If you are visiting Hokkaido between July to September, I will highly recommend you to include Farm Tomita in Furano in your itnerary! You will be amazed by the gorgeous views of their purple carpet of lavender and other colourful flower fields during this blooming season! Preview of the picturesque views:
Located at Naka-Furano, Farm Tomita establishes in 1905 and is regarded as one of the oldest lavender fields in Japan. The beauty of its blooms however only gain international acclaim and wide recognition after the view below was featured in Japan National Railways (currently Japan Railway Company) calendar in 1976.
Farm Tomita's infamous view that was featured in Japan National Railways Calendar in 1976.
The infamous view of lavender field against the backdrop of Furano valley and the Tokachi Mountains featured in Japan National Railways Calendar in 1976. (Source: http://www.farm-tomita.co.jp/en/history/)
Today, Tomita Farm manages 10 colorful flower fields and in every July, converts rice paddies situated 4km east of the farm into a huge lavender field. This field is known as “Lavender East” and only opens in this special blooming month from 8.30am to 5pm daily.
It was a pity that we missed Lavender East as we visited Farm Tomita in August (taking advantage of our Singapore National Day long weekend ?). As such, I am unable to provide my personal experience on Lavender East. However, should you be planning to visit Farm Tomita in July, you may like to refer to their official website: http://www.farm-tomita.co.jp/en/east/ for details. Do share with us your experience! ?
Nevertheless, we thoroughly enjoyed the other mesmerizing flower fields in Farm Tomita. Blessed with a great weather, we captured many great instagram-worthy shots of the beautiful scenic fields! ☺
Overview of Farm Tomita:
Do note that the Hanabito Field and Autumn Field look quite similar and can get confusing at times. Due to time constraint (we had to rush back to Chitose for a late flight), it’s regretful that we did not visit the Irodori Field and Forest field. ? On a positive side, this makes a perfect excuse for me to plan a visit to Farm Tomita in July next time! ?
Over the years, this lavender agronomic farm has also evolved into a learning center with a lavender museum and gallery, and conducts workshops in lavender perfume and distillery. As such, apart from flower viewing, you may like to participate in their workshops as well if time permits! Activity details are indicated on their webpage: http://www.farm-tomita.co.jp/en/farm/facility_map.asp. I would also recommend visiting their Dried Flowers House, which Farm Tomita collaborates with Dutch floral designer, Len Alkemade on gorgeous flower arrangements.
There are several cafes within the vicinity but I have to warn that it is extremely difficult to get seats with great views of flower fields due to the crowd in the farm. Alternatively, it’s also nice to just buy takeaways and enjoy them on the many benches located in the alfresco area with a flower field view. My recommendations would be to try Lavender- specialty items like soft serve ice-cream, cream puff, honey pudding, chiffon cake and calpis jelly. The list of cafes are indicated here: http://www.farm-tomita.co.jp/en/cafe/
Farm Tomita
Address:
〒071-0704基線北15号
Kisen Kita 15-go, nakafurano-cho, Sorachi-gun, Hokkaido 071-0704.
Telephone: 0167-39-3939
Opening hours:
9.30am to 4.30pm (December to March)
9am to 4.30pm (April, October, November)
8.30am to 5pm (Late April to September) July being the peak Season / best visiting period
9.30am to 4.30pm (December to March)
Website: http://www.farm-tomita.co.jp/en/
Entry Fee: Free to enter
Directions:
We drove from Hokuryu-cho Sunflower Festival in Hokuryu to Farm Tomita in Naka-Furano and that took us 1.5 hours.
Their official website provides clear map and directions via car/bus/train: http://www.farm-tomita.co.jp/en/access/.
Pay special attention to the timings of:
Lavender Bus. (refer to http://www.farm-tomita.co.jp/en/east/bus.asp)
Furano-Biei Norokko-go train to Lavender Farm Station, which is only in operation every Summer, typically from June to late September. (refer to http://www.farm-tomita.co.jp/en/access/station.asp).
Miwa says…
Not to worry if you would like to get more souvenirs from Farm Tomita. Their gifts can also be found in New Chitose Airport. Refer to http://www.farm-tomita.co.jp/en/shop/.
The popularity of Tomita farm attracts tourist crowd. During our visit in the afternoon, there were a few buses of tourists and at times, the peace and tranquility surrounded by its picturesque views is compromised. We couldn’t even find seats at the cafes. As such, I would recommend visiting the farm in the morning.
Another good reason to visit in the morning is you would be able to capture better photos without any harsh shadows!
It’s quite sunny during summer so stay well-protected in the sun!