Hagi sits on a delta between two rivers on the Sea of Japan coast of Yamaguchi. The Mori lords built their castle here in 1604 and laid out the town behind it. The men who led the Meiji Restoration grew up in its lanes, and five places in the city are World Heritage for that reason.
Tender, usually. Le Soléal, Heritage Adventurer, SH Minerva and Le Jacques Cartier anchor offshore and land guests by tender or Zodiac. Island Sky, 4,200 GT, went alongside on its 2026 calls.
At the terminal
None. The landing named for Le Jacques Cartier is a sightseeing-boat pier beside Shizuki Bridge, with a free car park next to it.
If this is your first Japanese port, everyone goes through face-to-face immigration before going ashore; there is no terminal building here, so it is done on board or on the quay. Allow 30 to 60 minutes after the ship clears. What happens at your first Japanese port
How the berths work, and the way into town, in full
If your ship docks
Island Sky, 4,200 GT, went alongside on its three 2026 calls; the prefecture’s list does not name the quay. The port’s passenger quay, 140 m long, is in the Gata-ko district, near JR Koshigahama Station.
From there the old town is about 6.5 km: about 15 minutes and ¥2,800 by taxi. The Maaru bus does not come this far. Ask the ship to book a taxi; none is confirmed waiting.
Getting around
On foot. The castle side, the lanes and Hagi Museum are within 15 minutes of the tender pier, on level ground.
Maaru bus. Hagi City’s loop bus: ¥100 a ride, day pass ¥500 on board, IC cards accepted. Two routes leave City Hall about every 45 minutes, 07:00–17:30.
The east loop runs one way: from Hagi Museum it takes 8 minutes to Daishoin, 44 to the furnace, 56 to Tokoji and 68 to Shoin Shrine.
Bicycle. Smile rental cycles, by the castle ruins (opens irregularly) and by JR Higashi-Hagi Station: ¥300 an hour. The tourist office in Hagi Meirin Gakusha also rents them.
Taxi. A sightseeing taxi with a guide-driver is about ¥13,600 for two hours, on the tourism association’s model fares.
From the ship to each place: how, how long, how much
The Hagi Hakkei boat pier, by Shizuki Bridge, is the landing the prefecture named for Le Jacques Cartier; other anchored ships are expected there, not confirmed
Castle ruins and Shizuki Park: 300 m, about 4 min
Kikuya residence and the castle-town lanes: 1 km, about 15 min east along the old samurai quarter; Kido Takayoshi’s house is 2 min further
Our estimates on OSM routing. Free car park with toilets at the landing; Smile rental cycles next to it open irregularly (¥300 an hour, phone 0838-22-2914).
No taxi rank at the landing is confirmed: ask the ship or the Hakkei boat office to call a cab (Hagi Kintetsu Taxi 0838-22-0924, Daiichi Kotsu 0838-25-5050)
Shoin Shrine and Shokasonjuku 3.7 km, about 10 min; Tokoji 4.7 km, about 15 min; Daishoin 3.3 km, about 10 min; the reverberatory furnace 4.1 km, about 10 min
Shoin Shrine to Tokoji is 1.2 km, about 20 min on foot
Yamaguchi tariff from 11 Mar 2026: ¥700 for 1,145 m, then ¥100 per 275 m · Shoin Shrine about ¥1,700; Tokoji ¥2,000; Daishoin ¥1,500; furnace ¥1,800 — our estimates on distance alone · Free-flow car times from OSM routing, rounded up
Taxi: ~¥1,700 to Shoin Shrine
Sightseeing taxis with a guide-driver: about ¥13,600 for 2 hours in a 4-seat cab, ¥20,400 for 3 hours (tourism association model fares).
West route (Shinsaku-kun): stop “Hagi Castle Ruins·Shizuki Park Entrance”, 5 min from the pier, at 07:23, 08:08, 08:53 and every 45 min to 17:53; 10 min to the Castle Town Entrance stop, 15 min to the Bus Center
East route (Shoin-sensei): from Hagi Museum at :05 past each City Hall departure (09:20, 10:05, 10:50 and so on); Daishoin Temple Entrance 8 min, Higashi-Hagi Station 40 min, the furnace about 45 min, Tokoji about 60 min, Shoin Shrine about 70 min
Both routes start and end at Hagi City Hall, 07:00–17:30, 15 runs a day each
¥100 a ride (¥50 for elementary pupils and younger) · one-day pass ¥500, sold on board · About every 45 min on each route; one loop takes 80 min
ICOCA and the other nationwide IC cards work. Change on board is for coins and ¥1,000 notes only. The east loop runs one way: for Shoin Shrine from the castle town a taxi or a bicycle is quicker.
Island Sky went alongside on its 2026 calls; the prefecture’s list does not name the quay. The port’s passenger quay is in the Gata-ko district, 550 m from JR Koshigahama Station
Castle town (Kikuya residence) about 6.7 km, 15 min; castle ruins 6.4 km; Shoin Shrine 4.7 km, about 10 min; the reverberatory furnace 2.4 km
The Maaru bus does not come here: its nearest stop is Hagi Reverberatory Furnace. Trains from Koshigahama are few and were not checked
Castle town about ¥2,800; castle ruins ¥2,700; Shoin Shrine ¥2,000; furnace ¥1,200 — our estimates on distance alone · No shuttle is published
Taxi: ~¥2,800 to the castle town
Distances are from the quay’s published address (椿東6080-6) and are approximate. Whether taxis wait at the quay is not confirmed.
About 36 km from the castle town to the main entrance: free-flow routing gives about 35 min, allow about 50 min each way
The cave route is about 1 km at a constant 17°C, about 60 min inside. Regular hours 09:00–16:30 (08:30–17:30 at Golden Week, to 17:30 July–September); adult ¥1,600 (¥1,900 at Golden Week and in July–August)
Allow 3.5 hours door to door
Metered taxi about ¥13,100 each way — our estimate on distance alone; ask a sightseeing-taxi operator for a round-trip price · Bocho Bus runs Higashi-Hagi ⇔ Akiyoshido; times were not checked
Taxi: ~¥13,100 each way
Tsuwano is further: about 55 km, about 70 min each way by our estimate, about ¥19,600 one way on the meter.
From your ship, the 5 stops in order, and back, by their map pins. A phone takes three stops between start and end, and none on a train or bus, so the day opens in parts.
Fits a full-day call of nine hours or more. The cave opens at 09:00, and at 08:30 in Golden Week.
A car for the morning, then the castle side on foot. Book the car before the call.
08:30Off the tender. Car to Akiyoshido, about 36 km and 50 minutes.
09:25Akiyoshido: the 1 km route through the cave, 17°C all year. Adult ¥1,600, ¥1,900 at Golden Week and in July–August; allow 90 minutes with the walk in and out.
10:55Car back to Hagi’s castle town, about 50 minutes.
11:50The Kikuya residence and the lanes around it. Adult ¥650.
12:50Walk about 20 minutes to the castle ruins.
13:10Hagi Castle ruins and Shizuki Park. Adult ¥220.
13:50Walk 4 minutes to the Hakkei pier.
14:00Back at the tender pier, hours before any 17:00 or 18:00 departure.
From your ship, the 3 stops in order, and back, by their map pins. A phone takes three stops between start and end, and none on a train or bus, so the day opens in parts.
From your ship, the 3 stops in order, and back, by their map pins. A phone takes three stops between start and end, and none on a train or bus, so the day opens in parts.
Three roofs: the museum, the Kikuya residence and Meirin Gakusha
A wet day on any call of 5.5 hours or more. About 3.5h ashore; one Maaru bus, ¥100, or a taxi, about ¥1,200 (our estimate). Hagi Museum ¥520, Kikuya ¥650, Meirin Gakusha main building free, No.2 building ¥300. Times count from when you step off the ship.
+0:00Land at the tender pier beside Shizuki Bridge and walk to Hagi Museum (850 m, about 15 min, our estimate)
+0:15Hagi Museum: the town’s history and the Takasugi Shinsaku room. 09:00–17:00, last entry 16:30, adult ¥520; closed on Wednesdays from January to mid-March and Wednesday–Friday of the second week of June
+1:05Walk to the Kikuya residence (400 m, about 6 min)
+1:50Walk to Hagi Meirin Gakusha (900 m, about 15 min)
+2:05Hagi Meirin Gakusha: the wooden school on the site of the domain school, with the tourist office. 09:00–17:00; main building free, No.2 building ¥300
+2:50Maaru bus, west route, from Hagi Meirin Center to Hagi Castle Ruins·Shizuki Park Entrance (about 25 min, ¥100). Every 45 min: 10:01, 10:46, 11:31, 12:16, 13:01, 13:46, 14:31, 15:16, 16:01. A taxi is about ¥1,200
+3:20Walk 5 min from the stop; back at the tender pier
Tick the places in the order you want them. The map numbers them and draws the way from your ship and back; the buttons open the same route in Google Maps, in parts a phone can draw.
There is no bookable tour for Hagi in our catalogue. The days above are the plan: public transport, timed from the gangway.
Before you go
Cash, Wi-Fi, toilets, steps: the practical answers
Cash, cards, ATM
Our sources list no ATM or exchange at the landing. Carry yen: the Maaru bus changes only coins and ¥1,000 notes, and the small houses charge ¥100.
Wi-Fi and SIM
No port Wi-Fi is published. Hagi Meirin Gakusha has free Wi-Fi in its main and No.2 buildings.
Toilets
Public toilets, one of them wheelchair-accessible, at the Shizuki No.1 car park by the castle ruins.
Luggage
Nothing is published at the landing.
Steps and slopes
The town is built on a delta and the old quarters are level. The Hagi Hakkei boat takes wheelchairs. Getting in and out of a tender or Zodiac is the hard part: ask the ship.
English
The Kikuya residence has English pamphlets and a translation device. Hagi City says its historic sites carry English signs.
Pharmacy, hospital
Dial 119 for an ambulance and 110 for police; the JNTO Japan Visitor Hotline, 050-3816-2787, answers in English 24 hours.
With children
Children pay ¥100 at the castle ruins and ¥250–350 at the Kikuya residence. The Maaru bus is ¥50 for elementary pupils and younger.
Three things to eat in Hagi, and where
Dish
Where, price, hours
Natsumikan sweets
The pickMitsukuni Honten, 41 Kumagaya-choMon–Sat 09:00–17:00, Sun 10:00–17:00; closed TuesdaysWhole candied natsumikan, made here since 1880. Open on Tuesdays in Golden Week and at Obon.
Seafood bowl
The pickKihagi, inside Hagi Seamart by the fishing portWeekdays 11:00–15:00; weekends and holidays 11:00–17:00Closed on 1 January only. Seamart is about 10 minutes by taxi from the castle side; the Maaru bus east route stops there.
Joki manju, steamed buns
The pickHagi Seamart market hallMon–Fri 09:30–18:00; weekends and holidays 09:00–18:00; to 17:00 from November to FebruarySold in the hall beside the fish stalls and the natsumikan products. Seamart closes on 1 January and about one day a month.
Mistakes to avoid
Assuming you dock in townMost ships anchor, and the landing can change with the weather. A ship that goes alongside is about 6.5 km from the old town. Read the daily programme before you plan.
Taking the Maaru bus to Shoin Shrine from the castle townThe east loop runs one way. From Hagi Museum it reaches Shoin Shrine about 70 minutes later. A taxi takes about 10 minutes and costs about ¥1,500.
Trying for Akiyoshido on an afternoon callThe cave is about 50 minutes away by car and needs 90 minutes. That is three and a half hours. A 13:00–17:45 call leaves under three hours ashore.
Expecting taxis at the landingNo rank is confirmed at the Hakkei pier or at the quay. Ask the ship to book a cab, or have the Hakkei boat office or a museum desk call one.
Looking for a castle keepHagi’s keep was dismantled in 1874. The stone base, the walls and the moat are what you come to see, with Mt Shizuki behind them.
Forgetting the tender in your return timeBe back at the pier 90 minutes before the ship sails, and earlier if the daily programme gives a last tender time. Tender queues grow in the last hour.
Planning the furnace for a winter photographScaffolding stands round the reverberatory furnace from 8 September 2026 to late February 2027 while the city surveys damage.
Festivals you could meet on a port day
Festival
When
Hagi Manto-eThe stone lanterns are lit at Daishoin on the 13th and at Tokoji on the 15th. No 2026–27 cruise call falls on these days.
13 and 15 August every year
Hagi Natsumikan FestivalAt Kankitsu Park, when the trees are in blossom. The 2027 dates are not yet published.
A weekend in mid-May
Hagi cruise port questions
Where do cruise ships dock in Hagi?
Most anchor off Mt Shizuki. Yamaguchi Prefecture’s lists mark Le Soléal, Heritage Adventurer and SH Minerva as anchored on every call they made in 2025 and 2026. Island Sky went alongside; the list names no quay.
Where do the tenders land?
The prefecture named the Hagi Hakkei sightseeing-boat pier, beside Shizuki Bridge at the castle ruins, for Le Jacques Cartier on 4 April 2024. The 2027 charter brochure names it again. For other ships it is not confirmed.
How do I get to Shoin Shrine and Shokasonjuku?
By taxi from the tender pier: 3.7 km, about 10 minutes and ¥1,700 on the tariff from 11 March 2026. The Maaru bus east route stops there but takes over an hour from the castle town.
How much is the Maaru bus?
¥100 a ride, ¥50 for elementary pupils and younger. A one-day pass is ¥500, sold on board, and IC cards such as Suica work. Each of the two routes runs about every 45 minutes, 07:00–17:30.
Can I rent a bicycle?
Yes. Smile rental cycles has a shop by the castle ruins that opens irregularly, and one by JR Higashi-Hagi Station: ¥300 an hour, ¥2,000 a day. The tourist office in Hagi Meirin Gakusha also rents them.
Does Akiyoshido cave fit a Hagi call?
On a full-day call, by car: about 50 minutes each way and 90 minutes there, three and a half hours in all. It opens 09:00–16:30 (08:30–17:30 at Golden Week, to 17:30 July–September) and costs ¥1,600, ¥1,900 at Golden Week and in July–August.
Does Tsuwano fit?
Only on the longest call. It is about 55 km and 70 minutes each way; with two and a half hours there it takes five hours.
How much is a taxi in Hagi?
From 11 March 2026: ¥700 for the first 1,145 m, then ¥100 per 275 m. From the tender pier that is about ¥1,700 to Shoin Shrine, ¥2,000 to Tokoji and ¥1,500 to Daishoin, by distance alone.
What is closed on which day?
The main sights open every day in the cruise months. Hagi Museum closes on Wednesdays from January to mid-March, the Kuchiba residence on Wednesdays, the Hagi Uragami Museum on Mondays and Mitsukuni Honten on Tuesdays.
Which ships call at Hagi?
Small expedition ships. In 2026 the prefecture listed Heritage Adventurer four times, Le Soléal and Island Sky three times each and SH Minerva twice. The lines’ pages add Le Jacques Cartier in 2027.
Read on
Hagi in depth: the places, the history, the myths
1,121 words · 12 chapters
Why Hagi is worth getting off the ship for
Hagi kept its castle-town street plan. The lanes the Mori lords laid out in the 1600s still run between white walls and black-tiled merchant houses.
The men who led the Meiji Restoration grew up here, and five places in the city are World Heritage. From the tender pier the castle park is 4 minutes on foot and the old lanes 14.
Where you land
Most ships anchor. Yamaguchi Prefecture’s lists mark Le Soléal, Heritage Adventurer and SH Minerva as anchored offshore on every call they made in 2025 and 2026.
For Le Jacques Cartier the prefecture named the landing: the Hagi Hakkei sightseeing-boat pier, beside Shizuki Bridge. The 2027 charter brochure names it again. For other ships no source names the landing, and the prefecture notes that weather can change it. Check the daily programme.
From the Hakkei pier
Distance
On foot
By taxi
Castle ruins gate
300 m
4 min
—
Kikugahama beach
500 m
7 min
—
Hagi Museum
850 m
about 15 min
—
Kikuya residence, the lanes
1 km
about 15 min
—
Daishoin
3.3 km
—
~10 min, ~¥1,500
Shoin Shrine, Shokasonjuku
3.7 km
about 45 min
~10 min, ~¥1,700
Reverberatory furnace
4.1 km
—
~10 min, ~¥1,800
Tokoji
4.7 km
—
~15 min, ~¥2,000
Our estimates: OSM routing, and taxi fares by distance alone on Yamaguchi’s tariff from 11 March 2026 (¥700 for the first 1,145 m, then ¥100 per 275 m).
On the 2027 charter, Le Jacques Cartier’s Zodiacs pick guests up in the afternoon from Kikugahama beach, 7 minutes’ walk from the pier.
The castle ruins and Shizuki Park
Mori Terumoto built the castle in 1604. The keep was dismantled in 1874; the stone base, the walls and part of the moat remain, with about 600 cherry trees. Open 08:00–18:30 April–October, 08:30–16:30 November–February, 08:30–18:00 in March. Adult ¥220.
The Hagi Hakkei boat leaves from the pier next door: about 40 minutes, ¥1,500, whenever there are passengers. Reception 09:00–16:00 (to 15:30 in November); no boats in January and February, or in bad weather.
The Kikuya residence, the house of merchants to the domain, has five buildings that are Important Cultural Properties. 09:00–17:00, last entry 16:45, adult ¥650. The Kikuya, Iseya and Edoya lanes beside it are free to walk.
Kido Takayoshi’s house is 2 minutes away: 09:00–17:00 every day, ¥100.
Takasugi Shinsaku’s birthplace is just off Kikuya lane: ¥100. It is privately owned and closes on irregular days.
Shoin Shrine and Shokasonjuku
Yoshida Shoin taught in this one-room wooden house from 1857. Ito Hirobumi and Takasugi Shinsaku were among his pupils. The shrine grounds are free and always open; the academy is seen from outside. Taxi from the tender pier 3.7 km, about ¥1,700; from the lanes 3.1 km, about ¥1,500.
Tokoji and Daishoin
The Mori lords lie at two temples, behind hundreds of stone lanterns. Tokoji is about 20 minutes’ walk from Shoin Shrine: 08:30–17:00, ¥300; part of the graveyard is closed after a tree fell. Daishoin is on the other side of town: 08:00–16:30, last entry 16:00, ¥200. They are 5.6 km apart, so choose one.
The reverberatory furnace
A 10.5 m chimney from the domain’s 1856 attempt to cast iron cannon. Free, with guides 09:00–17:00. Scaffolding surrounds it from 8 September 2026 to late February 2027 for a damage survey. 4.1 km from the tender pier, 2.4 km from Shoin Shrine.
Earthen walls and Hagi-yaki
In Horiuchi, 8 minutes’ walk from the pier, a lane turns at right angles between high earthen walls, with natsumikan trees above them. The blossom is in early to mid May.
Hagi-yaki is a soft stoneware made here for more than 400 years. The Jozan kiln by the castle ruins shows its climbing kiln; shop 08:00–17:00. Hagi-yaki Kaikan, near Higashi-Hagi, runs painting sessions from ¥2,200.
Akiyoshido or Tsuwano
Akiyoshido is a limestone cave in Mine City. The route inside is 1 km at 17°C, about an hour. 09:00–16:30 (08:30–17:30 at Golden Week, to 17:30 July–September); adult ¥1,600, ¥1,900 at Golden Week and in July–August.
Tsuwano is a small castle town in Shimane, over hill roads.
Item
Drive each way
Time there
Door to door
Shortest call
Akiyoshido
~36 km, ~50 min
1.5 h
~3.5 h
5.5 hours
Tsuwano
~55 km, ~70 min
2.5 h
~5 h
7 hours
Drive times are our estimates, with a margin for hill roads. Add the tender ride at each end. On an afternoon call neither fits.
Calls and closing days
The prefecture listed twelve calls for 2026 and has not published 2027. The 2027 dates on this page come from the lines’ own pages; Heritage Expeditions, Noble Caledonia and Tauck publish no times.
Kind of call
Ashore from
Back at the pier by
07:00–18:00, the usual 2026 day
07:30
16:30
08:00–17:00
08:30
15:30
08:00–21:00, Le Soléal on 4 May 2027
08:30
19:30
13:00–17:45, Le Soléal on 3 October 2027
13:30
16:15
The castle park, the Kikuya residence, Kido Takayoshi’s house, Shoin Shrine, Tokoji and Daishoin open every day in the cruise months. Hagi Museum closes on Wednesdays from January to mid-March and Wednesday–Friday of the second week of June. The Kuchiba residence closes on Wednesdays, the Hagi Uragami Museum on Mondays and Mitsukuni Honten on Tuesdays.
How to think about your hours
Measure from the tender pier: ashore 30 minutes after arrival, back at the pier an hour before all-aboard, which is 30 minutes before departure. The tender ride comes on top.
Hagi Meirin Gakusha, a wooden school on the site of the domain’s school, keeps you dry: main building free, No.2 building ¥300, with the tourist office and free Wi-Fi inside.
When to go: weather
JMA normals for Hagi, 1991–2020:
Month
Day °C
Night °C
Days with rain
March
13.7
4.6
11.5
April
18.4
8.8
10.1
May
22.9
13.9
8.7
June
25.7
18.6
11.4
October
22.4
13.7
8.1
May and October are the driest of the cruise months.
Researched from official timetables, operators and the port authority, with our estimates where none is published. Every time and fare in this guide was checked against the sources listed above on 13 November 2026; where we had to estimate (a walk, a taxi in traffic), the text says so. Timetables change — if you find one that has, tell us and we will fix it.
