Day View and Night View Are Good, Too -Mt. Moiwa in Sapporo-

Mt. Moiwa (藻岩山) is a mountain with 531 m in height in Minami ward, Sapporo city, and is known for having an observation deck and a ski resort. It is relatively near Sapporo City Area and is a popular sightseeing spot with a good night view. Sapporo has designed as one of the 3 best new night views in Japan with Nagasaki (長崎) and Kobe (神戸) in 2015, so more tourists visit here. Admission free. A parking lot is free of charge.

There are 3 ways to climb the Mt. Moiwa. The first is that tourists can use a ropeway to go up the Mt. Moiwa easily. The second is that the tourists can use cars such as an owned car to go up the Mt. Moiwa. The third is that the tourists can climb the Mt. Moiwa on foot. In the case of the ropeway, it runs every 15 minutes from Moiwa Sanroku Station (もいわ山麓駅) to Moiwa Chufuku Station (もいわ中腹駅) and takes about 5 minutes. The tourists transfer to the Morris Car (もーりすカー) there, and it takes about 2 minutes to Moiwa Sancho Station (もいわ山頂駅). A round ticket is JPY 1700 for adult and JPY 850 for child. In the case of the cars, the drivers can use a parking lot beside the Moiwa Chyufuku Station through Moiwayama Sightseeing Road (藻岩山観光自動車道) from mid April to late November. After that, the tourists choose getting on the Morris Car or going up through Nature Walking Trail (自然学習歩道) on foot, and it takes about 15 minutes on foot. A toll of The Moiwayama Sightseeing Road fare is JPY 660. In the case of the foot, it takes about 60 minutes to go up the mountaintop, and 5 mountain trails are provided. There were surprisingly many overseas climbers than I expected.

There are Moiwayama Shrine (藻岩山神社) and the parking lot aroud the Moiwa Chufuku Station. The Moiwa Chufuku Station has a ropeway station, a Morris Car station, a souvenir shop "Moimoi-no-Omise", Forest Gallery, a restroom, a terrace. A view can hardly be seen because trees block my view.

The Nature Walking Trail with about 600 m in total length is provided from Moiwa Chufuku Station to Moiwa Sancho Station. It takes about 15 minutes. I guessed the mountain trail was short, and I climbed it. But a slope was very steep, and I spended time on taking a rest, so it took about 20 minutes.

There are the Moiwa Sancho Station, Moiwa Sancho Temple (藻岩山頂寺院), a radio tower, a triangulation point, a monument for Moiwayama Primeval Forest (藻岩山原生林記念碑) on the mountaintop. The Moiwa Sancho Station has an observation deck on the rooftop, a restraunt "THE JEWELS", a cafe, Star Hall, the Morris Car station, a restroom, a rest place for mountain climbers. A dinner can be eaten while seeing the night view at the restraunt. It seems to produce a romantic atmosphere. By the way, Bell of Happiness (幸せの鐘) is installed on the rooftop, and couple can lock their love padlocks. The love padlocks are sold at the Star Hall.

Sancho Observation Deck is the size that about 100 people can enter, and a panoramic view can be seen. I visited here in 7 July 2017, and a view was whitish. The view is photogenic if it is fine weather. When I visited here at the time of Doshin UHB Fireworks Festival before, the Sancho Obseravatory Deck was almost full. Everybody thinked the same way. The night view went well with the fireworks. After all, the Mt. Moiwa has choosen as one of the best 3 night view in Hokkaido with Mt. Hakodate and Mt. Tengu, too.

In a winter, a part of the site changes to Moiwa Ski Resort. The Moiwayama Sightseeing Road changes to a ski course, too. It is famous for beautiful night view, and the night view can be seen on Usagidaira Ski Course (うさぎ平コース). Unfortunately, the ski resort prohibits snowboarding.

Atmosphere of Mt. Moiwa Can Be Watched on Youtube

Moive of Mt. Moiwa

A page of Sapporo is here