The Asahikawa Winter Festival has begun in Asahikawa City, Hokkaido, and the venue is crowded with tourists and citizens who come to see the big snow sculptures.
The Asahikawa Winter Festival is a winter event that represents this region and is visited by nearly 1 million people every year, and this year marks the 65th time.
Snow sculptures of various sizes are created at a special venue on the riverbed of the Ishikari River that flows through the center of Asahikawa City, and the most famous snow sculpture is 140 meters wide and 20 meters high.
This year's design combines characters from the popular game ``Dragon Quest'' and Asahikawa's local character ``Asappi'', and visitors can look up at the giant snow sculpture and take photos. Ta.
In addition, a slide made of ice about 100 meters in length was built at the venue, and foreign tourists enjoyed it.
A man from Thailand said, ``I'm surprised by the big snow sculptures. I like Dragon Quest, so I'm very happy.''
According to the festival's executive committee, this year, for the first time in four years, restaurants opened inside the venue, and the event was held on roughly the same scale as before the coronavirus pandemic.
Kazuhiko Igaya from the Asahikawa City Tourism Division said, ``This festival is filled with the charm of winter, including large snow sculptures and ice slides.We hope many people will enjoy it.''
The Asahikawa Winter Festival will be held for 6 days until the 12th of this month.