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The standard call · Otaru

Canal, glass and Sakaimachi

4–6 hours ashore. Timed from the gangway and back, with the hour before all-aboard already set aside.

~5h door to door5 stops4–6 hours ashore
Open the whole route in Google MapsOr build your own day →
Photo: Suicasmo / CC BY-SA 4.0
Door to door
~5h
From the gangway and back
Best for
4–6 hours
5 stops, nothing to reserve
What it costs
¥0
Transport spend: ¥0. Food and glass ~¥5,000.
Booking
Nothing
Every stop here takes walk-ups
The route

How the day runs

Times are from the moment you step off, not from the scheduled arrival. Everything shifts if your ship is late; the order does not.

  1. +0:00
    The canal, early

    Before the coaches arrive from Sapporo

    What you will see here →Full guide: The canal →
  2. +0:45
    Sankaku Market for a built-to-order bowl

    Seventeen stalls. Point at what you want

    What you will see here →Full guide: Sankaku Market →
    Photo: bryan... / CC BY-SA 2.0
  3. +1:45
    Walk Sakaimachi street end to end

    A kilometre of former merchant houses — glassworks, music boxes, and a steam clock

    What you will see here →Full guide: Sakaimachi →
    Photo: 663highland / CC BY 2.5
  4. +3:00
    Kitaichi Glass No.3, in a herring warehouse

    Lit by oil lamps. Sit down for coffee if there is a queue

    What you will see here →Full guide: Sakaimachi →
    Photo: Liandrei / CC BY-SA 4.0
  5. +4:00
    Back along the water
The margin is not optional. This route ends an hour before all-aboard on purpose. If you are running late, drop the last stop, not the hour.
What the day looks like

Otaru, along this route

Real photographs of the places above and the streets between them. Every one is credited.

The former Bank of Japan Otaru branch in cut stone
The former Bank of Japan Otaru branch in cut stonePhoto: 663highland / CC BY 2.5
The Nikka Whisky distillery at Yoichi, Hokkaido
The Nikka Whisky distillery at Yoichi, HokkaidoPhoto: 663highland / CC BY 2.5
Sakaimachi
SakaimachiPhoto: 663highland / CC BY 2.5
Sankaku Market
Sankaku MarketPhoto: bryan... / CC BY-SA 2.0
Sushi on Sushiya-dori
Sushi on Sushiya-doriPhoto: kantokuruza / CC BY-SA
Mount Tengu at dusk
Mount Tengu at duskPhoto: 皓月旗 / CC BY-SA 4.0
Different hours, different day

The other routes in Otaru

The canal on foot2–3 hours · ~3h2–3 hours ashore, no transport at allYoichi, and the whisky8 hours or more · ~7h8h+ ashore, with the tour booked in advanceThe rainy-day OtaruA wet day · ~4hWet weather, and Hokkaido rain is cold
Pick your own stops instead →Back to the Otaru guide →