Sapporo (札幌) is the capital and largest city of the northern island of Hokkaido. One of Japan's newest and nicest cities, it has little in the way of traditional architecture. But what it lacks in "Japanese-ness" it makes up for with its lovely open, tree-filled boulevards to enjoy in summer and excellent snow (and facilities to cope with said snow) in the long winter. Its name means “The great dry river”.