Akan✨️Ainu Kotan

🌿 Lake Akan Ainu Kotan

Located in a corner of Lake Akan Onsen Town, this is Hokkaido's largest **village (kotan)** where you can experience Ainu culture. Approximately 120 Ainu people live here, and they continue to pass on their culture to the present through traditional crafts, theater, food and drink, etc. .

⸻

🎭 Traditional dance and theater tours
• Ainu Theater "Ikoro": You can enjoy "Ainu Traditional Dance," which is a nationally designated intangible folk cultural property and a UNESCO intangible cultural heritage, and a new performance "Lost Kamuy," which combines video .
• You can watch a realistic performance in a full-scale indoor theater with 332 seats.

⸻

🤲 Traditional crafts and folk craft stores
• The street is lined with about 30 stores selling folk crafts such as wood carvings, textiles, and accessories, making it feel like an art gallery .
• At the accommodation, La Vista Akangawa, wood carvings by Ainu Kotan artisans are displayed, connecting the hotel to the culture .

⸻

🍽 Food and experience programs
• Ainu restaurants are also dotted around: they offer simple flavors that make the most of nature, such as "venison," "wild vegetables," and "pocheimo (fermented potatoes)" .
• Craft experiences and guided tours are available. It's a great place to "experience and learn" about the culture .

#AbsolutelyFreeTrip