Home / Ports / Sendai–Shiogama / Shiogama Shrine
Spot guide · Sendai–ShiogamaShiogama Shrine
202 stone steps to the region's head shrine, above the harbour
Open in Google Maps · Directions from your berth
Checked · Visited in person · times from official timetables and operators · Takumi Yamada
Shiogama Shrine is the main shrine of the old Mutsu province and has stood above the harbour for more than twelve hundred years. Its main buildings are Important Cultural Properties, and the climb to it is the draw: a straight run of 202 stone steps through cedars to a two-storey vermilion gate.
The visit is simple. Go up the front stairs (Omotezaka), walk the sacred precinct, look back over the town and the bay, and decide whether the museum is worth half an hour. It holds swords designated Important Cultural Properties and a film of the traditional salt-making rite. The shrine also runs an east approach (Urazaka), seven minutes on foot from the station.
The catch is the steps themselves and the pairing. If 202 stone steps in the wet are not for you, the east approach is the shorter walk from the station, and the shrine lists free parking on its east and north sides. It also works best as part of a Shiogama morning with the fish market, not as a single mission from a distant berth.
Five things the plaques won't tell you
- Take the front steps (202 of them) up, and use the east approach, about seven minutes on foot from Hon-Shiogama to its torii, if you want to avoid a second climb.
- Thursday means the museum is closed unless there is a festival that day.
- The museum's second floor shows a film of the salt-boiling ritual that the shrine's god is said to have taught.
- The museum is the only admission the shrine's site lists; there is nothing to book.
- A taxi from Hon-Shiogama station takes about 3 minutes, which is the easy way up if time is short.
The shrine also runs an east approach (Urazaka), seven minutes on foot from the station.
Guided days from Sendai–Shiogama
Booked before you sail — there is no tour desk at the pier. Booking through these links supports the site.
Questions people ask here
How many steps are there at Shiogama Shrine?
The frontal approach, Omotezaka, has 202 stone steps up to a two-storey gate. It is a steady climb rather than a hike.
Is there an entry fee?
The shrine's pages list a charge only for the museum, which is ¥500. No charge for the grounds is listed.
How far is it from the station?
The shrine's own page gives about 15 minutes on foot from Hon-Shiogama Station, or about 3 minutes by taxi.