Kikonai Station (木古内駅)

Station Type: Train station

Kikonai Station is one of the Shinkansen stations in Hokkaido. There are many nature-rich sightseeing spots in the surrounding area.

First of all, there is beautiful nature around the station. Within walking distance from the station is the majestic mountain range of Mt. In addition, there are spots nearby where you can enjoy nature to the fullest, such as “Ojigaike Park,” where you can enjoy forest bathing, and “Yumehana-ji Park,” where colorful flowers bloom in different seasons.

Furthermore, there are hot springs near the station. There are various hot spring facilities such as “Gin-no-yu,” where you can enjoy natural hot spring water that wells up from 1,000 meters underground, and “Kikonai Onsen Kokoro no Yu,” where you can experience bedrock baths. By taking a bath in a hot spring, you can relieve the fatigue of your trip.

In addition, there are restaurants near the station where you can enjoy dishes using local ingredients. There is “Uomin” where you can taste fresh seafood and “Maido Ookini Shokudo” where you can enjoy dishes using local vegetables. By tasting dishes made with local ingredients, visitors can experience Hokkaido’s culinary culture.

Finally, there are historical buildings around the station. The “Kikonai Station Building,” built in the Meiji era (1868-1912), is one of the oldest wooden station buildings in Japan. Visitors can also learn about local history and culture at the “Kikonai Town Museum.

As mentioned above, there are various attractive sightseeing spots around Kikonai Station, such as nature, hot springs, food culture, and historical buildings. We hope that foreign tourists visiting Kikonai by Shinkansen bullet train will visit these spots.

Table of contents

Kikonai Station (木古内駅)

Restaurants, Foods
Tourist area
Hotels
Convenience Stores, Grocery Stores
Tourist Information Center

Restaurants, Foods

Some restaurants and food shops around the station.

Restaurant Donande’s Ocuda Spirits (どうなんde’s)

Restaurant Type: Italian restaurant

Okame (おかめ)

Restaurant Type: Izakaya restaurant

Minohisa sushi-ten (美乃久鮨し店)

Restaurant Type: Sushi restaurant

Tourist area

Some tourist area – the best views, museums and parks – around the station.

Donan Torokko Railway Tsuruoka Koen Station (道南トロッコ鉄道鶴岡公園駅)

Tourist Area Type: Tourist attraction

The Donan Trolley Railroad is the remaining track of the former Esashi Line (between Kikonai and Yoshibori). This facility allows visitors to experience driving a “track bicycle” for track maintenance.

Roadside Rest Area “Misogi-no-sato Kikonai” (道の駅みそぎの郷きこない)

Tourist Area Type: Toll road rest stop

Michi no Eki “Misogi-no-Sato Kikonai” is a roadside station in front of Kikonai Station.
The purpose is to promote the attractions of Kikonai Town and other parts of southern Hokkaido. It has a shopping area featuring specialty products of Donan, an Italian restaurant “Donan de’s Ocuda Spirits” supervised by a world-renowned chef, and a “tourist concierge” who is well versed in deep information about Donan.

The building is constructed with “Donan cedar,” a local specialty of the region, on the interior and exterior. The building is a relaxing space where visitors can feel the fragrance and texture of the solid cedar wood.

Samegawa Shrine (佐女川神社)

Tourist Area Type: Shinto shrine

Samegawa Shrine is located at the foot of Yakushi Mountain in the town of Kikochi. It was constructed in 1625. It is said that Kono Kagamori Minamoto Kagehiro of the Matsumae Clan built a shrine in the area of Samogawa and prayed for the longevity of his military fortune.

According to legend, “In the early morning of January 15, 1831, the guardian of the shrine was told in his dream to purify the sacred body. Then, as he approached the shore, he saw a great shark lapping at the mouth of the river, and above its back, a woman clad in beautiful white. Believing it to be a messenger of the holy God, he bathed in the sacred body many times, and when he looked down, he could not see the woman, and the great shark went upstream and disappeared into a small swamp. From that year on, the village was very prosperous with a good harvest of fish, and this is said to be the beginning of the current Kanchu Misogi Festival.

Every year, four young men called Gyoshujin stay at Samogawa Shrine from January 13, purify their bodies with fresh water day and night, and on January 15, they hold four sacred bodies of Bettou, Inari, Yama-no-kami, and Benzaiten, and dive into the frigid Tsugaru Straits to pray for a good catch and harvest for the year. The god of the festival is Tamayorihime no Mikoto.

The deity is Tamayorihime no Mikoto (Princess Tamayori). The main deity of the shrine built at the mouth of the river was Tamayorihime-no-mikoto, which is said to be the origin of the character “Sa (meaning “help”) Onna-gawa,” meaning a river where the goddess helps people.

Kikonai Station (木古内駅) – Introductions of Restaurants, Tourist area, Hotels and so on