Otaru Canal | Otaru Sightseeing

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Otaru Port played an important role as the gateway to Hokkaido from the Meiji period through the early Showa period. Large ships anchored in the port were unloaded using small boats called barges, but as the volume of cargo handled increased, barge loading and unloading congestion became a problem.

To make loading and unloading more efficient, an artificial island was constructed over a period of nine years, starting in 1914, and unloading operations could now be carried out around it. At that time, the water surface remaining between the original quay and the artificial island, measuring 1,314m in length and 40m in width, came to be known as the "Otaru Canal."

After its completion in 1923, the canal supported the prosperity of the commercial city of Otaru for a while, but after the war, when a wharf was built at Otaru Port, the barge loading and unloading operations gradually decreased, and when a large port was built on the Pacific side of the city, many ships shifted to Pacific routes. The Otaru Canal gradually became a useless place where sludge and garbage accumulated.

A plan was put forward to fill in the canal, build a three-lane road, and once again turn Otaru into a logistics hub. In response to this plan, a citizens' movement arose calling for the canal to be preserved as a symbol of Otaru, which led to the "Otaru Canal Preservation Movement," which became a national topic.

As a result, the southern half of the Prefectural Route 1 Taruko Line was reclaimed for road construction, but the canal was remodeled into a walking path with cobblestones and gas lamps, and the beautiful scenery has been transformed into a popular tourist spot representing Hokkaido that continues to attract many people. The northern side (commonly known as the North Canal) still retains its original width of 40m.

Sightseeing Spot <br>Otaru Canal

address
Otaru Canal, Minatomachi 5, Otaru City, 047-0007

Opening hours <br>Open all year round

Closed days <br>Open for strolling all year round

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This Tai Monaka chocolate features 23 lucky spots in Otaru on the packaging. Chocolate and rice puffs are placed inside a traditionally baked monaka shell made from 100% glutinous rice.

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UNGAPLUS

This shop, renovated from the "Old Otaru Warehouse Main Building," said to be the oldest commercial warehouse in Hokkaido in the Otaru North Canal area, develops and sells original products that convey the charm of Otaru. The shop tells the story of Otaru's prosperity during the Hokkaido pioneering era and the history of the Kitamae ships, and displays and sells processed seafood and agricultural products from ports of call and Hokkaido, as well as original products by artisans and artists with ties to Otaru.