For the first time, TRUNK(HOTEL) is venturing beyond Tokyo.

On September 17, 2027, TRUNK(HOTEL) SAPPORO will open in Sapporo’s Odori district. Following TRUNK(HOTEL) CAT STREET, TRUNK(HOUSE), and TRUNK(HOTEL) YOYOGI PARK, the new property marks TRUNK’s first expansion outside Tokyo. Occupying the 10th through 18th floors of Sapporo Daibiru, the hotel will feature 107 guest rooms, the brand’s first spa, TRUNK(BATH HOUSE), as well as Sushi Saito, an all-day dining restaurant, lounge & bar, private studio, chapel, and banquet rooms.

Courtesy of TRUNK(HOTEL)
What makes this opening particularly significant is not simply that TRUNK is bringing one of its hotels to Sapporo. At the heart of TRUNK’s approach has always been a desire to understand a place in depth—its history and culture, its people and nature, its food, and even the values and ways of life unique to the community—and reinterpret them through the brand’s own perspective.

What happens when that approach leaves Tokyo for the first time? How will TRUNK see the city of Sapporo, and what kind of hotel might emerge from that perspective?

Beyond Tokyo: Why TRUNK Chose Sapporo

TRUNK(HOTEL) CAT STREET opened in Jingumae in 2017, followed by TRUNK(HOUSE) in Kagurazaka in 2019 and TRUNK(HOTEL) YOYOGI PARK in Tomigaya in 2023. Rather than replicating the same hotel in different locations, TRUNK has developed a distinct concept in response to each place—a philosophy that has come to define its approach to hospitality.

At the press presentation, the team explained why Sapporo was chosen: the close relationship between city and nature, the distinct changes of its four seasons, and the food, craft, and handwork unique to Hokkaido.

Courtesy of TRUNK(HOTEL)
Hokkaido often brings to mind nature-rich resort destinations such as Niseko. This time, however, TRUNK is looking at Sapporo specifically as a city.

Located in the Odori district, at the heart of the central area connecting Sapporo Station, Odori, and Susukino, Sapporo Daibiru will serve as the hotel’s base. From there, TRUNK intends to create experiences that extend beyond the hotel itself to encompass the culture of the surrounding city and the lives of the people who inhabit it.

The team also revealed that it has conducted extensive interviews with people in Sapporo and across Hokkaido in preparation for the opening. The aim is to uncover not only the region’s attractions, but also local challenges, lesser-known craftsmanship, food, and materials, and connect those discoveries to the hotel’s products and services.

Rather than relying on familiar symbols of Hokkaido, TRUNK is seeking to discover aspects of Sapporo that have yet to be fully seen, viewed through its own editorial lens. That attitude lies at the heart of its first expansion beyond Tokyo.

Beyond Relaxation: TRUNK(BATH HOUSE) Awakens the Senses

One of the defining features of TRUNK(HOTEL) SAPPORO will be TRUNK(BATH HOUSE), the brand’s first spa, located on the 18th floor.

Conceived as a “water utopia” where guests can step away from the rules of the city and turn their attention inward, the spa begins with a reception area and bar. Beyond it stretches an approximately 40-meter-long waterway connecting 10 different bathing experiences. Temperature, water, light, and sound are designed to stimulate the senses in different ways, while separate bathing areas for men and women will feature a large communal bath, high-temperature sauna, cold bath, and outdoor relaxation area.

Courtesy of TRUNK(HOTEL)
At the presentation, the team repeatedly emphasized that the experience is intended to go beyond conventional ideas of healing and relaxation.

Among the concepts currently being developed is a “Disco Bath,” surrounded by mirror balls and loud music; an environment designed to evoke the sensation of being immersed in a jungle; an intensely cold Cool Bath; and a darkened bath where sound becomes the primary sensory focus. Rather than calming the emotions alone, the experience is designed to move between stimulation, exhilaration, excitement, and relaxation.

Courtesy of TRUNK(HOTEL)
If conventional approaches to well-being tend to emphasize rest, TRUNK(BATH HOUSE) seeks to reawaken the senses themselves. The ambition is to transcend the familiar idea of a hotel spa and create a place compelling enough to become a reason to visit Sapporo in its own right.

Sushi Saito Ventures Beyond Tokyo for the First Time

Another major element of the project is Sushi Saito.

Led by chef Takashi Saito, the celebrated Edomae sushi restaurant earned three Michelin stars for 10 consecutive editions of the Michelin Guide Tokyo, from 2010 through 2019. Today, it operates as a members-only restaurant and does not accept reservations from the general public. TRUNK entered into a business partnership with Sushi Saito in 2024, with the Sapporo restaurant forming part of an initiative to share Japanese sushi culture with a global audience.

The new restaurant will mark Sushi Saito’s first location in Sapporo and Saito’s first expansion outside Tokyo.

Courtesy of TRUNK(HOTEL)
At the presentation, it was explained that the project is being developed not as a restaurant simply taking a space within the hotel, but through an ongoing dialogue with TRUNK about what kind of sushi could be created in Hokkaido. Saito himself plans to visit Sapporo approximately once a month and spoke of his anticipation at working with seafood landed in Hokkaido.

The restaurant will combine traditional Edomae techniques with ingredients and food culture unique to Hokkaido in pursuit of a style of sushi distinctive to the region.

Rather than transplanting Tokyo sushi directly to Sapporo, the question becomes what might emerge when Edomae technique encounters the waters of Hokkaido. TRUNK(HOTEL) SAPPORO will become the place where that answer begins to take shape.

Hokkaido’s Landscape and Craft, Reinterpreted as “Mid-Century Folklore”

The guest rooms are designed around the theme of “Mid-Century Folklore.”

Drawing inspiration from Hokkaido’s natural environment and traditions of craftsmanship, the interiors reinterpret mid-century design through TRUNK’s perspective. Wood-based materials and carefully considered details will evoke the region’s nature and culture, creating spaces where guests can sense the presence of the natural world even in the center of the city. The hotel will have 107 rooms in total, including 18 suites, among them Spa Suites.

Courtesy of TRUNK(HOTEL)
At the presentation, the team also discussed not only the rooms themselves but the objects and products guests will physically encounter during their stay.

Plans include collaborations with local leather artisans and the discovery of lesser-known foods and materials from the region. From amenities to the minibar, each product will be given a context and story, connecting guests with Hokkaido’s craftsmanship and culture.

Rather than filling the hotel with recognizable symbols of Hokkaido, TRUNK intends to reinterpret the people who live there, the things they make, and the handcraft traditions passed down through generations. In Sapporo, the brand’s philosophy of “Socializing” is set to take tangible form through these experiences.

Creating a New Place to Gather, Beyond the Hotel Stay

Another defining aspect of TRUNK(HOTEL) SAPPORO is the range of spaces designed to bring together people with different reasons for being there.

On the 10th floor, the lounge & bar will feature live piano and band performances, allowing guests to enjoy food, drinks, and music from morning through night. An outdoor terrace will offer changing views of Sapporo throughout the seasons, while transparent domes are planned for winter, creating a setting from which to experience the city’s snowy landscape.

Courtesy of TRUNK(HOTEL)
According to the presentation, the space will feature ceilings approximately six meters high and a bar counter stretching roughly 12 meters along the wall. Piano performances are planned during the day, with vocals and saxophone joining the music at night. The intention is to create a place not only for hotel guests, but also for local residents looking to spend an evening in the city.

The Private Studio, meanwhile, combines CINEMA, KARAOKE, and a multifunction room, allowing the space to adapt to occasions ranging from private parties to corporate events.

The hotel will also feature a chapel filled with natural light and greenery, together with three banquet rooms—HINATA, MIYABI, and KODACHI—for weddings, parties, and business events.

Courtesy of TRUNK(HOTEL)
Dining, listening to music, gathering with others, celebrating—TRUNK(HOTEL) SAPPORO is being conceived to accommodate moments that sit somewhere between the everyday and the extraordinary, creating a new place to gather within the city.

Can a Hotel Change the Way We See a City?

TRUNK(HOTEL) SAPPORO will be located in Sapporo Daibiru at Minami 2-jo Nishi 4-chome, Chuo-ku, Sapporo. Occupying floors 10 through 18, it will offer 107 guest rooms with projected rates ranging from ¥60,000 to ¥600,000. The property is being designed by GENERAL DESIGN CO.,LTD. and TRUNK Atelier.

Toward the end of the presentation, one phrase emerged: “destination city.”

The idea is not only to make the hotel itself a destination, but to use it as a starting point from which visitors can rediscover Sapporo as a city.

Food, music, spa culture, design, craft, and encounters with people. Experiences within the hotel open outward toward the city, while the culture and people of Sapporo, in turn, find their way inside.

The approach TRUNK has developed in Tokyo—reading a place and reinterpreting it through hospitality—will, in Sapporo, leave the context of Tokyo for the first time.

September 17, 2027.

The opening of TRUNK(HOTEL) SAPPORO will mark the arrival of a new hotel, as well as a significant moment for TRUNK as the brand moves beyond its identity as a Tokyo-based hotel brand and into its next chapter.