JR Otaru Station: The Gateway to the Port City

Otaru Station opened in 1903, and its current Art Deco concrete building dates from 1934. Stepping outside the front entrance, you look directly down Chuo Street toward the harbor. In winter, strong westerly winds push waves along the breakwaters that are visible from the station. Inside, 333 hand-blown glass lanterns donated by local glassmaker Kitaichi Glass light the entrance hall, modeled on the oil lamps the company first made in 1901. Platform 4 retains structural steel imported from Bolckow, Vaughan and Co. in Yorkshire, England, stamped with the year 1902. A life-size image of actor Ishihara Yujiro commemorates the platform where he was photographed during a 1978 television drama.