Planning a Chinese family’s multigenerational holiday itinerary to Hokkaido, Japan
Keeping everybody happy on a multigenerational holiday to the Japanese island proved to be far simpler than feared
It is 3am and I am wide awake, scrolling through listings of Hokkaido restaurants on my phone. I peer at pictures of dining rooms, trying to assess if they are big enough to accommodate the 10 members of my extended Hong Kong family who will arrive in two days’ time.
After spending several months travelling in Japan, I invited my family to visit me and my partner, Cameron, in Otaru, a port city on Hokkaido’s west coast, with an offer to plan their holiday for them. In no time at all, my parents and aunties, my sister and her family had booked airline tickets as our family chat group came alive with plans.
Now the pressure is on for me to organise a one-week holiday that will excite my seven-year-old nephew but not be too tiring for my 75-year-old father. I need to provide enough shopping time for my mother’s younger sisters – Aunties No 6, No 7 and No 8 – but also give my sister and her husband some time to relax.
I have made a list of what I’ll need: a big van with a driver; hotels (who is willing to share a room); restaurants that can accommodate big groups. And I need to scout out short hikes that are suitable for seniors. I scour Google and visit restaurants to see if they will take our booking during a busy national holiday week.
On the day of their arrival, I meet my family at New Chitose Airport and corral them onto the train to Otaru. The stress I’ve felt for the past week, worrying that I’ve planned too little, or too much, melts away as I listen to their excited chatter on the train. It’s a relief to be able to chat in Cantonese instead of struggle with Japanese.
The first day is easy, I just need to get them to their hotel, a centrally located ryokan, or Japanese-style inn with tatami rooms and futon beds. From there it is a short walk to a small sushi restaurant, and we arrive just a few minutes before last orders. I wince as my family fills the tiny establishment with their loud Cantonese voices, but the waitresses smile at the sight of a multigenerational family enjoying their food.
