Otaru Places to Visit

Otaru City Museum

Otaru City Museum

This used to be a former warehouse by the canal. It was the first commercial warehouse built in Hokkaido and is made of stone. This building has been designated as an important national cultural asset. There is a collection of over 30,000 documents and artifacts depicting the Port of Otaru and the livelihood of its people, all recorded on video and displayed in a georama. On display is also a replica of the Temiya Cave.

●10 minute walk from Otaru Station.

Otaru City Art Museum and Literary Museum

The city of Otaru, surrounded on three sides by mountains, is called the "City of Slopes." It has enchanted many painters; there is even a number of painters in a school called the "Otaru Group." The art museum has a collection of over 2100 pieces made by these painters.
The literary museum has a collection of over 2000 literary works, including those of Kobayashi Takiji, Itoh Sei, and Okada Saburo.

●8 minute walk from Otaru Station.

Kaimeirou

Kaimeirou

The music box befits this city of history and romance. This shop was refurbished from a Taisho-era (early 1910s to mid-1920s) building and has a collection of antique music boxes from such countries as Switzerland, Germany, Belgium, the United States. You can hear a concert of these music boxes for 20 minutes.

●8 minute walk from Otaru Station.

Nishin Goten (Herring Mansion) reflects an era of the booming herring industry

Otaru enjoyed a bountiful share of herring from the Meiji (1868 - 1912) to the Taisho (1912 - 1926) era. Fishery owners competed by having extravagant homes built for themselves. These residences which were used for fish processing as well were nicknamed Nishin Goten (Herring Mansion). The largest existing Nishin Goten took 7 years to build and was completed in 1897 in Tomari-mura Village. The building which was moved to Shukutsu in Otaru became the first residential building to be designated as Hokkaido's tangible cultural asset. Material used for this home consists of Hokkaido fir and Tohoku region cypress wood. The power and wealth of the fishermen during the height of the herring era is reflected in the amount of wood used for the historic residence which is enough to supply construction of 20 standard houses. The mansion is now open to the public and displays tools used during the time as well as references and photographs.
Admission: adults 200 yen / Open everyday 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. early April - late November / 0134-22-1038

20-min. bus ride from JR Otaru Station.

Nishin Goten

Kogei-kan

Otaru Unga Kogei-kan features handmade glasswork along the canal

Walking along the canal, one may notice a fancy sign made of stained glass. The distinguished architecture of Otaru Unga Kogei-kan blends well with the antique-style town. Visitors marvel as flaming glass transform into different shapes and sizes of beautiful art. The completed pieces are displayed for sale on several floors of the building. Visitors can try sandblasting which is a process of decorating translucent glass. Be sure to stop by the Old Boat (open 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.), the basement cafe in the shape of a cruise cabin. Otaru, a town with rich history in glasswork, is the place to find your favorite piece of glass.

2-1-19 Ironai, Otaru-shi / 0134-29-1111

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