Otaru Canal
Otaru Canal, A Former Freight Canal Lined With Stone Warehouses That Now Hold Glass, Music Box And Sweet Shops, In The Sea Of Japan Port Town Of Otaru. A Half Day Trip From Sapporo, At Its Best At Dusk When The Gas Lamps Come On. · Otaru, Hokkaido
Otaru Canal is a short stretch of old freight canal in the Sea of Japan port town of Otaru, Hokkaido, lined with a promenade, gas-style lamps and stone warehouses that now hold glass workshops, music box shops, sweet shops and cafes. The canal itself is only a few hundred metres to a kilometre long, so the pleasure is the town around it: the old merchant streets, the sushi street and the harbour seafood. It suits anyone based in Sapporo who wants a half-day by the sea, couples, and people who like shopping for small gifts. Most visitors come on the rapid train, about 30 to 40 minutes, and the best time is dusk when the lamps light and the water turns blue. Weekends and the February snow festival are crowded. It is worth the detour for the evening and the seafood, less so at midday in a crowd. Winters bring heavy snow and ice, so wear proper winter boots. Sapporo itself is a separate row nearby.
Otaru Canal, Minatomachi, Otaru, Hokkaido, a short walk from Otaru Station along the harbour road, Otaru, Hokkaido, Japan
The canal promenade is open at all hours and free to walk. Shops, glass workshops and cafes mostly open from about 9 or 10 in the morning and close around 18:00 to 19:00, with some closing earlier in winter and a few shuttered on one weekday - confirm. Restaurants and sushi counters often run until about 21:00, though last orders can be earlier. Lamps come on at dusk, which is the main reason to stay late. From Sapporo take the JR Hakodate Line rapid train to Otaru, commonly 30 to 40 minutes - confirm times - then walk about 10 minutes down to the water. Book sushi for a weekend dinner and glass classes ahead in peak season.