder of the Hotel Okura donated the schanze to the city of Sapporo and in 1932 it was named as “the Okurayama Schanze” at the opening ceremony.

 
Forty years later in 1972 the Winter Olympics was held in Sapporo. For the Olympic games, the Schanze underwent a major remodel and it cost them 7.7 million USD. The present name “the Okurayama Ski Jump Stadium” was given at that time.
After that, the ski lift and night ski installations were brought in and the jump hill was added “the summer hill” improvements that made practice and tournaments during summer possible. The Okurayama ski jump stadium experienced changes and developments through history and it has become what it is now.

Great reviews from locals “Chilled lamb restaurant”

You can eat the superb chilled lamb “Genghis Khan” BBQ in “the Lamb Dining Okurayama Restaurant” at the ski jump stadium.

They have seats on the ski-jump-view side and the-city-view side.
Which do you prefer?
The lunch special is “Chilled lamb Tabekurabe (taste comparison) set” (1,900 yen). In this set menu, you enjoy comparing the tastes of Hokkaido lamb and Australian lamb. It is a great deal because it also comes with a salad, soup, and the dessert.

Chilled lamb is something very special, so you want to eat it in a special way.
First, put lard on the pan. Place the vegetables on the outer rim of the round grill pan so that the vegetables absorb the oil from the lamb.
Put bean sprouts in the center of the pan and place the chilled lamb on top of them and steam the meat, or directly grill the lamb without bean sprouts. Either way, do not overcook the chilled lamb. Eat it while you still see some pink in it. That is the Hokkaido way! (Of course, it is up to your preference.)
They have great dinner set menus, too. You’ll surely have a delightful dinner, enjoying the beautiful night view.

Just like the arcade with latest winter sports games!

When you visit the Okurayama ski jump stadium, stop by at “the Sapporo Winter Sports Museum” by all means.
If you are interested in winter culture and sports, this is the place for you. You’ll be so excited!

The museum has different zones. In “the Exhibit Zone” you learn the history of the Sapporo Winter Olympics and winter sports. “The Competition Information Zone” explains about the rules of each event and the latest gear.
And “the Sensation / Experience Zone” is the most popular zone among the visitors. There is a video simulator that gives you the virtual experience of the events. You feel like as if you were soaring in the sky in the ski jump experience. In the bobsled experience, you get to work with your teammates and complete the course. In the figure skating experience, you actually spin around.
Would you like to have some memorable “you-are-actually-doing” experiences of athletes?