What coastal scenery comes to mind when you think of Hokkaido and Tohoku?
Facing the Pacific Ocean, the Sea of Japan and the Sea of Okhotsk, this northern region also spans the Tsugaru Strait between Hokkaido and Honshu. In winter, snow and cold winds sweep across its shores.
Along these coasts, ports serve local communities and travellers alike.
Using the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism’s Annual Report on Port Statistics, we have mapped passenger arrivals and departures at 22 ports in Hokkaido and Tohoku.
With the ports of your own country in mind, why not join us in exploring how many people travel through Japan’s northern ports?
Find Ports in Hokkaido and Tohoku on the Map
The circles on the map represent passenger arrivals and departures by ship.
You can switch between 2019, 2021 and 2024, and choose all routes, domestic routes or international routes. Select a circle to see the figures for that port.
You can also search by port name. Start with somewhere you know or a stretch of coast that catches your interest.
A few notes about the map
Domestic and International Routes
Domestic routes connect ports within Japan. International routes connect Japan with other countries.
Switching between route types changes the size of the circles, even at the same port. Some ports mainly connect places within Japan, while others also see international passenger traffic.
The Difference Between “0” and “Not Listed in the Source Data”
“0” means that the port appears in the source data for that year, but no passenger arrivals or departures were recorded for the selected route type.
“Not listed in the source data” means that the port has no row in that year’s passenger table. This does not necessarily mean there were no passengers, so the two are shown separately.
These Figures Count Passenger Movements, Not Unique Individuals
The figures combine passenger embarkations and disembarkations. If the same person travels several times, each embarkation and disembarkation is counted separately.
The map does not show cargo volumes or the overall size of a port.
Passenger Arrivals and Departures in Hokkaido and Tohoku
The data card shows a sharp fall in passenger arrivals and departures in 2021, followed by a recovery towards pre-pandemic levels in 2024.
Hokkaido and Tohoku accounted for roughly one-tenth of the national total in the 2024 data.
Discovering Japan’s Northern Ports
Otaru may be one of the first ports that comes to mind when you think of Hokkaido. Yet the map shows more passenger arrivals and departures at Tomakomai.
Looking across to Tohoku, Sendai-Shiogama also sees many people arriving and departing by ship.
The ports whose names are most familiar are not always the ones with the most passenger traffic.
Tomakomai and Sendai-Shiogama both record many passenger arrivals and departures. What kinds of people might be travelling through these ports?
With the ports of your own country in mind, why not join us in making new discoveries along Japan’s northern shores?
Sources
- Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, Annual Report on Port Statistics, 2019: Class A Ports, Table 2, Passenger Embarkations and Disembarkations
- Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, Annual Report on Port Statistics, 2021: Class A Ports, Table 2, Passenger Embarkations and Disembarkations
- Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, Annual Report on Port Statistics, 2024: Class A Ports, Table 2, Passenger Embarkations and Disembarkations
Note: The ports included are those listed in at least one of the three years of source data used here. This is not the total number of ports in the region.
Note: Port locations on the map are representative points.