Hakodate Orthodox Church
函館ハリストス正教会
Japan's earliest Orthodox church, a Russian Byzantine-style cathedral with white walls and green onion domes. Its bells are included in the Japan Soundscape 100 list and are nicknamed the “Ding-Dong Temple.”
Hakodate Orthodox Church began in 1859 as a chapel attached to the Russian consulate. The present main Resurrection Cathedral was rebuilt in 1916. With its white walls and verdigris-green onion domes, it is the most representative building among the Motomachi churches, and it is designated an Important Cultural Property of Japan. Its bells are nicknamed the “Ding-Dong Temple” and are included in the Japan Soundscape 100 list. Visitors may enter the cathedral interior for a small donation of about 200 to 500 yen. It is open roughly 10:00 to 17:00. Visits are suspended on Sunday mornings and during services. It is about a 15-minute walk from the Juji-gai tram stop and is next to the Motomachi Catholic Church and St. John's Church.
Opening hours
About 10:00–17:00 (Saturdays until 16:00; Sundays from 13:00)
Nearby sights
- Motomachi Catholic Church
- Hachiman-zaka Slope
- Former British Consulate of Hakodate
- Old Public Hall of Hakodate Ward
- Lucky Pierrot Bay Area Main Store
- Kanemori Red Brick Warehouse
- Hakodate Meiji-kan
- Mount Hakodate