Abashiri Port | Cruises Hokkaido

Abashiri is located at the gateway to the Shiretoko Peninsula, which is registered as a World Natural Heritage site, as well as the Akan National Park. Blessed with abundant marine and agricultural resources, Abashiri ? with its population of approximately 40,000 ? is a tourist-friendly city that makes good use of the natural environment of the Abashiri Quasi-national Park and the city�fs cultural assets. In spring, large communities of skunk cabbages sprawl across the surface of Lake Abashiri, and colonies of blackberry lilies can be seen by Lake Tofutsu, a wetland registered under the Ramsar Convention. Here, horses can be seen grazing among the flowers, which creates an idyllic atmosphere. In summer, the season of clear weather, the scenic Mt. Tento and Cape Notoro afford panoramic views of the Shiretoko Mountain Range. In autumn, a large community of common glasswort by Lake Notoro turns into a carpet of red, and the Hana Tento flower garden on Mt. Tento is filled with the colorful blooms of salvias and marigolds, while yellow carpets of sunflowers and yellow mustard cover the fields in the surrounding rural areas. In winter, swans fly in, and drift ice appears from beyond the horizon, turning the Sea of Okhotsk into a world of ice and snow overnight.

Skunk cabbages

Common glasswort

Hana Tento flower garden

Aurora drift-ice sightseeing boat

Abashiri attracts tourists with not only its exquisite scenery but also an extensive menu of hands-on experience programs. The menu includes interaction with nature via canoeing, horse trekking and bird watching in bountiful forests from spring to summer; vegetable harvesting and salmon/salmon roe processing in autumn; appreciation of the best part of winter by traveling on the sea by drift-ice sightseeing boat or by participating in other drift-ice observation tours. Moreover, the city boasts fresh delicacies, including crabs, scallops, rod-caught kichiji rockfish and many other kinds of seafood. Vegetables such as potatoes, corn and asparagus, as well as fruits such as cherries and strawberries are also popular. Among the recommended local dishes are Okhotsk Abashiri Zangidon (bowl of rice topped with deep-fried fried pink salmon) and Abashiri Moyoro hotpot.