Tokachi millennium forest pilgrimage
Hiya! Kindly seeking local help/thoughts on our upcoming trip in late May. This will be our fourth trip to Japan and we're renting a camper van from Sapporo specifically to head to the Tokachi Millennium Forest. My partner is a gardener by profession and this is a bucket list garden for him, needless to say he's super excited. We'll have little kids and 4.5 days to make a loop from Sapporo.
Now over to the kind Redditors; Looking for ideas on how to use the remaining 3.5 days on the road. A long time ago (2015), I cycled for a month around Toya and down the Bihiro pass. I'd love to show the kids some beautiful mountainscapes and/or volcanic activity.
Debating the two options; head up the back of Daisetsuzan via 85/273 and back around OR blast back across to Shikotsu/Toya/Noboribetsu. Both are extremely appealing on paper, offering incredible day walks, hotsprings, and great campgrounds.
Kids are used to longish days in the car 3.5-5hr. We prefer not to do many long days but can do a few stints if needed. If there is something completely obvious I'm missing I appreciate the input.
I'm so looking forward to seeing your beautiful Hokkaido soon, it's been too long between visits