Giant Ferris Wheel nORIA Sapporo Susukino

This guide to the Giant Ferris Wheel nORIA above Susukino in Sapporo starts with a surprise: step into a gondola and you might get a recorded ghost story instead of quiet, or a microphone waiting for karaoke. It traces the wheel's rooftop perch above a bowling alley, arcade and nightclub, and the history of Susukino itself, laid out in 1871 as Sapporo's red-light quarter before filling with cafes, bars and neon. You'll hear how that neighborhood's appetite for a good night shaped what riders do up on the roof. Ask for a heated gondola on a cold night.