I am thinking about arriving in Hokkaido, by a car ferry. The ferry docks at Otaru, but I can't find public transportations from Otaru to Sapporo. Does anyone know if there are buses? I understand there are no trains in Hokkaido.

No train on their biggest island - what a backward country!

Try google itinerary. There seem to be :
Bus line ( 610yen )
Train JR Hakodate line ( 840yen )
Both takes about 1 hour.

Oh, there is JR Hokkaido Rail Pass so there should be rail lines.

Tons I found.


https://www.virail.com/train-otaru-sapporo

The site to use for Japanese rail info is hyperdia.com

Well I hope not as that is a dead link.

OP: if you do a Google search for transportation between those two places you will find many options about information.

I hope you enjoy Japan as much as we did as we found the country to be very clean and the people to be very polite.

http://www.hyperdia.com/en/
This seems to work.

Ok. Thanks for the clarification

It's odd that it doesn't work as a link. If I type hyperdia.com into my browser, it works just fine.

Thursdays, that is because your browser knows where you want to go - just like mine does. lol

The link without the www might not work if used from within an intranet.

Kathie is sort of right. Your ISP knows you want to go to the www.

Next time C/P from the address bar in your browser.

Just walk straight uphill on the main street outside of the docks maybe five or six blocks and you will hit the JR Otaru station. Buy a ticket to Sapporo on either the fast train (30 minutes) or the slower trains (50 minutes) or whichever is the next train

Nice scenic ride as the train climbs the hills out of Otaru towards Sapporo.

Aloha!

If you are hungry and like seafood or ramen the second and third blocks up towards the train station are filled with unbelievable seafood restaurants and worthwhile souvenir stores. I mention the restaurants because it is one of the best seafood places in all of Japan and is known for it. It is the best we have seen in our Japan travels.

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e6704.html

Aloha!

Thank you all for encouraging comments and info. Now I can plan to arrive in Hokkaido on a ferry.

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e6701.html

You can take a canal boat ride too.

HT thank you for that link. We had a nice stroll along that street. So quaint.

Mahalo!

"Next time C/P from the address bar in your browser."

If I try to do that my stupid iPad logs me off Fodors and deletes anything I have already typed. It takes too long for me to bother for a brief post. If I were at home I would have done so, but I am in Japan right now. In any case, I didn't intend it as a link, just info on what to look for.

Oh well thats cool. Enjoy your time away.