Muroran City is located in the southwestern part of Hokkaido and can be reached by car in about 1 hour and 15 minutes either from the New Chitose Airport or Tomakomai West Port where the ferry arrives and departs.

Muroran Hachikei consists of the following eight spots and themes, including a view of the city and harbor from Sokuryozan in the middle of the peninsula and the view from the coastal cliffs of Cape Chikyu.

1. Scenic Tokkarisho
2. The Kinbyobu [gold screen] and Ginbyobu [silver screen] cliffs
3. View from Cape Chikyu
4. Sokuryozan observation point
5. Outer sea view from Masuichi Beach
6. Daikokujima, where the Chocolate Lily blooms
7. Scenic view from Cape Etomo
8. Night view of Muroran Harbor

Each spot is not so far apart, but as multiple spots have the same theme and in order to better enjoy each spot, planning your course will avoid unnecessary going and coming between the different spots.

We recommend the following course as the easiest way to get to each spot and also advice about what you should see at each place.

Scenic Tokkarisho is the best place to start. It is a scenic spot where you can get a distant view of the coastline with its steep cliffs and strangely shaped rocks rising about 100 meters on the open sea side and Kumazasa, the broad, green area atop the cliffs.

By car, you can get there from JR Muroran Station in about 12 minutes and from JR Higashi Muroran Station in about 15 minutes. As this spot at the base of the Etomo Peninsula is in the middle of Muroran Hachikei, it is the best place from where to start as it is easy to visit the other spots from here.

After visiting Tokkarisho, head to Kinbyobu, which is about two minutes away by car.

Kinbyobu and Ginbyobu are actually two separate locations. Kinbyobu is a cliff on the coast that radiates a golden color, while the Ginbyobu is a seaside cliff with a silvery appearance. Though they are two different places, in the Muroran Hachikei, they are treated as one spot. I’ll tell you more about Ginbyobu a bit later.

There is no parking area here, so Kinbyobu can only be viewed from the roadside. By looking at the information board, you may find places where the road is wide enough to allow you to pull over and stop to take in the view.

Moving on from Kinbyobu we next head to Cape Chikyu, the sightseeing spot which represents Muroran City. By car, the Cape Chikyu parking area is about 3 minutes away from Kinbyobu. The viewpoint is an observatory located a 2-minute walk up the stairs from the parking lot.

The observation deck overlooks the lighthouse situated about 130 meters above sea level at the top of the cliff.

Cape Chikyu gets its name from the Ainu word "chikep" which means "cliff". Chikep evolved to Chikiu which when rendered into Japanese becomes Cape Chikyu.

Famous for its magnificent natural scenery despite its proximity to the city, it is a tourist spot that attracts many bus tour visitors. It is also famous as a spot for watching the first sunrise of the year so many people visit it on New Year's Day.

Cape Chikyu is famous for one more thing, too. And that is the Hono no Doku Manju [Burning Poison steamed bun] (730 yen including tax). This is a special local product sold at the Cape Chikyu Shop Shinada located at the side of the parking lot.

One of the steamed buns among the six in the box is super-spicy. Eating them is like playing Russian Roulette! Sharing a box with friends, it is fun to see who gets the super-spicy one.

These simple steamed buns are delicious. That is, except for one of them. Whoever gets that super-spicy one will be left speechless. This is something you really must try when you visit here!

The next place to visit after Cape Chikyu is Sokuryozan. Although it is not a very high mountain at an altitude of 199.6m, it is an observation spot with a panoramic view of Muroran city.

You can see such famous mountains of Hokkaido as Mount Yotei in the north and Hokkaido Komagatake in the south on a fine day. It is also known as a treasure trove of wild birds, and people watching birds with huge telephoto lenses can often be seen here.

It takes about 15 minutes by car to get to the Sokuryozan parking area from Cape Chikyu. After going along the mountain path, leave it once going into the city and then enter the mountain path again. The parking lot is not very large, so it may not be spacious enough to accommodate a large RV.

Sokuryozan gets its name, which literally means Measurement Mountain because it is used for taking measurements.

Originally it was called Kentozan [Consideration Mountain] when in 1872 a plan to build a road up it for the purpose of taking measurements was considered, but later the name was changed to Sokuryozan.

This is a symbolic mountain in Muroran City, a base for radio transmissions, a relaxing place rich in nature, and a place offering a superb panoramic view.

The view during the day is wonderful, but the scenery at dusk and at night is also exceptional! For that reason, it is good to visit it more than once at different times. We will tell you more later when we introduce the Muroran Port Night View.

After leaving Sokuryozan, head to the observation point overlooking Masuichi Beach facing the open sea. It takes about 5 minutes by car to get there.

“Masuichi” comes from “Masui Chise,” which means “House of the Black‐tailed Gull” in the Ainu language. A variety of wild birds nest in this area, including the black-tailed gull, and it is a place rich in nature where you can see the rare peregrine falcon.

Masuichi Beach has been designated as the Pirikanoka Etomo Peninsula Seashore national scenic spot because excavations revealed that this was a site where indigenous people hunted on the beach.

Pirikanoka means “beautiful form” in the Ainu language. This place has a mystical air about it stemming from its long, rich history and natural setting.

There are a number of scenic spots, such as the unusual cliff formations of Rosoku Iwa [Candle Rock], Zo Iwa [Elephant Rock, Harukaramoi, and Ginbyobu, between Masuichi Beach and Cape Etomo, our next destination.

It is possible to see Ginbyobu, one of the 8 views of Muroran, from the road along with the Kinbyobu, but it is not quite as impressive when viewed from there.

Actually, the best views of Ginbyobu are those from the sea. If you board the Cape Chikyu Cruise Ship that sails from the vicinity of Hakucho Bridge between April and November, not only can you get a spectacular view from the sea of Ginbyobu, but also the cliffs of Cape Chikyu, Kinbyobu, and Tokkarisho.

Proceed along the narrow mountain path from the observation spot at Masuichi Beach via Ginbyobu to the next place to visit which is the Cape Etomo Observation point located on the tip of the Etomo Peninsula. If you don't stop to admire scenes such as Ginbyobu, it takes less than 10 minutes to drive there.

The observation point resembles the bow of a sailing ship, and from there you can see Mt. Yotei, Mt. Usu, and Mt. Showa Shinzan across the Uchiura Bay.

Because Daikoku Island is not connected to the land and there are no public ships going there, the general public is not able to visit it. You can enjoy it, however, from places such as the Cape Etomo Observation point.

This is a good time to take a break. There is one more place yet to visit, and it is one that not only offers a view of Daikoku Island but a place where you can relax as well.

Miyakoshi-ya Kohi Mutekirou, located about 3 minutes by car from the Cape Etomo Observation point, is a cafe with a superb view. The moment you open the door and enter you will definitely be impressed by the spacious interior.

I recommend that you relax here until the sun begins to go down so that you may enjoy the last of the 8 Views of Muroran, the Night View of Muroran Port.

This coffee shop opened in 2015. Here you can enjoy authentic coffee and light dishes such as ciabatta sandwiches while listening to jazz played through high-quality speakers that cost more than 10 million yen.

Inside the restaurant, you can enjoy music while admiring the scenery outside, and when the weather is nice you can also sit out on the terrace and enjoy the gentle sea breeze.

This is such a great location that you'll probably won't want to leave. I thought about going into the city to visit night spots there, too, but after finishing my coffee I considered staying and relaxing here because the evening and night views are so beautiful!

It is so relaxing here that it’s easy to forget the time. You can spend an elegant evening here.

The Muroran Port Night View is the last of the 8 views. There are many spots scattered throughout the city where you can enjoy the night view. Here are three of those that are easy to get to that we recommend.

The first place is the Shukutsu Park Observation point, which is about 5 minutes by car away from the Miyakoshi-ya cafe. This is the perfect place for taking pictures of the illuminated Hakucho Bridge and the Loop Bridge illuminated by orange road lights.

The second spot is the Hakucho Bridge Observation Point. This is a view spot where you can get a close-up view of Hakucho Bridge, and you can reach it by car in about 6 minutes from either the Miyakoshi-ya cafe or the Shukutsu Park Observation Point.

The night view of the factory behind the Hakucho Bridge is also wonderful! However, as the factory was closed in the summer of 2019, some of the lights have been extinguished.

The third place is Sokuryozan which we visited in the daytime. The night view here is considered a Night View Heritage Site of Japan and also registered as one of the top 100 night views in the country.

To get there from the Miyakoshi-ya cafe, Shukutsu Park Observation Point, and Hakucho Bridge Observation Point, it is easier to go through the city area rather than by the narrow roads on which you came. This takes about 15 minutes.

If you can get to the summit of Sokuryozan by evening, then you can enjoy both the evening and night views. It might be hard to decide whether it is best to observe the night views from the Miyakoshi-ya cafe or one of the other spots mentioned.

After about 15 minutes, the night becomes pitch black. The time window for enjoying the twilight blue sky is rather short, so it really is a challenge to decide from which place to best enjoy it. Choose a place that best suits you!

Muroran Hakkei is a place where you can enjoy many superb views of nature and the cityscape. You can either make a short half-day visit or more leisurely spend a full day visiting these places. If time permits, why not also drive around these various places and visit such famous other places as Noboribetsu Onsen and Lake Toya?