Motomachi District

Motomachi is the historic hillside district of Hakodate, spread across the lower slopes of Mount Hakodate above the bay. Its sloping streets are lined with Western churches, former consulates and Meiji-era public buildings. The district itself is free to walk, and most sights sit within a 15-minute stroll of each other.

Hakodate was the first port in Hokkaido to open to foreign trade, after the treaties of the 1850s. Many foreign residents settled on this hillside, and Russian, British and other consulates opened here. That history explains the district's mix of Japanese and Western buildings, which is what draws visitors today.

Things to do in Motomachi

Walk the slopes down to the bay

Nineteen sloping streets run straight down from the foot of Mount Hakodate to the port, and walking them is the main way to see the district. The best known is the Hachiman-zaka slope, which runs in a straight line toward the port. Motoi-zaka, a few blocks east, connects Motomachi Park with the Old Public Hall and the former British Consulate.

Several streets are steep and some are paved with stone, so in snowy months walk downhill with care.

See the churches

• Hakodate Orthodox Church: the white church with green copper domes, completed in 1916 on the site of Japan's first Orthodox church. Visitors are asked for a donation of 200 yen.

• Motomachi Roman Catholic Church: founded in 1859 and rebuilt in 1923. Its main altar was a gift from the pope. Entry is free.

• Hakodate St. John's Church: the Anglican church, a short walk from the other two.

The three churches stand close together on the slope below the ropeway, so you can see them all in under an hour. Visits pause during services, since these are working churches.

Visit the historic buildings

• Old Public Hall of Hakodate Ward: a blue and yellow Western-style hall built in 1910, with a balcony that looks over the harbor. Admission is 300 yen.

• Former British Consulate of Hakodate: used as the consulate from 1913 to 1934, now a museum on the opening of the port, with a tea room facing a rose garden. Admission is 300 yen.

• Old Hakodate Branch Office of Hokkaido Government: a 1909 building in Motomachi Park with a take-out counter for lunch boxes and soft-serve ice cream.

If you plan to enter several buildings, buy a combined ticket. It is valid at four city venues: the Old Public Hall and the former British Consulate plus the Museum of Northern Peoples and the Hakodate Museum of Literature. It costs 500 yen for two venues, 720 yen for three and 840 yen for four.

How to get to Motomachi

• By tram from JR Hakodate Station: ride the Hakodate City Tram 5 minutes to Jujigai, then walk about 10 minutes uphill to the churches.

• To the Old Public Hall area: get off at Suehiro-cho, 8 minutes from the station, and walk 5 to 7 minutes up the slope.

• From the bay area: the Kanemori Red Brick Warehouses are at the bottom of the slopes, so you can walk up from the waterfront.

The Hakodate tourism guide to the slopes has a map of all 19 streets.

Best time to visit Motomachi

Come in the late afternoon. Walk the slopes and churches while the buildings are open, then take the ropeway up for the night view. The base station of the Mount Hakodate ropeway is about 10 minutes on foot from Jujigai, at the top edge of Motomachi.

Late spring to early fall is the easiest season for walking, since the slopes are free of snow. Note that Hakodate Orthodox Church pauses interior viewing from late December to the end of February.

To cover Motomachi and the rest of the city in one morning with a driver, a private half-day Hakodate tour includes the district along with Goryokaku and Mount Hakodate.

For how Hakodate compares with other smaller Japanese cities, see these underrated cities beyond Tokyo and Kyoto.