Hokkaido Places

Town Oshima Subprefecture

Fukushima 福島町

ふくしまちょう

Fukushima is a small fishing town on the Tsugaru Strait at the southwestern tip of the Oshima Peninsula. It is the birthplace of two sumo grand champions, Chiyonoyama and Chiyonofuji, and was the Hokkaido-side construction base for the Seikan Tunnel.1 It is also known for surume (dried squid) and for the wild Iwabe coast, whose Blue Cave can only be reached by boat.234 (It has no connection with Fukushima Prefecture in Honshu.)

Population (2020 Census)
3,794
Area
187.25 km²
District
Matsumae District (松前郡)
Official website
www.town.fukushima.hokkaido.jp

Known for

  • Two yokozuna: Chiyonoyama (千代の山), the 41st yokozuna and the first from Hokkaido, and Chiyonofuji (千代の富士), the 58th yokozuna and the first sumo wrestler to receive the People's Honour Award, were both born here.1 Chiyonofuji won 31 top-division titles.14 The Yokozuna Chiyonoyama & Chiyonofuji Memorial Museum stands at the town's Michi-no-Eki.15
  • The Seikan Tunnel: Yoshioka in the town was the Hokkaido-side construction base for the undersea rail tunnel to Honshu.112 The Seikan Tunnel Memorial Hall tells the story.16
  • Surume (dried squid): the Hokkaido Michi-no-Eki association calls Fukushima Japan's No. 1 surume producer. The town itself says it is one of the largest.217
  • The Iwabe coast and its Blue Cave: part of a roughly 30 km stretch of cliffs and strange rock formations that runs from Cape Shirakami in Matsumae through Fukushima to Shiriuchi and is called the "Shiretoko of Dōnan".18 A glass-bottom boat cruise has visited the sea cave since 2019.4
  • Hokkaido Women-Only Sumo Tournament (北海道女だけの相撲大会): held every year on Mother's Day. It draws women wrestlers from across Japan and abroad.19
  • Matsumae Kagura (松前神楽): the town dates its kagura to 1662 and calls it the first kagura performed in Ezo.20 Matsumae Kagura became a national Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property in 2018.21
  • "Birthplace of Hokkaido fishing": Shirafu is traditionally the place where herring fishing in Hokkaido began.22 The herring boat on the town emblem refers to this.13
  • Senken soba (千軒そば): buckwheat grown at the foot of Mount Daisengen and naturally dried.23

Sights & activities

Nature & scenery

  • Iwabe Cruise (岩部クルーズ): a glass-bottom boat tour of the Iwabe cliffs, rock formations and the Blue Cave, from Iwabe fishing port (Iwabe 65-1).38
    • The standard 75-minute course costs ¥4,000 for adults and ¥2,000 for children. It must be booked by the day before.
    • The 2026 season runs 29 April–12 October, with sailings at 9:00, 10:45 and 12:45.
    • Drone souvenir photos from the boat cost ¥500 per person.
    • Boats do not sail in high waves or bad weather.38
    • The operator is the general incorporated association Fukushima-chō Machizukuri Kōbō, based in the town hall.394 Passengers wear helmets inside the cave.39
  • Mount Daisengen (大千軒岳): usually climbed from the Okufutamata trailhead on the Senken route. It is about 6 km each way, taking about 4.5 hours up and 3 hours down, and is for intermediate to advanced hikers.37 The forest-road gate to the trailhead is locked because of bear sightings, and the town asks hikers not to walk in from the gate either.68
  • Kaikyō Yokozuna Beach (海峡横綱ビーチ, Tsukizaki 23-1): an artificial sand beach opened in 2011, which the tourism association calls one of the largest in southern Hokkaido. A curved breakwater protects it from waves, and it is at most 1.5 m deep.69
    • The 2026 season was 18 July–22 August, 10:00–16:00.
    • A voluntary ¥100 cleaning donation is asked. There are 150 parking spaces, changing rooms and hot showers.69

Onsen

  • Yoshioka Onsen Yutoragi-kan (吉岡温泉 ゆとらぎ館, Yoshioka 219-23): rebuilt and reopened on 23 April 2024.70
    • Each side has three indoor baths, an outdoor bath and a sauna, and there are light meals and gelato.
    • Open 10:30–21:00; closed Mondays (Tuesday if Monday is a holiday) and 1 January. Adults ¥400; children 12 and under free.
    • Friday mornings until noon are reserved for holders of a physical-disability certificate (grades 1–3); normal opening resumes in the afternoon.
    • The water is a sodium-calcium sulfate spring at 46.1 °C.70

Museums & heritage

  • Yokozuna Chiyonoyama & Chiyonofuji Memorial Museum (横綱千代の山・千代の富士記念館, Fukushima 190): see the Michi-no-Eki section below.15
    • Exhibits include the yokozuna ropes, trophies, the topknot Chiyonofuji cut off at his retirement ceremony and his People's Honour Award certificate.
    • A replica of the Kokonoe stable's practice ring is used for the stable's summer camp.
    • Bronze statues of both yokozuna stand at the entrance.31
  • Seikan Tunnel Memorial Hall (青函トンネル記念館, Mitake 32-2): the town-run successor, opened in 2005, to a Hokkaido-run memorial hall opened in 1973.32
    • It shows construction machinery, records and films of the tunnel works.16 The submersible Kuroshio II, used for seabed surveys, is also on display.32
    • Its twin-cylinder building is designed to look like the undersea tunnel coming up above ground.1832
    • Open 9:00–17:00; closed 1 December–16 March. Adults ¥500, students ¥300; a combined ticket with the Yokozuna museum costs ¥900/¥550.
    • There is parking for 70 cars and 5 large vehicles.16
  • Inō Tadataka Hokkaido Survey Memorial Park (伊能忠敬北海道測量開始記念公園, Toyohama 68-3): opened in 2018, the 200th anniversary of Inō's death.33 The statue by Sakai Michihisa shows the young surveyor bent over his compass staff (wankarashin). He wears a bamboo sword, because iron would have upset the compass.26
  • Tunnel Memorial Park (トンネルメモリアルパーク), Yoshioka: a small park looking toward Cape Tappi. The former Yoshioka undersea station lies beneath the sea in front of it.30
    • It has a monument, a construction vehicle and the stone from the ground-breaking ceremony.30
    • The Destroyer Yanagi Peace Monument (駆逐艦柳平和記念塔) was put up here in 1991, and a memorial service is held every 14 July.28
  • Chiroppu-kan (チロップ館, Shirafu 442): a folk and archaeology museum.56
    • Open 10:00–15:00 on weekdays and to 16:00 on weekends and holidays.
    • Closed Tuesdays and Fridays, and in winter from 1 December to 20 February. Admission is free.56

Outdoor & seasonal activities

  • Yokozuna Kaidō (横綱街道): the shopping street behind the Michi-no-Eki has street lamps shaped like yokozuna ropes and gunbai fans, and a full-size sumo ring painted in the middle of the road.2 The bridge railings show yokozuna ring-entry poses.18
  • Sumo practice viewing: in camp years, the Kokonoe stable's morning practice runs about 8:00–10:30 at the museum.59

Food experiences

  • Senken soba at Senken Soba-ten, abalone curry and ika-tonbi pasta at local restaurants, and chanko-nabe by reservation at Takao or Yanshū Banya (see Local specialties).2347

Roadside stations (Michi-no-Eki)

Yokozuna no Sato Fukushima (道の駅横綱の里ふくしま)

  • Location:
    • Fukushima 143-1, Fukushima Town, on National Route 228 in the town center.2
    • It shares its site with the Yokozuna Chiyonoyama & Chiyonofuji Memorial Museum.71 The town hall, Fukushima fishing port and the Seikan Tunnel Memorial Hall are nearby.72
    • Mapcode 676 526 243.2
  • Hours: as of September 2026 — check before visiting.
    • 9:00–17:00. Since December 2024 there are no winter closing days (it used to close on Sundays from December to March).73
    • Closed over New Year. The station's notice and the tourism association give 30 December–4 January; the Michi-no-Eki association's profile page says 29 December–3 January.73712
    • The attached museum is open 9:00–17:00 and closed from 1 December to 16 March. Groups can visit in winter with a guide by reservation.15
  • Shops & products:
    • A specialty shop sells seafood products. It is known for the town's surume, sold as it is or for grilling, plus overnight-dried squid and salted squid.2
    • Kelp is bought directly from the processing plant, so prices are low. Sweets and Blue Cave Cider are also sold.2
    • The shop was renovated and reopened on 20 April 2024.74
  • Food:
    • Soft-serve ice cream is sold, but no flavors are listed.2
    • No restaurant is listed for the station; soft-serve is the only food item listed. For meals, restaurants in the town center include Yanshū Banya (Fukushima 19) and Kissa Time (Fukushima 286).223
  • Facilities:
    • Parking: 32 cars and 3 large vehicles, shared with the museum.215 Wikipedia gives 34 cars, 3 large vehicles and 2 accessible spaces.72
    • Toilets with warm-water seats. Some toilets are open 24 hours.27472 Wikipedia notes that the accessible toilet is inside the museum and cannot be used when the museum is closed. This may be out of date.72
    • Wi-Fi, tourist information, credit cards and other cashless payment.2
    • EV charging, RV parking and a campground are not listed.
  • Notes:
    • Registered on 11 April 1997 as Hokkaido Michi-no-Eki No. 42.2 The museum opened the same month.31
    • The stamp can be collected only during opening hours, not on closed days.2
    • The car park is sometimes closed for town events. For example, it was closed 17:00–23:00 on 18 July 2025.75
    • Museum admission (from April 2026): adults ¥600, children and students ¥350; combined ticket with the Seikan Tunnel Memorial Hall ¥900/¥550. It is free for disability-card holders and one carer.1576
  • Nearby stations: Kitamae-bune Matsumae (道の駅北前船 松前) in Matsumae; Shiriuchi (道の駅しりうち) in Shiriuchi; Misogi no Sato Kikonai (道の駅みそぎの郷 きこない) in Kikonai; Kaminokuni Monju (道の駅上ノ国もんじゅ) in Kaminokuni.77

Getting there & around

  • Rail: the Hokkaido Shinkansen runs under the town through the Seikan Tunnel, but there is no station. The nearest station is Kikonai (木古内駅), on the Hokkaido Shinkansen and the Dōnan Isaribi Railway.11
  • Bus: Hakodate Bus runs via Kikonai toward Matsumae, replacing the former Matsumae Line.11
    • Kikonai to Fukushima takes about 55 minutes.
    • Hakodate to Fukushima takes about 2 hours 30 minutes.78
    • From Hakodate Airport, take the shuttle bus to Hakodate Station and change there; it takes about 3 hours.79
    • The main stops are Fukushima (for the Michi-no-Eki), Seikan Tunnel Memorial Hall-mae, Yoshioka, Toyohama and Senken.7116703337
  • By car: National Route 228, which here shares its road with Route 280, runs along the coast. There is no expressway.11 Driving times given by the tourism association:79
    • Hakodate Station: about 1 hour 30 minutes
    • Hakodate Airport: about 1 hour 20 minutes
    • Kikonai Station: about 35 minutes
  • From Sapporo: no official travel time was found. The usual public-transport route is by JR to Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto, then the Shinkansen one stop to Kikonai, then the bus to Fukushima (unverified).
  • In town:
    • The town-run demand bus runs on weekdays across the town, except the Senken district. A ride costs ¥300 and must be booked in advance with Yamazaki Hire (tel. 0139-47-2217).80
    • Taxis: Yamazaki Hire (山崎ハイヤー), Fukushima 287, tel. 0139-47-2014.79
  • Sea and air: the nearest airport is Hakodate. A Higashi Nihon Ferry route between Minmaya (Aomori) and Fukushima has been suspended since 1998.11

Practical tips

  • Best season: 17 March–30 November, when the two museums are open.1516 Summer brings the beach, the squid festival and, in most years, the sumo camp; late August has the soba flowers; September has the shrine festival and FOOD STADIUM.696259636454 Iwabe Cruise runs only from late April to mid-October.38
  • Book ahead:
    • Iwabe Cruise takes bookings only, by the day before.38
    • Chanko-nabe must be reserved.23
    • The 2026 women's sumo tournament was fully booked by March, and a waiting list opened on 12 March.19
  • Brown bears: take bear precautions seriously here.
    • After the fatal attack of July 2025, Hokkaido's first Brown Bear Warning was issued for the town.34
    • The Daisengen trailhead gate is locked, and the climbers' rest house is closed.6881
    • The spring 2026 Tonosama Kaidō walk was cancelled because of bear sightings.57
    • The town posts bear sighting information on its website.82
  • Winter: the coast is mild for Hokkaido, but the inland Senken area averages 734 cm of snowfall a year.43 The museums close in winter: the two memorial halls from 1 December to 16 March, and Chiroppu-kan from 1 December to 20 February.151656
  • Tourist information: Fukushima Town Tourism Association, Mitake 32-1, tel. 0139-47-3070. It is open 9:00–17:00 on weekdays, closed weekends, holidays and at New Year.83
  • Where to stay: the tourism association lists only three small places to stay: Yadoya Takao (宿屋たかお, Tsukizaki), Yanshū Banya (やん衆番屋, Fukushima) and Pension Tsuru (ペンション鶴, Miyauta).84
  • Meals: restaurants are few and many keep short hours. For example, Senken Soba-ten opens only 11:30–14:30 and closes three days a week.23

More about Fukushima

At a glance
Field Details
Type Town (町)
Subprefecture Oshima (渡島総合振興局)
District Matsumae District (松前郡)
Population 3,794 people in 1,861 households at the 2020 Census. That was down 14.2% from 4,422 in 2015 and 71.7% below the 1955 peak of 13,428.5 The Hokkaido resident-register reference figure was 3,193 on 31 August 2026, including 28 foreign residents.6 The town's own count for the end of August 2026 was 3,192 people (1,513 men, 1,679 women) in 1,847 households.7 The preliminary 2025 Census count was 3,184, down 16.1% in five years. That was the eighth-steepest rate of decline among Hokkaido municipalities.8
Area 187.25 km² (GSI, 1 April 2026).9 The town's 2024 profile PDF gives 187.28 km². Most of the town is mountain forest.10
Density About 17.1 people/km² (3,193 residents). It was 20.3/km² at the 2020 Census.
Municipal history The villages of Fukushima and Shirafu (白符村) merged on 1 July 1900 to form Fukushima Village. It became a town on 11 February 1944, and merged with Yoshioka Village (吉岡村) on 1 January 1955 to form the present town.1112 The town emblem was adopted on 3 November 1975 to mark the 20th anniversary of the merger.13
Neighboring municipalities Matsumae to the west, Kaminokuni (Hiyama) to the northwest and Shiriuchi to the northeast. The Tsugaru Strait lies to the southeast.13 Inside the Seikan Tunnel the town also borders Sotogahama, Aomori Prefecture.11
Symbols Flower: yamayuri (golden-rayed lily, ヤマユリ). The town is the northern limit of its native range and protects the wild plants. Tree: sugi (Japanese cedar, スギ), planted here since long ago as "Dōnan sugi".13 No town bird was found.11
Mascot Surume~ (するめ〜), a piece of dried squid wearing a sumo keshō-mawashi apron in honor of the town's two yokozuna. He insists he is "not a squid but dried surume".3
Official website https://www.town.fukushima.hokkaido.jp/ (tourism: https://be-happy-fukushima.com, run by the Fukushima Town Tourism Association)

Name origin
  • Orikanai: the Fukushima area was long called Orikanai (折加内). The town history derives this from the Ainu horoka-nai, "a river where the tide comes in and the water flows backward", citing Nagata Hōsei's dictionary of Ainu place names. It refers to the marshy mouth of the Fukushima River, where seawater pushed upstream.24
  • Renaming: in 1624 (Kan'ei 1), after an oracle at Tsukizaki Shrine (月崎神社), the villagers asked the Matsumae domain to rename the village Fukushima.2411
  • Why "Fukushima": this is uncertain. The town history suggests two ideas. It may pair with Fukuyama, the old name of the Matsumae castle town. Or it may borrow a lucky-sounding Fukushima place name from across the strait in Aomori.24
  • Yoshioka: Yoshioka was once Omunai (穏内), from the Ainu omu-nai, "a river with a blocked mouth". Silt probably clogged the mouth of the Yoshioka River. The name was changed to Yoshioka in the Edo period.24
  • Other Ainu names: most older place names are Ainu. According to the town history:24
    • Shirafu (白符) is from Chiropu, "a place with many birds".
    • Yakoshi (矢越) is from Yakushi, "a place where one passes inland".
    • Miyauta (宮歌) is from Miya-ota, "Miya sandy beach".
    • Shirakami (白神) means "land covered by the tide".
    • Many local names were simplified when place names were reorganized in 1938 (Yoshioka) and 1942 (Fukushima).

History
  • Jōmon era: the Tatesaki Site (館崎遺跡) was a village about 5,000–4,500 years ago, from the end of the Early Jōmon to the middle of the Middle Jōmon period. It was excavated in 2009–2011 before a Hokkaido Shinkansen power facility was built.25
    • Finds include one of Japan's largest stone figurines (岩偶, 37.1 cm long).
    • An obsidian arrowhead came from Kirigamine in Nagano, about 620 km away in a straight line.
    • Triangular slit earrings (けつ状耳飾) were also found. They show close contact with villages across the strait.
    • A Late Jōmon pot contained an estimated 500 maize weevils. That was the most ever found in a single pot.25
  • Satsumon period: the town has 32 registered archaeological sites. They include Ezodate-yama Chashi (蝦夷館山チャシ跡), a chashi (fort) site on the Tatesaki terrace. The town history thinks it was probably built in the Satsumon period.24
  • Medieval Wajin settlement: the town dates its founding to 1189. Tradition says that remnants of the defeated Ōshū Fujiwara clan crossed from Tsugaru and settled at Yoshioka.22
    • In the 15th century Onnai-date (穏内館) at Tatesaki was one of the twelve Wajin forts of southern Hokkaido. Its lord was Komotsuchi Suenao (蒋土季直).2224
    • The fort fell in the Ainu uprising of 1457 (Koshamain's War). It was probably destroyed again in the Ainu attacks of 1513.24
    • In 1573 the Tokiwai family founded the Shinmei Shrine, now Fukushima Daijingu (福島大神宮).11 The family served as its hereditary priests.24
  • Herring: a 1935 fisheries history says that Umanosuke, a man from Mutsu, came to Shirafu in 1447 to fish herring. This is the basis of the "birthplace of Hokkaido fishing" claim. The town history notes that the source for this is weak.24
  • Gold and Christian martyrs: the Senken gold field on the upper Shiriuchi River was worked from about 1617.1124
    • The Jesuit priest Carvalho (カルワーリュ) visited in 1620 and said Mass for Christian miners.1124
    • In 1639, on shogunate orders, 106 Christians, men and women and mostly gold miners, were beheaded: 50 at Ōsawa, 6 at Hiichi and 50 at the gold field.2224
  • Edo-period villages:
    • In 1662, according to local tradition, villagers held a kagura at the Shinmei Shrine to pray away a spell of darkness. The town regards this as the origin of Matsumae Kagura.20
    • The wandering monk Enkū stayed here in 1666 and carved a Kannon statue.21
    • The Miyauta Village Documents (宮歌村文書) cover 233 years, from 1656 to 1889. Miyauta was a fief of an Edo-based branch of the Matsumae family. A boundary dispute with neighboring Shirafu began in 1739 and lasted almost a century.21
  • Inō Tadataka (1800): the mapmaker's six-man survey party was bound for Hakodate, but the wind carried it to the Yoshioka River. It landed on 10 July 1800 and began surveying Hokkaido from Yoshioka the next day. This was the first step of his national survey.26
  • Boshin War (1868): former shogunate troops fought Matsumae forces in Fukushima.11 Hijikata Toshizō's men marched along the old Tonosama Kaidō road toward Matsumae Castle.27
  • World War II: on 14 July 1945 US carrier aircraft attacked the destroyer Yanagi, which was anchored off Fukushima. Townspeople cared for the wounded.28
  • Railway: the Fukuyama Line reached Oshima-Yoshioka in 1942. It became the Matsumae Line in 1953 and closed on 1 February 1988.11
  • The Seikan Tunnel:
    • The Hokkaido-side ground-breaking ceremony was held at Yoshioka on 11 February 1963, and the Yoshioka inclined shaft was started in 1964.29
    • Work on the tunnel base destroyed most of the Onnai-date site. An emergency excavation in November 1971 found Ming celadon and iron nails.24
    • In 1976 a flood of up to 85 tonnes of water a minute hit the Yoshioka work tunnel.29
    • The tunnel opened on 13 March 1988. It included Yoshioka Undersea Station, a stop for tunnel tours only. Its tours were suspended in 2006 and it formally closed in 2014.30
    • Many local fishermen became tunnel engineers who went on to work around the world.22
  • Finances: the town was placed under fiscal reconstruction in 1969 and recovered in 1972.11
  • Tourism facilities: the Yokozuna Memorial Museum opened in 1997,31 the rebuilt Seikan Tunnel Memorial Hall in 2005,32 Kaikyō Yokozuna Beach in 2011,17 the Inō Tadataka park in 201833 and Iwabe Cruise in 2019.4 The Hokkaido Shinkansen has run under the town since 2016, with no station.1129
  • Brown bear attacks: on 12 July 2025 a 52-year-old newspaper delivery worker was killed by a bear in a residential area of the town.34
    • Hokkaido issued its first-ever Brown Bear Warning (ヒグマ警報) the same day.
    • The bear was culled on 18 July. DNA showed it was the same bear that had killed an elderly woman in the town in 2021.34
    • The town and Oshima Subprefecture later wrote a review of their response.35
    • Restaurants cut their hours after the attack, so in September 2025 the town decided to give all 3,312 residents ¥10,000 in shopping vouchers for about 130 local shops, and ¥100,000 each to 15 businesses such as inns.36

Geography & climate
  • Setting: the town center lies at about 41°29′N, 140°15′E. Mount Daisengen is to the north and the Tsugaru Strait to the southeast.10 Most of the town is mountain forest.13
  • Mountains: Mount Daisengen (大千軒岳, 1,072 m) is the highest peak in the southwestern Oshima Peninsula.37
    • In 1896 it received Hokkaido's first first-order triangulation point.
    • It is one of Japan's 300 Famous Mountains and 100 Famous Flower Mountains.
    • On a clear day you can see Komagatake, Mount Hakodate, Okushiri and Oshima-Ōshima islands, and Hakkōda and Iwaki across the strait.37
    • Other peaks are Maesengen (前千軒岳, 1,056 m), Nanatsu-dake (七ツ岳, 957 m) and Iwabe-dake (岩部岳, 794 m).11
  • Rivers: the main rivers are the Fukushima River (福島川) and the upper Shiriuchi River (知内川) in the Senken area.11 The upper Shiriuchi was the center of the Senken gold field.24
  • Coast: about 30 km of rugged coast, centered on Cape Shirakami in Matsumae and stretching through Fukushima and Shiriuchi, was until recently almost impossible to reach. It is known as the "Shiretoko of Dōnan".18
    • The road from the town center to Iwabe passes Shiraito Falls (白糸の滝), Jorō-misaki (女郎岬) and Misago Falls (ミサゴの滝).
    • Cape Yakoshi (矢越岬) is still wild and can only be reached by sea.18
    • The Iwabe cliffs rise to about 200 m.38
  • The Blue Cave (青の洞窟): a sea cave on the Iwabe coast. Fishers call it Anama.39
    • Its entrance is about 3.5 m high at high tide and 7.5 m wide.
    • Inside it is about 80 m deep, up to 45 m wide and 11 m high (3D scan, 2018).
    • A travel magazine editor gave it the name "Blue Cave" around 2004.39
  • Park: the coast is part of Matsumae-Yagoshi Prefectural Natural Park (松前矢越道立自然公園), designated in 1968 and covering 2,052 ha.40
    • The Iwabe forest is a Hokkaido wildlife protection area and an important stop for migrating birds.
    • Pacific white-sided dolphins are the cetaceans most often seen in the park, and they can be watched from tour boats around Cape Yakoshi.40
    • On clear days the Tsugaru Peninsula is visible across the strait.17
  • Climate on the coast: the Tsushima Current gives the town the highest average temperature in Dōnan, according to the town.13 The town has no temperature station. The nearest is at Matsumae, to the west, with these 1991–2020 averages:41
    • annual mean 10.5 °C; January −0.5 °C; August 22.7 °C
    • annual precipitation 1,251.3 mm
    • Its records are 34.2 °C (24 August 2023) and −11.6 °C (24 January 2023).42
  • Snow inland: the Senken rain and snow gauge (千軒, 100 m) is inland in the town, and it is much wetter and snowier than the coast (1991–2020 averages):43
    • precipitation 2,163.9 mm a year
    • total snowfall 734 cm a year
    • average maximum snow depth 131 cm
    • Its records are 226 cm of snow on the ground (18 March 1984) and 197.5 mm of rain in one day (18 September 2017).44

Economy & industry
  • Fisheries: fishing is the core industry.45 The town's fisheries production was 543 t, worth ¥1,015 million, in 2023.46
    • The Fukushima-Yoshioka Fisheries Cooperative (福島吉岡漁協) lands at Fukushima port, which has Fukushima, Urawa and Shirafu districts. The other ports are Yoshioka and Iwabe.46
    • The fisheries plan (revised March 2025) says the kelp catch is stable but squid is slumping.46
    • Squid fishing and pole-and-line tuna fishing are the highlights of the local fleet.17
  • "Growing" fisheries: the town was an early mover in farming and rearing kelp, abalone and flounder. It also releases sea-urchin and sea-cucumber seed, and sells sea urchin packed in seawater (塩水ウニ).17
    • The seawater urchin is a popular hometown-tax gift and has sold out.46
    • Plans include ranching urchins inside the harbors and shipping seafood by Shinkansen. Catch landed at 6:00 could go on sale in Tokyo about 8.5 hours later.46
  • Land-farmed abalone: the tourism association promotes a land-based abalone farm, which it calls a first in Japan. The abalone are raised in running Tsugaru Strait seawater.47
  • Blue carbon: the cooperative and the town applied for blue carbon credits for their kelp farming. 369.9 t-CO₂ of J-Blue Credits were certified for October 2018–September 2023 and offered to buyers in 2024.45
  • Farming and forestry:48
    • Senken soba is grown in the Senken district.
    • "Yokozuna shiitake" (横綱椎茸) are grown on logs in greenhouses; shiitake from Hokkaido are unusual.
    • Forestry is mostly sugi cedar, sold as "Dōnan sugi".
  • Tourism: 243,600 visitors came in FY2024, up 14.9% from 212,100 in FY2023. That was 1.9% of the Oshima total.49
    • The town signed a tourism partnership with Japan Airlines in February 2024.50
    • It promotes Uccharī! (うっちゃり！), a short original anime set in Fukushima about the women-only sumo tournament.51 The anime won bronze in the regional revitalization category of the Kyoto Animonozukuri Award 2025.52 A sequel, Uccharī! 2, came out in April 2026.51
  • Decline: the population has fallen by more than two-thirds since 1955 (see At a glance).5 The fisheries plan lists an aging, shrinking population among the town's main problems.46 The town offers relocation grants for UIJ-turn workers and moving subsidies.7

Local specialties
Specialty Category Details & where to get it
Surume (するめ) Seafood product Dried squid processed in the town. Eat it as it is or lightly grilled.2 Hometown-tax gifts include additive-free, early-season local surume, large "Ōba" surume in 10-piece sets, and shredded surume (atarime).53
Squid products Seafood product Overnight-dried squid (ichiya-boshi) and salted squid (shiokara), sold at the Michi-no-Eki shop.2
Kelp (昆布) Seafood The Michi-no-Eki buys kelp directly from the processing plant, so prices are low.2 Gifts include shredded kelp and a soft-kelp set.53
Sea urchin in seawater (塩水ウニ) Seafood Local urchin packed in seawater. It is a popular hometown-tax gift and often sells out.4617
Senken soba (千軒そば) Noodles Buckwheat grown about 100 m above sea level at the foot of Daisengen, where days and nights differ sharply in temperature. It is naturally dried.23
• Senken Soba-ten (千軒そば店, Senken 283) serves it 11:30–14:30. It is closed Monday, Tuesday and Friday, and from January to March.23
• Its 100% buckwheat noodles are eaten with a view of the soba fields.48
Chanko-nabe (ちゃんこ鍋) Local dish The "soul food" of the yokozuna's hometown. Stable wrestlers serve it at events during the Kokonoe stable's summer camp.23
• Restaurant Takao (レストランたかお, Tsukizaki 306-1) and Yanshū Banya (やん衆番屋, Fukushima 19) serve it by reservation.23
Abalone curry (アワビカレー) Local dish Curry topped with three whole land-farmed abalone. It is served at five restaurants in the town, and each makes its own version.47
• Places listed include Restaurant Takao, Nomikuidokoro Sasai (飲み喰い処ささ井, Mitake 2), Kissa Time (喫茶タイム, Fukushima 286) and Izakaya Tome (居酒屋 留, Fukushima 289).23
Ika-tonbi pasta (いかとんび入り和風パスタ) Local dish Japanese-style pasta made with squid beaks (ika-tonbi). The sauce was developed with the Hakodate food truck WEST RIVER.47 It is served at seven restaurants and at the Seikan Tunnel Memorial Hall.47
Yokozuna shiitake (横綱椎茸) Mushrooms Log-grown shiitake raised in greenhouses.48
Blue Cave Cider (青の洞窟サイダー) Drink A local soda sold at the Michi-no-Eki.2
Festival food Seasonal The 2026 FOOD STADIUM offered tuna zuke-don, grilled spear squid with roe and a black-rice beer (黒米麦酒).54
Hometown tax (ふるさと納税) Gifts The gift list is mostly surume and other dried goods, tuna, squid, seaweed and sushi. It also includes venison, rice, sweets, crafts and a hot-spring ticket.53 Gifts are handled by the Fukushima Chamber of Commerce.53

Culture & festivals
Event When Highlights
Namara Fuyu Fes (なまら冬フェス 青年部バカタレ広場) February. It was held on 14 February 2026.55 A children's winter festival with games and an outdoor winter barbecue. It is run by the youth wing of the chamber of commerce. It replaced the Dosukoi Snow Festival in 2026.55
Hina & Musha Doll Festival (ひな・武者人形まつり) Late February to early May. The 17th festival ran 21 February–6 May 2026.56 Doll displays in the Chiroppu-kan gymnasium, made by the local group Chiroppu-kan no Kai.56
Tonosama Kaidō Walk (殿様街道探訪ウォーク) Early May and mid-to-late October127 A guided 7 km walk on a surviving stretch of the old Matsumae–Hakodate road through beech forest. Lunch is Senken soba and there is a Matsumae Kagura performance. It costs ¥3,000.27 The spring 2026 walk was cancelled because of frequent bear sightings.57
Hokkaido Women-Only Sumo Tournament (北海道女だけの相撲大会) Mother's Day in May. The 32nd tournament was held on 10 May 2026.58 Held on the sumo ring at Fukushima Daijingu. Entry is open to women of high-school age and older, with 64 places at ¥3,000, and winners receive prize money as in professional sumo. There are also a prize draw and a photo contest.19 The town profile calls it the quirky festival of Kawasusugi Shrine (川濯神社), a guardian deity of women.18
Chiyonofuji Cup Sumo Tournament (千代の富士杯争奪相撲大会) Mid-July1 A sumo tournament named after the town's yokozuna.
Shirafu Araumaodori (白符荒馬踊) July, at the Shirafu Daijingu festival21 Four dances representing the military power of the Matsumae domain. Tradition says Umanosuke brought them from Tsugaru. It has been town-designated since 1968.21
Martyrs' Mass at Senken (千軒 殉教ミサ) Last Sunday of July18 A pilgrimage Mass at the cross on the site of the Senken gold-mine guardhouse. Another cross stands on the Senken-daira ridge.1837
Kokonoe Stable summer camp (九重部屋夏合宿) Usually about two weeks in early to mid-August5960 Morning practice at the museum's replica practice ring, open to anyone with a museum ticket.59 It was cancelled in 2026.60
Yarube Fukushima Ika Matsuri & Kaikyō Fireworks (やるべ福島イカまつり＆海峡花火大会) 13 August61 A beach festival with a bingo and prize draw and stage shows. It ends with about 2,300 fireworks over the strait, the largest shells being size 7. The 2026 festival (36th) was announced as the first in three years, after two years lost to bad weather.62
Senken Soba Flower Viewing (千軒そばの花観賞会) Late August. It was held on 30 August 2026.63 Matsumae Kagura is performed on a stage in a sea of white soba flowers. There is also potato digging and all-you-can-eat salted-squid potatoes. Entry is ¥1,000 for adults and ¥500 for elementary and junior-high pupils.63
Fukushima Daijingu Grand Festival (福島大神宮例大祭) Mid-September, over four days. In 2026 it ran 11–16 September.64 An eve festival, then two days of processions and the main rite. The procession is led by the town-designated Shikasago (四ヶ散米) and yakko (奴) groups, and about a dozen floats go around the town.6420
Hokkaido Fukushima FOOD STADIUM Late September. The 5th was held on 20 September 2026.54 A food festival at the Seikan Tunnel Memorial Hall. Sister towns bring food: horse-mackerel fries from Matsuura and sake from Kiso.54 It began in 2022, when the new-soba festival and Country Festival were merged.65
South Hokkaido Ekiden (南北海道駅伝競走大会) Autumn. The Oshima overview lists 26 October (the 2025 date); the older town profile says November.118 A road relay with about 150 teams from across Hokkaido.18
  • Matsumae Kagura: the kagura was once performed inside Matsumae Castle and was handed down by Shinto priests. It is now performed across Dōnan and the Sea of Japan coast.21
    • It keeps all four types of kagura: dances with hand-held objects, shrine-maiden dances, a boiling-water rite and lion dances. It also includes the rare Okina-mai.
    • The designations came in stages. The town designated it in 1952. It was Hokkaido's first designated intangible cultural property in 1958, and was re-designated as a Hokkaido intangible folk cultural property in 2008. It became a national Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property on 8 March 2018.21
    • The Fukushima preservation society has published a pamphlet with English translations.66
  • Designated cultural properties:21
    • Kagura lion heads (神楽用獅子頭), made after an 1807 fire at Fukushima Daijingu destroyed the kagura tools. The Matsumae carver Seibei made them from local horse-chestnut wood, and they were town-designated in 1995.
    • Enkū's "Raigō Kannon" statue at Yoshino Church (吉野教会).11
    • The Miyauta Village Documents, a Hokkaido-designated property since 2004.
  • Museums:
    • Chiroppu-kan (チロップ館, Shirafu 442) shows Jōmon pottery and a soil profile from the Tatesaki Site, a great white shark tooth, fishing and farming tools, and Shōwa-era toys and household goods. Admission is free.56
    • The large stone figurine, the obsidian arrowhead and the slit earrings from Tatesaki are shown at the Yoshioka Community Center "Nagomēru" (吉岡総合センター なごめ〜る, Yoshioka 204-1). It is open 9:00–17:00, closed Mondays and 31 December–5 January.25
  • Local history book: the board of education publishes Hokkaido Fukushima Rekishi Monogatari as a free digital book. Its eight stories include Inō Tadataka, the two yokozuna, Matsumae Kagura and the Tokiwai priests, the Senken Christians, and the shift from herring to squid and kelp.67

Ainu heritage
  • Place names: most of the town's older names come from Ainu. Examples are Orikanai (Fukushima), Omunai (Yoshioka), Chiropu (Shirafu) and Yakushi (Yakoshi); see Name origin.24
  • Chashi: Ezodate-yama Chashi (蝦夷館山チャシ跡), a fort site on the Tatesaki terrace, is one of the town's registered sites. The town history thinks it probably dates from the Satsumon period, when many chashi were built.24
  • Conflict: the Wajin fort of Onnai-date at Yoshioka fell in the Ainu uprising of 1457 (Koshamain's War). It was probably destroyed again in the Ainu attacks of 1513.24 In the Edo period this coast lay inside the Matsumae domain's Wajin-chi (和人地), the zone set aside for Japanese settlement, which ran along about 220 km of coast from around Kameda to Kumaishi.24
  • Gaps: no Ainu cultural facility, museum display or living Ainu organization in the town was found in the sources reviewed.

Sister & friendship cities
  • Matsuura, Nagasaki Prefecture (長崎県松浦市) and Kiso, Nagano Prefecture (長野県木曽町): these ties began with two other towns also called Fukushima: Fukushima in Nagasaki Prefecture (now part of Matsuura) and Kiso-Fukushima in Nagano Prefecture (now part of Kiso).1185
    • The idea came after Fukushima's mayor made a courtesy call on the Nagasaki town in May 1987.
    • The three mayors adopted the "Fukushima Conference" (ふくしま会議) declaration in September 1989 and resolved on a three-town sister tie in November 1991.
    • They set out a five-point friendship pact in May 1993.85
    • Pupil homestay exchanges began in 1989 and staff exchanges in 1990.85
    • The tourism association now calls Matsuura and Kiso its friendship cities; both bring food to the FOOD STADIUM each September.6554
  • International: none found.

Notable people
  • Chiyonoyama Masanobu (千代の山雅信, 1926–1977): the 41st yokozuna and the first from Hokkaido. He was the son of a squid fisherman and later founded the Kokonoe stable.861
  • Chiyonofuji Mitsugu (千代の富士貢, 1955–2016): the 58th yokozuna, nicknamed "The Wolf". He won 31 top-division titles and received the People's Honour Award in 1989. Chiyonoyama recruited him from the same town at 15.14 The two went to the same elementary school.31
  • Nakajima Shōichi (中島正一): an ocean adventurer, featured in the town's history book as "the adventurer who took on the world's oceans".6711
  • Yamamoto Naoki (山本直樹, born 1960): a manga artist born in the town. His Red won an Excellence Award in the manga division of the 14th Japan Media Arts Festival.87
  • Ichiyamamoto Daiki (一山本大生): a professional sumo wrestler of the Hanaregoma stable who used to work at the town office.11 He was born in Iwanai, not Fukushima.88

Sources

Numbers in the text link to these sources. Figures as of 23 September 2026

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