Explore Hakodate’s highlights with a licensed guide in a private vehicle. Discover European buildings, churches, and red-brick warehouses efficiently.
- Mount Hakodate - Mount Hakodate (函館山, Hakodateyama) is a 334-meter-high, forested mountain situated at the southern tip of the peninsula where central Hakodate is found. The mountain offers breathtaking views, especially on clear days and nights, and is considered one of Japan’s top three night views, alongside Nagasaki’s Mount Inasa and Kobe’s Mount Rokko.
The summit, accessible by ropeway, bus, or car, features observation platforms (free of charge), souvenir shops, a café, and a cafeteria-style restaurant.
- Onuma Quasi-National Park - Onuma Park (大沼公園, Ōnuma Kōen), designated as a “quasi-national park,” is located just twenty kilometers north of Hakodate. It is renowned for its scenic, island-dotted lakes and the impressive volcano, Mount Komagatake.
Onuma Park is easily accessible for a day trip from Hakodate or as a stopover on the journey between Hakodate and Sapporo, as most limited express trains between the two cities stop at Onuma Koen Station, the central railway station.
- Goryokaku Park - Fort Goryokaku (五稜郭, Goryōkaku) is a large, star-shaped, Western-style citadel built in the final years of the Edo Period to defend Hakodate against the imperialist threat from Western powers. A few years later, it became the site of a civil war between the shogunate’s army and the superior forces of the newly established Meiji government.
After losing its military significance, the fort was converted into a public park in the 1910s. Over a thousand cherry trees were planted along its moats, making it one of Hokkaido’s prime cherry blossom spots. The peak blooming season is usually in early May.
Admission
1000 JPY
- Hakodate Morning Market - The Hakodate Morning Market (函館朝市, Hakodate Asaichi) operates daily from 5 am (6 am during winter) to noon, just a short walk from JR Hakodate Station. The market spans about four city blocks.
Items for sale include various fresh seafood such as crabs (kani), salmon eggs (ikura), and sea urchin (uni), as well as fresh produce like melons. Numerous restaurants in the market area offer fresh seafood breakfasts, such as uni-ikura domburi.
- Motomachi - Hakodate’s harbor was one of the first to open to foreign trade in 1854 after Japan’s period of isolation ended. Consequently, many traders from Russia, China, and Western countries moved to Hakodate. Motomachi, located at the base of Mount Hakodate, became a favored district among the new foreign residents.
Many Western-style buildings still stand in the area today. Notable ones include the Russian Orthodox Church, the Old British Consulate, the Chinese Memorial Hall, the former branch office of the prefectural government, and the old Hakodate Public Hall (closed from November 2018 to April 2021).
Admission
300 yen
- Kanemori Red Brick Warehouse - Towards the end of the Edo Period (1600-1867), Hakodate Port was one of the first Japanese ports to open to international trade. Several red brick warehouses from that era still stand along the waterfront in Hakodate’s bay area and have been transformed into a charming shopping, dining, and entertainment complex.
The complex features a variety of trendy souvenir, fashion, interior, and sweets shops, as well as a restaurant, a beer hall, a wedding chapel, and sightseeing cruises of the bay.
- Bay Hakodate - The Bay Area facing Hakodate Port offers a wide view of the harbor. This area is lined with old red-brick buildings that have been converted into a distinctive shopping mall, inviting visitors to enjoy some shopping or a tea break.
- Hakodate Museum of Northern Peoples - The Hakodate Museum of the Northern Peoples is housed in a building that once served as the Japan Bank, constructed in 1926. The museum celebrates Ainu culture and provides an intriguing insight into this indigenous culture, which is not widely known outside Japan.
The museum also offers information about other indigenous groups in Japan, such as the Sakhalin, who originate from an island north of Hokkaido that is now part of Russia.
Admission fees: Adult 300 JPY, Children 150 JPY
- Private transportation
- Parking, Fuel, Highway Fees
- In-vehicle air conditioning
- Licensed Local Guide
- Other personal expenses
- Lunch
- Goryokaku Park Admission - 1000JPY
- Hakodate Museum of Northern Peoples Admission - Adult 300 JPY, Children 150 JPY
- You cannot combine tour groups or multiple reservations.
This is the ideal tour for travelers wanting to discover Hakodate’s highlights efficiently in a private vehicle accompanied by a government-licensed and experienced English-speaking guide!
Hakodate has a long history of international trade and as such hosted a small foreign community. That influence is evident in the European buildings, churches, and red-brick warehouses that you can see from the nostalgic streetcar that makes its rounds of the city.
Note 1: National Government Licensed Guide Interpreter certification is issued by the Japanese government requires a good knowledge and understanding of Japanese culture and history.
Note 2: You cannot visit all the sites on the intinerary. You must choose up to 4 and inform your guide.
- Only one reservation per group allowed. You cannot combine multiple reservations into one group.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
