Matsumae Castle
松前城
The northernmost Japanese-style castle in Japan and the only tenshu (main keep) in Hokkaido. In spring, about 10,000 cherry trees in Matsumae Park make it Hokkaido's top cherry blossom spot.
Matsumae Castle was the seat of the Matsumae domain during the Edo period. Completed in 1854, it is one of the last traditional Japanese castles built in the country. The existing tenshu was reconstructed in 1960, and its interior houses a museum. Matsumae Park, where the castle stands, has about 10,000 cherry trees of roughly 250 varieties, blooming from late April through mid-May. The Matsumae Cherry Blossom Festival is held in late April and early May, and the park is known as Hokkaido's foremost cherry blossom spot. Admission to the tenshu is about 360 yen, and it is open from early April to early December. It is about 95 km from Hakodate, roughly 2 hours by car, making it a good day trip during cherry blossom season.
Opening hours
Main keep 09:00–17:00 (early April–early December)
Nearby sights
- Trappist Monastery (Tobetsu)
- Mount Hakodate
- Old Public Hall of Hakodate Ward
- Cape Tachimachi
- Hakodate Orthodox Church
- Former British Consulate of Hakodate
- Hachiman-zaka Slope
- Motomachi Catholic Church