From Wikitravel

Hakodate (函館) [1] is a large city in southern Hokkaido, Japan.

Contents 1 Understand 2 Get in 2.1 By plane 2.2 By train 2.3 By boat 3 Get around 4 See 5 Do 6 Buy 7 Eat 8 Drink 9 Sleep 10 Get out

Understand

Rebels in the north The Republic of Ezo (蝦夷共和国 Ezo Kyōwakoku) was a short-lived breakaway state of Japan with its capital at Hakodate. After the defeat of the forces of the Tokugawa Shogunate in the Boshin War (1868-1869), a part of the Shogun's navy led by Admiral Enomoto Takeaki fled to the northern island of Ezo (now known as Hokkaido). On 25 December 1868, the Ezo Republic declared its independence, and elected Enomoto as its president. However, Imperial forces soon consolidated their hold on mainland Japan, and in May 1869 dispatched a fleet to Ezo. With no prospect of victory, Enomoto decided to destroy his arms, and on 18 May 1869, the Republic surrendered without a fight and accepted the Meiji Emperor's rule. Enomoto was sentenced to a brief prison sentence, but was freed in 1872 and accepted a post as a government official in the newly renamed Hokkaido Land Agency.

Hakodate is the largest city in southern Hokkaido. One of the first cities in Japan to be opened to trade, as Yokohama and Kobe there are some signs of foreign influence. Hakodate was also the capital of the short-lived Republic of Ezo (see box) in the aftermath of the Meiji Restoration.

Get in

By plane

Hakodate Airport (函館空港 Hakodate kūkō, HKD) is 20 minutes by bus (¥300) from the train station.

Both JAL and ANA offer nonstop service to Hakodate from Tokyo Haneda Airport and Osaka Itami Airport. JAL offers air connections to the rest of Hokkaido, while ANA also offers nonstop service from the new Chubu International Airport in Nagoya.

Sapporo's busier Chitose Airport, 2-3 hours to the north by train, also offers a fairly convenient alternative.

By train

Currently, the fastest way to reach Hakodate by train from Tokyo is by a combination of Shinkansen and Limited Express trains, transferring between the two at Hachinohe station. The one-way trip lasts about 6 hours and costs almost ¥19,000. If you have a 7-Day Japan Rail Pass, you will save about ¥9,000 off of the total cost if you travel round-trip using this method.

The Shinkansen is inching slowly towards Hakodate, but still has a fair ways to go and is unlikely to reach the city before 2020.

A popular way to reach Hakodate is by overnight sleeper train. Two Hokutosei (北斗星) sleeper trains depart daily from Ueno Station in Tokyo. The ride to Hakodate is between 12 and 14 hours in duration. The Cassiopeia (カシオペア) sleeper train also runs from Ueno to Hakodate a few times a week, but its cabins are more expensive than the Hokutosei. All three of these trains eventually continue to Sapporo.

By boat

Hakodate is a major port. Major operator Higashi-Nihon Ferry [2] offers frequent services to Aomori (3:40, ¥1850) and less frequent services to Oma (1:40, ¥1170) on the remote Shimokita Peninsula. The main ferry terminal is 4 km from the center and reachable on buses 1 and 19; a direct shuttle is also available between the ferry terminal and train station.

Get around

Hakodate has a useful two-line tram network connected to the train station. Fares work similarly to medium-distance buses in other cities: take a ticket when you board, then pay as you get off based on the number on your ticket. If you are going to take the tram more than twice in one day, it is advisable to buy a one day pass from the driver when you get off (600 yen). A combination bus/streetcar pass is also available (one day = 1000 yen, two days = 1700 yen). Each pass comes with a map of the stops.

Trains to areas outside of Hakodate leave infrequently (if you are used to Tokyo where trains come every few minutes) so plan ahead.

See

• Mount Hakodate (函館山 Hakodateyama, 334m). Offers spectacular views of the city of Hakodate in clear weather and offers, according to locals, one of the Three Best Night Views of not merely Japan but the entire world (the other claimants being Naples and Hong Kong). A ropeway [3] will take you up for a steep ¥640/1160 one-way/return, buses are cheaper but more boring.

• Fort Goryokaku (五稜郭). Completed in 1864, this was Japan's first Western-style fortress and finished just in time for it to be occupied by the Ezo Republic as their headquarters. It never saw any action though, as the rebels surrendered peacefully. Most of the fort was consequently demolished and this is now a large park and popular cherry-blossom spot in spring. The fort also houses a small museum with exhibits on local history (rotating each year). There is a good vantage point from the nearby observation tower (approx. 500yen).

• Motomachi (元町), located near the foot of Mount Hakodate, is the historical district of the city. One popular attraction is the Old Public Hall (旧公会堂 Kyu-kokai-do), a European-style building which housed the Hakodate government in the early 1900's. The various churches and consulates in the area, dating to the early days of foreign trade with Japan, are also frequented by tourists.

Do

Hakodate's biggest festival is the yearly Port Festival, known for its festive Squid Dance (Ika-odori).

Buy

You can buy fresh seafood in the morning market.

Eat

Hakodate's signature fish is squid and its signature dish is Hakodate shio rāmen, a version of the ubiquitous noodle dish prepared with — you guessed it — squid stock instead of the usual pork. Nearby Mori-machi is also reputed to have Japan's finest IkaMeshi, which is essentially rice-stuffed squid.

Drink

There are two main drinking districts in Hakodate, Daimon, which is close to the station, and Goryokaku, in particular Hon-Cho. Foreigners seem to be more welcome in the Goryokaku area.

• Bagus. A surfer-style bar open 'til morning.
• Bar Big Job (behind Hokuyo-Ginko bank). An English-style standing room only bar.
• Eiley's. An Irish pub.

Sleep

• Minshuku Sumitomo-Inn (民宿住友), [4]. Five blocks from Hakodate station, take the bus to Omori-cho.

Get out

• Lake Onuma, half an hour to the north by express train, offers a pleasant quick gateway.
• Matsumae, an hour drive from Hakodate along the coast, has the only castle in Hokkaido, which is in Matsumae park, famed in southern Hokkaido (Minami Hokkaido) for excellent cherry blossom viewing in early April.
• Esan, known for its Tsutsuji (Azalea) festival in June, is about a 45 minute car ride from Hakodate, also mostly along the coast, but in the direction opposite of Matsumae.

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