Exploring Hakodate - Goryokaku Fort and Tower

27 May 2026

Hakodate is a vibrant port city in southern Hokkaido known for its fresh seafood, 19th-century Western-style architecture, and spectacular night views.

One of the major attractions in the city of Hakodate is Goryokaku Fort and Tower. The fort is probably the most striking and also the most historically important landmark in Hakodate so I added it to my list of “must-see” in this city.

Appreciating the star-shaped, Western-style fort from the observation deck in Goryokaku Tower.

Goryokaku Fort is a massive, star-shaped, Western-style citadel, which was built in the last years of the Edo Period (1603-1868) for the defense of Hakodate against the imperialist threat posed by the Western powers. It has now been repurposed into a park. A tower called the Goryokaku Tower had been built next to the fort to allow visitors to see the full five-pointed design from above.

Goryokaku Tower

We went to Goryokaku Tower first as it was just next to where we parked our car, a car park next to the Hakodate Performing Arts Center. From there, it was a short walk to the tower.

Admission to the tower’s observation deck cost 1,200 JPY per adult. After buying the tickets, we were immediately ushered into an elevator that brought us to the 2F Observation Deck, 90 meters above ground. There is also a 1F Observation Deck just below, at 86 meters above the ground.

From there, we could enjoy a sweeping 360-degree panorama of Hakodate city. Being adjacent to Goryokaku Park, Goryokaku Tower is the only place to fully appreciate the magnificent star-shaped layout of this special historic site that was once a fortress.

Mandatory selfie with the star-shaped fort.

Like all fortresses in the ancient days, a moat surrounds the entire fort. This protective moat is 3 meters wide and is at least a few meters in depth so any attackers need to be able to swim or sink.

A moat surrounds the entire fort, with a few access bridges. This is one of the access bridges. We would use this bridge to access the fort (now a park).

Goryokaku (五稜郭) translates literally to "five-point fort".

A 1/250 scale accurate representation of the star-shaped Goryokaku fortress when it was first built.

Why the star-shape?

The answer was actually explained in a nice graphic.                               

The star shape provides overlapping field of fire without any “dead-zone”.

When guns and cannons were developed, the structure of castles also improved. Star-shaped castles were invented around the 16th century in Europe. Many fortified cities, where the entire city is surrounded by castle walls, were built. Goryokaku of Hakodate was built by the Japanese who studied techniques from Europe.

But there is an additional “pointy” structure next to the access bridge. This mound of earth with stone walls is called the crescent bastion (or hangetsueki in Japanese).  

The crescent bastionin front of the access bridge is also surrounded by the moat. 

Looking at the crescent bastion from above, it is obvious that its purpose was purely defensive. It blocked enemies from directly seeing and shooting at the main access bridge and entrance gate. The mound of earth with stone walls was designed to soak up enemy cannon fire, protecting the access bridge and entrance to the fort. The arrow shape is also designed to split the enemy forces when they try to do a frontal assault.

We walked around the deck to view the rest of Hakodate city from above and the surrounding bays.

On this clear day, we could see Mount Hakodate with the observation deck on the summit. We also tried to spot our hotel, the JR Inn Hakodate, located towards the direction of the mountain in the south.

The first of many “Welcome to Hakodate!” signage that we would get to see.

Mount Hakodate with the observation deck on the summit.

There is also an exhibition space called Goryokaku Historic Gallery where we could learn about the history of Goryokaku. Being an avid Airfix modeller in my younger days, I enjoyed looking at the scale models and dioramas that trace the key events of the Battle of Hakodate. A notable highlight is the bronze statue of Hijikata Toshizo, vice-commander of the Shinsengumi.

We went down to the 1F Observation Deck where we could also get superb view of star-shaped Goryokaku.

A highlight on this level is The See-Through Floor. It is made of clear hardened glass for us to look directly below.

Stand on the See-Through Floor to experience walking in the sky 86 meters above the ground.

The 1F Observation Deck also has an Observation Gift Shop offering original items that is not sold elsewhere and a cafe. We had to take the elevator from this floor to get back down.                        

The atrium features a café, restaurant, and shop offering original souvenirs inspired by Goryokaku’s history. There are also some cannons and statues of prominent historical figures.

Goryokaku Park

From the tower, we took a short walk to Goryokaku Park. Access to the park is free of charge.

As we crossed the wooden Ichinohashi Bridge and then the Ninohashi Bridge that span the moat on the southwest side, we could massive stone walls behind the moat.

Goryokaku Park is famous for their 1500 cherry trees during the sakura season in late April. By late May, the season is over but there are many azalea bushes with white flowers on the top of the stone walls and pathways to the park.

Upon entry, there were more flowers to enjoy in late May. This time of year was the wisteria season. The best time to view the wisterias in Hokkaido is around late May to early June.

Wisteria are woody, twisting vines famous for their stunning, fragrant cascades of purple, pink, or white flowers.

The first thing we saw upon entering the main gate of Goryokaku was the wisteria trellis.

It must have taken many years for the vines to get such thick trunks.

The wisterias at this park were nicer and thicker than the wisterias we saw at Maeda Forest Park a few days earlier.

At the centre of the park stands the restored Hakodate Magistrate’s Office, once an administrative center of the Edo shogunate. This important government office served as the Tokugawa Shogunate's base for northern defense and foreign affairs. In fact, the purpose of the fort was to protect it.

We did not have the time to see the recreated interiors and historical exhibits that would provide insight into the dramatic events surrounding Goryokaku and the final days of the Tokugawa era.     

Restored Hakodate Magistrate’s Office.

Another “Welcome to Hakodate” signage.

As we made our way out from the park, we saw 107 meters tall Goryokaku Tower. Although I find the entrance fee to the observation deck a bit expensive, it was worth a visit to appreciate the design of this impressive fort, learn a bit about the history of Hakodate and enjoy the breathtaking views of surroundings. The park is also worth a visit to see the fort up close. The blooming wisterias and azaleas at the park were a nice bonus.

Goryokaku Tower with the 2 levels of observation deck.

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Drive from Niseko to Hakodate with lunch at Harvester Yakumo

27 May 2026

Hakodate is a vibrant port city in southern Hokkaido known for its fresh seafood, 19th-century Western-style architecture, and spectacular night views. Located in the South-western part of Hokkaido, we did not have time to visit this city in our previous road trip in Hokkaido back in 2024. This time, we planned to spend 2 days in this city to explore its numerous attractions.

Getting to Hakodate from Niseko

After an overnight stay in Niseko and great breakfast at the Ki Niseko hotel, we did a 174 km drive from Niseko to Hakodate. Unlike the previous day, Mount Yotei was shrouded by low clouds in the morning.

Although there is an expressway E5 that could be slightly faster, I chose to travel all the way via National Route 5 which is more scenic and also toll-free. The journey was expected to take about 3 hours.

I planned a stop for lunch in Yakumo, a small coastal town along National Route 5. Harvester Yakumo is the perfect spot for a lunch break after a 1.5 hours drive from Niseko.

Harvester Yakumo

Harvester Yakumo is a Western-style restaurant located on a hill overlooking Funka Bay. There is a sign outside the restaurant that informed us that Yakumo is the birthplace of Japanese Herb Chicken, which is raised on a healthy diet of herbs, giving its meat an unbeatable delicate flavor.

Harvester Yakumo looks like a typical western farmhouse built with red bricks and dormer windows at the roof.

Ample free parking in front of the restaurant.

Upon stepping through the front door, a sign further explained the linkage of this restaurant to a certain Colonel Sanders, the founder of Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC).

Beside fried chicken, the menu also includes dishes such as pastas and freshly made pizzas that are baked in a stone oven.

We must try the fried chicken at this place. They actually tasted better than KFC, in my opinion.

We also ordered the Yakumo Beef and Pork Hamburg steak.

There are benches on the terraces with views of the farms below and Funka Bay in the distance. We spotted some crows, so we sat indoors to eat in peace.

Empty benches on the terraces.

View from the terrace of Harvester Yakumo.

Overall, we enjoyed our lunch at this restaurant with good food, good view and relaxing vibes.

Funkawan Bay Panorama Park

Right across the road from the restaurant is the Funkawan Bay Panorama Park. We made a quick stop to check out the ice-cream shop and souvenir store. There are also nice views of the bay from this place.

On to Hakodate’s

Goryokaku Fort

From Yakumo, it took us another 1.5 hours to get to the Goryokaku Fort. The fort was the first attraction we visited in Hakodate since it is located in the northern part of the city. We had just enough time to visit this attraction before checking into the JR Inn Hakodate, our accommodation in Hakodate.

Along the way, we drove past Onuma Quasi-National Park, a popular Hakodate attraction. This place features a forested park with hiking & cycling trails, campsites, a dormant volcano & boating on several lakes but we chose to give it a miss due to time constraint.

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Our Stay in Ki Niseko and dinner at Afuri

26 and 27 May 2026

In late May, after the ski season is over, the Niseko resort area is very quiet and many of the luxurious ski resort hotels are offering their rooms at bargain prices. We were spoilt for choices and we chose Ki Niseko.

Ki Niseko is a boutique ski-in, ski-out hotel located at the foot of Grand Hirafu Resort. During the off-peak season in late May it offered value for money accommodation.

We arrived at the hotel after visiting Mishima-san’s Shibazakura Garden in Kutchan and the Niseko Takahashi Farm.

Our Double Room

We stayed in a standard Double room facing Mount Yotei with breakfast included. The room size is 25 square meters which is quite adequate in terms of space and nicely furnished.

The only negative was that the central air-conditioning was not operating in spring. It was quite warm in the afternoon when we checked in. We had to open the window to let in the cool spring air. Unfortunately, there was some construction in front of the hotel, so it was quite noisy till the workers stopped work later in the evening.

Our Double Room with view of Mount Yotei on a clear day. The mountain was shrouded in clouds the next morning.

On hindsight, we could have saved some money by choosing a room facing the greenery on the other side.

Private onsen in Ki Niseko

Like most luxurious ski resorts or hotels in Niseko, there are nice hot springs facilities available for guests.

Ki Niseko has separate male and female hot spring baths (onsen), both with inside baths and outdoor stone rotenburo baths. The mineral rich onsen water comes from Ki Niseko’s own exclusive spring-water source which has a high mineral content to soothe and refresh the tired body.

In addition to the male and female public baths, Ki Niseko offers two private onsen rooms (Hinoki and Momiji). Reservations for the private onsen are only accepted after check-in and are limited to one per stay. Since we arrived quite early, we managed to use the private onsen before dinner.

Being able to soak our body and tired muscles in an onsen with temperatures over 40°C after a long day of driving and sightseeing was one of the most exquisite pleasures.

Private onsen at Ki Niseko.

Dinner at Afuri

We did not include dinner in our room booking since we planned to have dinner at Afuri, a well-known ramen restaurant that originates in Tokyo. Afuri now had a branch located in Niseko.

We took a slow 700 metres walk to Afuri which is actually located inside a neighbouring hotel (Setsu Niseko). Since we did not make a reservation, I was worried that it would be packed. My worries were unfounded. Being the off-peak season, we were the only customers when we arrived!

We were served by a friendly waiter named Taka who spoke good English. Besides ramen, the menu includes other options like appetisers, small plates like tofu, gyoza, tori karaage, tonkatsu, donburi, and soba.

We ordered their signature Yuzu Shio Ramen that cost 1650 JPY (tax included) and 6 pieces of gyoza that cost 990 JPY (tax included). 

Yuzu Shio (salt) Ramen with chicken broth, shio tare, bamboo shoot, muzuna greens, pork chashu, egg, yuzu and thin noodles.

The gyozas filled with pork, chicken, garlic, shitake. lotus root cabbage, green onions.

I loved the taste of the broth in the ramen. The acidity provided by the yuzu helps to balance the otherwise salty and savory taste.

Their gyozas were the best that we had eaten on this trip. They had nice soft skin wrapping the delicious fillings. The yuzu ponzu dipping sauce provided a nice balance.

We had the whole restaurant to ourselves until another group came in when we were about to finish. This place would surely be packed during the winter ski season where a nice hot bowl of ramen would surely warm the bodies after a day of skiing.

Across from Afuri is a Lawson convenient store with view of Mount Yotei behind. This Lawson Niseko Hirafu with Mount Yotei view could be a place to compete with the insta-worthy Lawson located in Fujikawaguchiko, with Mount Fuji view.

It was dark by the time we finished dinner so we went to the Lawson to grab some beer and snacks. No photos.

Breakfast at Ki Niseko

The buffet breakfast at Ki Niseko had delicious selection of both Japanese and Western options. 

We knew that the hotel would serve the famous Niseko Yogurt Drink comes from Niseko Takahashi Dairy Farm (also known as Milk Kobo). I am normally not a fan of yogurt but this is a must try when in Hokkaido. The yogurt is thick, creamy, and does not have the “milky smell” that I do not like.

The famous Niseko Yogurt Drink comes from Niseko Takahashi Dairy Farm (also known as Milk Kobo).

We took our time to enjoy the excellent breakfast before continuing our road trip to Hakodate.

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Exploring Niseko in late Spring – Mishima-san’s Shibazakura Garden and Niseko Takahashi Farm

26 May 2026

Most people flocked to Niseko resort area during the winter ski season for their very light, dry powder snow. Niseko's ski season typically runs from late November to early May. In late May, the ski season is over and the whole area transitions into a quiet, beautiful and green landscape. People may still come to this part of Hokkaido for rafting, golf, biking and hiking.

For us, we came to see Mr. Mishima's Garden in Kutchan where a vibrant blanket of pink moss phlox (shibazakura) blooms against the snow-capped Mount Yotei in late May.

Pink moss phlox (shibazakura) at Mr. Mishima's Garden in Kutchan.

The garden is a private residence that opens for free to the public. Due to the popularity, visitors flock to the garden. Being a private residential area, there are not much parking spaces. Temporary car parks were set up a few hundred meters away from the garden for visitors.

The weather during this time in Hokkaido was perfect for outdoor activity. We enjoyed the short walk to the garden.

We had seen an entire hillside covered with moss phlox in Takinoue a few days earlier. See this post: Hill of Pink at Takinoue Shibazakura Koen Park.

But this garden is something else!

The garden spans over 4,000 square meters. It was created by Mr. Kazuo Mishima, a retired local farmer. He spent decades hand-planting each tiny seedling to create his masterpiece that draws plenty of visitors every spring.

The colours of the tiny flowers came in white, pink, and purple. 

We spent some time to take photos of the landscape and the flowers. We also hunt for some lucky flowers. The flowers usually have 5 petals. It is considered lucky, very lucky or very very lucky to find flowers with 4, 6 or 7 petals.

During our visit to Takinoue’s Shibazakura Koen Park, we saw this poster.

My wife was super lucky to spot this 4-petal white moss phlox flower.

She also spotted the 6-petal and 7-petals flowers side-by-side! Super Super Super lucky! 

I think the shibazakura garden here is more photogenic with Mount Yotei in the background.

A mini moss phlox covered mountain inspired by Mount Yotei.

Compared to Takinoue’s Shibazakura Koen Park, this garden is much smaller but this is very pretty too and is definitely worth a visit. Personally, I think the shibazakura garden here is more photogenic with Mount Yotei in the background.

From Kutchan, we drove about 20 minutes to the Niseko Takahashi Farm. This place draws visitors in all season.

Hokkaido is famous in Japan for its fresh cow milk and the Niseko Takahashi Dairy Farm is a great place to taste some fresh, local milk products. There are also a couple of restaurants in the farm.

We had our late lunch in the Niseko Takahashi Dairy Farm Restaurant PRATIVO. The restaurant’s menu prioritizes using plenty of ingredients from Niseko and is mostly Western cuisine. We ordered the baked rice and Bolognese pasta. The portion size is not large but they are very delicious and value for money.

The restaurant provides panoramic views of Mount Yotei from every seat inside.

Baked rice with Hokkaido chicken and cheese in curry flavour.

Bolognese pasta with Hokkaido pork and beef.

While having my lunch, I noticed that they were plenty of yellow flowers outside. These are dandelions. I told my wife that they would make good photos with Mount Yotei in the background.

Snapping photos of the yellow dandelions flowers after lunch.

Yellow dandelions against the Mount Yotei backdrop.

A bright red tractor is also quite photogenic against the blue sky with patchy cloud formation.

A haystack for the photographer.

A good place to have dessert after lunch is at the Niseko Takahashi Dairy Farm MILK KOBO. They serve a wide array of sweets using fresh milk directly from their own farm including many flavors of ice cream, cakes, yogurt, milkshakes & tarts. It is claimed that the variety of delicious sweets were made with milk that were freshly squeezed from the local cows the same morning.

Niseko Takahashi Dairy Farm MILK KOBO.

The most popular item at Milk Kobo is the custard-packed cream puff. We bought the highly raved cream puffs and cheese tarts. The fillings in the cream puffs were quite watery and we had to be careful not to let the creamy goodness drip onto the floor. Thankfully boxes of paper tissues were freely available on the table top to mop up any spillage.

The highly delicious cream puffs and cheese tarts from Niseko Takahashi Dairy Farm MILK KOBO.

The fillings in the puff pastry could be a little thicker.

Enjoying our sweets and coffee with a nice view.

Mishima-san’s Shibazakura Garden and Niseko Takahashi Farm were the only two places that we visited in the Niseko resort area before checking in to Ki Niseko Hotel, our accommodation for one night.  

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