If you’re planning a Furano itinerary with kids, put the Furano Cheese Factory on your list—but don’t make the mistake of thinking it’s simply somewhere to buy cheese.
We originally planned to pop by, have a look around and move on.
Instead, we ended up staying for lunch because we’d heard the pizza was worth trying—and I’m so glad we did.
The boys enjoyed seeing how cheese is made, we had a really good pizza lunch, sampled some local dairy products and, of course, couldn’t resist the ice cream.
For us, the Furano Cheese Factory turned out to be one of those family stops that worked particularly well because there was something for everyone: food for the adults, interactive things for the kids and plenty of space to slow down for a while.
If you’re visiting Furano in summer, here’s everything you need to know before you go, including Furano Cheese Factory opening hours, workshops, reservations, pizza, parking and our tips for visiting with children.
Quick Guide to Furano Cheese Factory
| Furano Cheese Factory | |
|---|---|
| 📍 Location | Nakagoku, Furano, Hokkaido |
| 🚗 From JR Furano Station | About 9–10 minutes by car |
| ⏰ Apr–Oct | 9:00am–5:00pm |
| ⏰ Nov–Mar | 9:00am–4:00pm |
| 🍕 Pizza | 10:30am–4:00pm |
| 🎟️ Admission | Free |
| 🚗 Parking | Free |
| 🅿️ Parking spaces | About 120 |
| 👨👩👧 Family friendly | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| 🌧️ Rainy-day option | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| ⏱️ Recommended time | 2–3 hours if eating + exploring |
The factory is about a 9–10 minute drive from JR Furano Station, has free admission and free parking for around 120 vehicles. Current published hours are 9am–5pm from April through October and 9am–4pm from November through March.
Important: Opening hours, menus, workshop schedules and temporary closures can change, so check the official website before visiting.
Furano Cheese Factory Official Website
What Is Furano Cheese Factory?
The Furano Cheese Factory is a dairy-focused attraction surrounded by trees and greenery in Furano.
The factory gives visitors a glimpse into the cheese-making process through viewing windows, while the shop sells Furano-made cheese, milk, butter and dairy products.
There’s also a small area where children can learn about milk and cheese, including a cow model where they can try a pretend milking activity.
For families, I liked that it wasn’t just about looking at products behind glass. There were little things for the boys to interact with and plenty of opportunities to taste what Furano produces.
🍕 Don’t Leave Without Trying the Pizza
This was probably the biggest surprise for us.
We actually had lunch at Furano Cheese Factory, and I’m glad we did.
The Furano Pizza Factory serves authentic Neapolitan-style pizza baked in a wood-fired oven. The factory says the pizza uses local ingredients including Furano wheat, tomatoes, onions and its own mozzarella cheese.
And yes—the pizza was genuinely good.
The crust is baked at high heat, giving it a crispy exterior while keeping the inside soft and chewy. The combination with the freshly made cheese makes this a particularly good lunch stop during a day of sightseeing.
The Furano Tourism Association also specifically highlights the pizza as one of the attractions of the Cheese Factory.
Our HengMom verdict:
🍕 Pizza: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
👦 Kids: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
🍴 Worth stopping for lunch: YES
⚠️ One important tip
Don’t assume you can walk in at the last minute during peak summer.
The Pizza Factory has recently been experiencing busy periods, with waits reported at 1–1.5 hours, and ticket sales can stop early if the prepared dough runs out.
HengMom tip: If pizza is part of your plan, go earlier rather than leaving lunch until late afternoon.
🧀 Furano Cheese Factory Workshops
This is where the visit gets even more interesting for families.
The hands-on workshop offers experiences including:
- 🧀 Cheese making
- 🧈 Butter making
- 🍦 Ice cream making
The official workshop information says reservations are generally made online, and visitors are asked to book at least four days in advance. Reservations made only 1–3 days beforehand are generally not accepted.
How to book
Use the official reservation system:
Furano Cheese Factory Official Website
Important: Workshop availability, times, fees and participating activities can change, so check the reservation page for your travel date rather than relying on an old blog post.
Can you book last minute?
The official information says same-day participation may sometimes be possible if there are vacancies, but don’t plan your trip around getting a last-minute slot.
For a summer family holiday, I’d book ahead.
⏰ What Time Should You Visit?
If you’re visiting during summer, the factory currently operates:
9:00am–5:00pm
The Pizza Factory operates:
10:30am–4:00pm
These hours are current as published by the factory, but can change for special events, maintenance or other circumstances.
Our recommended family timing
9:30am–10:00am
Arrive and explore the factory.
10:00am–11:00am
Cheese viewing, shop and tasting.
11:00am–12:00pm
Pizza lunch.
12:00pm–12:30pm
Ice cream / gelato.
12:30pm onwards
Workshop if you’ve booked one.
This gives you enough breathing room without turning the stop into a rushed checklist.
🍦 Save Room for Dessert
If your children are anything like mine, you’ll want to leave room for the Ice Milk Factory.
The factory makes gelato using fresh Furano milk, with flavours including milk, cheese and seasonal local ingredients such as pumpkin, corn and melon.
There’s also a freshly made cheese soft serve. Current published prices are ¥400 for a single gelato, ¥500 for a double and ¥450 for freshly made cheese soft serve.
The cheese soft serve is definitely the more unusual option if you want to try something different.
👨👩👦 Is Furano Cheese Factory Good for Kids?
Yes—and that’s why I would include it in a family Furano itinerary.
Cater for half a day if you plan to participate in two Workshops like us
It is an easy stop where you can combine:
🧀 Learning
🍕 Lunch
🍦 Dessert
🛍️ Shopping
👀 Watching cheese production
🎨 Hands-on activities
That combination works particularly well when you’re travelling with children because you don’t have to convince them to spend hours looking at exhibits.
And if you’re travelling with grandparents, there’s no strenuous hiking involved.
👵 Is Furano Cheese Factory Suitable for Elderly Travellers?
I’d say yes.
Most of the experience is relatively relaxed, and you can control how much time you spend walking around.
If you’re travelling as a multi-generational family, it’s a useful stop because the children can explore while adults enjoy the food and scenery.
It’s also a good place to build into a road-trip day because you’re not committing to a long hike or physically demanding activity.
🌧️ Is Furano Cheese Factory Good on a Rainy Day?
Definitely.
This is one reason I’d keep it in your itinerary even if the weather forecast isn’t perfect.
While you won’t be able to avoid the weather completely, much of the experience involves the factory, shop, food and workshops.
So if your original plan is flower fields and the weather suddenly turns wet, this can make a useful alternative.
My rainy-day combination:
Furano Cheese Factory → Pizza lunch → Ice cream → Furano town
Instead of trying to force a flower-field itinerary in heavy rain.
🚗 Parking & Getting There
If you’re self-driving around Furano, the Cheese Factory is easy to add to a road-trip itinerary.
It’s approximately 9–10 minutes by car from JR Furano Station, and the official information lists free parking for around 120 vehicles.
This is one of the reasons I like it for families.
You don’t have to worry about finding expensive city parking or carrying tired children across a long distance.
How Long Should You Spend at Furano Cheese Factory?
I’d budget:
⏱️ 1 hour
If you’re just looking around and buying snacks.
⏱️ 2 hours
If you’re exploring + having pizza or dessert.
⏱️ 3–4 hours
If you’re eating, exploring AND joining a workshop.
For our family, I’d recommend around 4 hours as a comfortable minimum if you’re planning lunch + workshops here.
🧡 Our Favourite Part
For me, it was actually the workshops itself.
It was making butter and cheese together
Not every stop needs to be an “Instagrammable attraction.”
Sometimes it’s simply:
Good food + happy kids + everyone gets a break.
And that’s a win for me. ❤️
⭐ HengMom Verdict: Is Furano Cheese Factory Worth Visiting?
YES — especially if you’re travelling with kids.
I’d particularly recommend it if:
✅ You enjoy food experiences
✅ You’re travelling with young children
✅ You want a hands-on activity
✅ You need a rainy-day option
✅ You’re driving around Furano
✅ You want to combine lunch with sightseeing
I’d consider skipping it only if you’re extremely short on time and your priority is exclusively Furano’s flower fields.
For everyone else, I’d happily add it to a 2–3 day Furano itinerary.
Our rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Our Perfect Furano Cheese Factory Plan
If I were planning this for another family, this is how I’d do it:
9:30am – Arrive
↓
Explore the Cheese Factory
↓
Try the cheese / browse the shop
↓
11:00am–12:00pm – Pizza lunch
↓
Ice cream / cheese soft serve
↓
Workshop if pre-booked
↓
Continue to Farm Tomita or another Furano attraction
This works particularly well because you can put the Cheese Factory between your morning and afternoon attractions rather than making a special trip just for it.
Furano Cheese Factory FAQs
Is Furano Cheese Factory free?
Yes. Admission to the facility is free. Parking is also free. Food, products and workshops are charged separately.
Do I need to book the Furano Cheese Factory?
You don’t need a reservation simply to visit the factory. However, workshops should be booked online in advance, with the Furano Cheese Factory Official Website currently requesting reservations at least four days ahead.
Is Furano Cheese Factory good for kids?
Yes. Children can see cheese production, try the milk-related displays and participate in hands-on workshops when available.
Can I eat pizza at Furano Cheese Factory?
Yes. The Pizza Factory serves Neapolitan-style pizza using local ingredients and Furano Cheese Factory’s own mozzarella.
What time does the pizza restaurant open?
The Pizza Factory currently operates from 10:30am to 4:00pm, although ticket sales can end earlier when demand is high or dough runs out.
How far is Furano Cheese Factory from Furano Station?
It’s approximately 9–10 minutes by car from JR Furano Station.
How long do you need at Furano Cheese Factory?
I’d allow around 2 hours if you’re having lunch and exploring, or up to 3 hours if you’re joining a workshop.
Furano Cheese Factory: My Quick Tips
🧀 Book workshops at least 4 days ahead.
🍕 Go early for pizza during peak summer.
🍦 Save room for the cheese soft serve or gelato.
🚗 Parking is free.
🌧️ Keep it as a rainy-day backup.
👨👩👧 Allow around 2 hours with kids.
📅 Check the official site before visiting because schedules can change.
Planning a Furano Family Trip?
We visited Furano Cheese Factory as part of our 3-day Furano & Biei family itinerary, which also included Farm Tomita, Tomita Melon House, Shikisai no Oka, Ningle Terrace and Biei’s famous Blue Pond.
👉 Read our complete 3-Day Furano & Biei Itinerary with Kids →
And if you’re planning the whole Hokkaido road trip, I’ve also put together our complete Hokkaido family itinerary, including our route from Sapporo to Furano, Hakodate, Lake Toya and back to Sapporo.
👉 Read our Hokkaido Family Road Trip Guide →
Before You Go
Information such as opening hours, workshop schedules, prices, menus and temporary closures can change. I recommend checking the official Furano Cheese Factory website shortly before your visit, especially if you’re travelling during the busy July–August period.
Check the official Furano Cheese Factory website before your visit
