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Other attractions in Wakkanai


Other attractions in Wakkanai

  • Breakwater Dome (港北防波堤ドーム), 1-1 Kaiun (開運1丁目1) (North Wharf, 5 mins from the station north along the harbour). Built in the 1930s, this odd-looking breakwater is a 427-m (1,401 ft) arched hallway supported by 70 Roman style pillars. It rises over 13 meters up in the air to provide some protection for the strong winds in the area. It looks entirely out of place, but makes for some good photographs. In the summer months (Jul-Aug) it's sometimes converted to a lively market with BBQ and Karaoke. Free. �
  • Wakkanai's symbol; The Breakwater dome
    Wakkanai's symbol; The Breakwater dome
  • Daisuke Matsuzaka Museum (松坂大輔スタジアム), 1-6-33 Wakkanai Port (稚内市港1丁目6-33) (15 min walk south of the station, along route 40), +81 0162 23-5518, . 10AM-5PM. Newly opened museum dedicated to the city's most famous offspring, Matsuzaka Daisuke, starting pitcher for the Boston Red Sox - Baseball is huge in Japan, as this museum is a testament to. Videos, photos and other memorabilia. If you are not a fan, the interactive "Fastball LIVE" is probably the most interesting part, experience how it's like to have a 156km/h ball thrown right at you. ¥200. �
  • Harbour Seal Observatory (ゴマフアザラシ観察所), Bakkai fishing port (抜海港) (Take the local train 2 stations S to the Bakkai halt (抜海駅, W78), and walk from there (15-20 min)), . Nov-Mar 9AM-4PM. About 300 seals have decided that the concrete boulders of this small fishing port was a good home. Surprisingly, they seem to get along fine with the fishermen. The city administration has put up a small rudimentary observation hut with windows and a video feed, so the many guests now pouring in don't disturb the seals. Self service tea is provided free of charge, nice touch. Free. �
  • Lake Ōnuma Bird Observatory (大沼バードハウス), Koetoi Village (声問原野) (E of town, halfway to the airport along the Soya National Hwy, turn right at the intersection after Koetoi Postoffice. The JR bus towards the airport stops in Koetoi), +81 0162 26-2965, . Mar-Nov 9AM-5PM. Lake Onuma, a small lake east of the city, is a migratory stop for the Tundra Swan (Cygnus columbianus) on their way to or from Siberia, sometimes numbering tens of thousands. There is a Swan Festival (大沼白鳥まつり) held here in May. Other species that can be observed here include Herons and White-fronted Geese. The city has set up a log cabin with a large platform, an observation room and a small exhibition, and there are a free telescope and binoculars available to loan. Sometimes nature guides are present to answer questions, if you speak Japanese.
  • Noshappu Cold Water Aquarium (稚内市立ノシャップ寒流水族館), 2-2-17 Noshappu (ノシャップ 2丁目2-17) (Take the Soya bus from the stn about 15 min N to the 'Noshappu 2-chome' stop), +81 0162 23-6278, . Apr-Oct 9AM-5PM, Nov-Mar 10AM-4PM. Located right next to the Science Center. Fittingly for Japan's northernmost aquarium, it's centered around 2 large outdoor tanks with seals and penguins. The indoor area is rather smallish with the two main tanks containing species from the oceans south and north ecosystems respectively - The balloon fish is kawaii! Feeding shows twice per day in the outdoor pools. ¥400. �
  • Wakkanai Youth Science Center (稚内市青少年科学館), 2-2-16 Noshappu (ノシャップ2丁目2-16) (Same route as to the Noshappu Cold Water Aquarium), +81 0162 22-5100. Apr-Oct 9AM-5PM, Nov-Mar 10AM-4PM, closed on M. Inadvertently cute museum, it opened in 1974 - and it shows - since many of the exhibits are really retro. The science section set up to teach kids about the "latest" progress in science you can skip, it's out of date, and any kids won't understand the Japanese anyway. More interesting is the Arctic section with details of Japanese exploration of Sakhalin and the Arctic regions. A whole hall is dedicated to the famous (in Japan) Taro and Jiro (See the Wakkanai park entry). Also of some interest is the Planetarium with shows 2-3 times per day. ¥150 (¥50 for just the planetarium). �

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    Wakkanai Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.

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