Hokkaido Places

Town Shiribeshi Subprefecture

Rankoshi 蘭越町

らんこしちょう

Rankoshi is a rice-growing basin town on the lower Shiribetsu River, with most of the Niseko range behind it and a short stretch of Sea of Japan coast.12 It is known for its low-protein "Rankoshi rice", seven hot-spring areas including the steaming Ōyunuma pond, and a shell museum by the sea.345

Population (2020 Census)
4,568
Area
449.78 km²
District
Isoya District (磯谷郡)
Official website
www.town.rankoshi.hokkaido.jp

Known for

  • Rankoshi rice (らんこし米). About 3,000 ha of paddies line the Shiribetsu and its tributaries.21 Only first-grade rice that is 100% Rankoshi-grown, with a protein content of 6.8% or less, may carry the town's trademarked seal, which uses the Love-chan mascot as its logo.3 The town has hosted the national Kome-1 Grand Prix (米-1グランプリinらんこし), a contest for Japan's best-tasting rice, since 2011; the 15th final is on 21 November 2026.2223 In 2022 Rankoshi rice was picked for ANA international first-class meals.24
  • Seven onsen areas: Yumoto, Goshiki, Yunosato, Konbu, Konbugawa, Kogane and Niimi, each with a different spring type.4 They include the town-run Yukichichibu, with seven outdoor baths and a mud bath, and Yūsenkaku near JR Konbu Station.2526
  • Ōyunuma (大湯沼). This hot-spring pond steams all year and bubbles with volcanic gas from its bed.274
  • The Shiribetsu River (尻別川). In the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) annual water-quality survey, it placed first among Japan's class-A rivers (often jointly) in many years between 1999 and 2011.28 Counts of these "clearest river in Japan" titles differ: the Hokkaido Regional Development Bureau gives seven (1999–2002 and 2004–2006), while the local tourism association's site gives both 16 and 19.2930 Salmon and cherry salmon run up the river.29
  • The western Niseko range. Most of the Niseko range lies inside Rankoshi. Its peaks include Chisenupuri, Nitonupuri and Mekunnai-dake, several of them shared with neighbouring towns.2 The scenic Niseko Panorama Line crosses the range.31
  • The Shell Museum (蘭越町貝の館) on the coast. It shows about 1,500 species and 5,000 specimens, and the Shell Plaza Minato roadside station stands next to it.532
  • An Austrian sister city. The link with Saalfelden has run since 1969 and grew out of ski contacts at Chisenupuri.33
  • "Rice, onsen and flowers". Residents plant and look after flower beds across town, and a town-wide flower-bed contest is judged in late July.34

Sights & activities

Nature & scenery

  • Ōyunuma (大湯沼), Yumoto. Gas and steam rise from the bed of this 70 m × 30 m hot-spring pond below Chisenupuri, sending up a plume of white steam tens of metres high.4 A geyser erupted here until the mid-Taishō era (around 1920). Sulfur was pumped from the pond when prices soared during the First World War, and the geyser is said to have stopped in the early 1920s.27 Look for the rare hollow yellow sulfur spherules washed up on the edge.27 A nature exhibition hall opened beside the pond in 1996.44
  • Niseko Panorama Line (Hokkaido Route 66, Iwanai–Tōya). This mountain road climbs from the Sea of Japan across the Niseko range.31 Short walks along it lead to Shinsen-numa, a marsh pond in old-growth Sakhalin spruce and alpine flowers, and Naganuma, a gourd-shaped lake at 780 m.6667 The town promotes both, but Shinsen-numa itself lies just over the border in Kyowa.68 Konbu Onsen Park, about halfway along the road, has lawns and the Anbetsu forest.69
  • Kokkuri-ko (コックリ湖). A quiet lake in the Raiden mountains, ringed by Erman's birches 200–300 years old. It is about a 70-minute walk from the trailhead.70 It was found and named (狐狢狸湖) in 1894.38
  • Momiji-no-taki (紅葉の滝). This waterfall roars far below Hokkaido Route 268, about 500 m past Niimi Onsen towards Iwanai.71
  • Peaks. Chisenupuri, shared with Kyowa, has a shallow summit crater with a moor and small ponds. Its triangulation point is named "Hakamagoshi" (袴腰).48

Onsen (opening status changes often, so check first)4

  • Yukichichibu (蘭越町交流促進センター雪秩父), Aza Yunosato 680 (Yumoto Onsen area). Seven outdoor baths look out on Nitonupuri, and the women's side has a mud bath. There are two springs: a simple sulfur spring of the hydrogen-sulfide type and a simple "iron" spring. Reception runs 10:00–18:30 in summer (1 April–31 October) and 12:00–18:30 in winter. Closed Tuesdays, except holidays, New Year and Golden Week. Adults ¥900, primary pupils ¥300, cash only. Children under five and under 105 cm may not bathe. Tel. 0136-58-2328.25
  • Yūsenkaku (幽泉閣), Konbu-chō 114 (Konbugawa Onsen area). The town's page dates the spa to 1958,26 while the tourism association and the town chronicle give 1957 for the opening of the town bathhouse.416 The present bathhouse was rebuilt in 1997.444 It is known as a "beauty spring" (美人の湯) with sodium chloride–bicarbonate water and has the town's only mist sauna. Baths are open 10:00–21:30 (Mondays from noon). There is a restaurant and rooms for 79 guests. Tel. 0136-58-2131.2672444
  • Goshiki Onsen (ニセコ五色温泉). In the saddle between Niseko Annupuri and Iwaonupuri. Acidic sulfur water flows straight from the source, the colour changes from day to day, and day bathers are welcome.4
  • Konbu Onsen (昆布温泉郷). Five inns along a gorge that straddles the Rankoshi–Niseko border. The oldest, Koikawa Onsen (opened 1890), is currently closed.4
  • Kogane Onsen (黄金温泉). Day bathing May–October. The outdoor bath looks out on Annupuri and Yōtei.4
  • Yunosato Onsen takes lodge guests only. Niimi Onsen (found in 1908, on the flank of Mekunnai-dake): the main inn is closed for rebuilding, and a winter gate closes the road beyond.4

Museums & heritage

  • Shell Museum (蘭越町貝の館), Minato-machi 1401. The building is shaped like a bivalve. It shows 1,500 species (5,000 specimens) chosen from about 30,000 shells donated from all over Japan. Highlights are a 5 m model of an Ordovician straight-shelled nautiloid (チョッカクガイ), a 194 kg giant clam, live clione and a game about ocean plastic. Open April–October, 9:00–16:00. Closed Mondays and Tuesdays. Adults ¥200; high-school students and younger free.5 Museum staff have described new species here, including a clione named in 2017.73 An Atmosphere–Ocean Exchange Centre opened on site in 2022.24

Outdoor & seasonal activities

  • Camping at Furusato no Oka (see below) and the Yumoto Onsen campground. The Yumoto site needs no booking and takes 40 tents; its well water is not drinkable.74 The Niseko Sahina campground is open all year.75
  • Kayaking and rafting with H2O Adventure. In winter, snowmobile trips to private powder slopes run through PAR Powder Paradise and Golden Max Resort.75
  • Motorsport and cycling: rally rounds in summer and autumn40; the Niseko Classic road race started in 2014.22
  • Park golf at the Kaiki 100-nen no Mori park (18 holes).76
  • The "Waga-ya no Tanbo" project lets families follow a Rankoshi rice paddy through the year, ending with the harvest.30

Food experiences

  • Rankoshi-rice onigiri and restaurant meals at Machi no Chaya.52 Soba at Furusato no Oka.58 Seafood ramen, set meals and rice bowls at Drive-in Minato (ドライブインみなと).58 French pastries by a French pâtissier at Pâtisserie Frey.58

Roadside stations (Michi-no-Eki)

Rankoshi Furusato no Oka (道の駅らんこし・ふるさとの丘)

  • Location: Aza Aioi 969, Rankoshi, on National Route 5, between Sapporo and Hakodate. It looks out on the Niseko range and Mount Yōtei.5777 Tel. 0136-55-3251.5756
  • Hours: 9:00–17:00 (April–October); 9:00–16:00 (November–March). Open every day April–October. Closed Tuesdays November–March and 31 December–5 January. As of September 2026 — check before visiting.5756
  • Shops & products: Rankoshi rice (Yumepirika, Nanatsuboshi), fresh local vegetables, and pickles and wild-vegetable products such as sanshōzuke assortments, celery kimchi, butterbur and udo in moromi, and melon in sake lees.5754 Also Rankoshi no Taiyō tomato juice.54
  • Food: A soba counter makes noodles from Rankoshi-grown buckwheat and serves Rankoshi-rice onigiri.5857 The signature treat is Rankoshi ice cream. It is made from fresh milk at the ice-cream plant next door; vanilla costs ¥220.5654
  • Facilities: Parking for 2 large vehicles and 16 cars. Toilets (including accessible toilets) and the car park are open 24 hours, though the warm-water toilet seats are not. Also Wi-Fi, a shop, a restaurant, credit cards and other cashless payment.5777 Behind the station are 9-hole park golf and Furusato no Oka Campground. The campground has 10 powered auto sites (¥4,000), 4-person (¥3,000) and 2-person (¥2,500) bungalows without heating or cooling, and 15 tent platforms (¥1,000). Showers and a coin laundry are in the Mori to Ki no Sato Centre. It is open from early May to mid-October, booked online only, with check-in at the station 13:00–16:00. Fireworks are banned.7877 No EV charger is listed on the official pages.
  • Notes: Registered on 8 August 2003 (Hokkaido No. 77) and opened on 26 October 2003.5717 It grew out of a direct-sales centre that opened in 1992.43 The station stamp can be pressed during opening hours.57

Shell Plaza Minato (道の駅シェルプラザ・港)

  • Location: Minato-machi 1402-1, Rankoshi, on National Route 229, part of the Oiwake Sōran Line coastal drive along the Sea of Japan. It stands next to the shell-shaped Shell Museum.4579 Tel. 0136-56-2700.4532
  • Hours: 9:00–17:00 (April–October); 9:00–16:00 (November–March). Closed Tuesdays November–March and 31 December–5 January. The Shell Museum next door is open only April–October and closes on Mondays and Tuesdays. As of September 2026 — check before visiting.45325
  • Shops & products: Rare shells from around the world, shell crafts and shell accessories. Also processed products made from mountain produce, and Rankoshi rice and pickles.4554
  • Food: A coffee-and-snack corner only.45 For a full meal, the tourism association lists Drive-in Minato, with seafood ramen, set meals and bowls.58
  • Facilities: Parking for 2 large vehicles and 33 cars. Toilets (including accessible toilets) and the car park are open 24 hours. Also Wi-Fi, a shop, credit cards and other cashless payment, and the museum next door.4579 No EV charger or campground is listed.
  • Notes: Registered on 10 August 2005 (Hokkaido No. 88).45 It started as the Minato direct-sales centre "Shell Plaza", which opened in 1992.43 The station bills itself as a stop you can "enjoy twice over" (2倍楽しむ) because of the museum next door.45 The trail to Kokkuri-ko is about 4 km, roughly 1.5 hours on foot through forest.45

Getting there & around

  • Rail: The JR Hakodate Main Line (the "Yamasen" section between Oshamambe and Otaru) has three stations in town: Mena, Rankoshi and Konbu.7 Under the March 2024 timetable, one through train a day runs from Rankoshi to Sapporo via Kutchan (dep. 6:17, 2 h 33 min). Most trips mean changing at Kutchan or Otaru; Rankoshi–Kutchan takes about 33 minutes.53 The town's own page gives about 3 hours from both Sapporo and Hakodate.31 When the Hokkaido Shinkansen reaches Sapporo, the Oshamambe–Otaru line is expected to be replaced by buses. The Shinkansen itself will pass through the town without a station.537
  • Buses: Niseko Bus runs three routes. The Fukui Line runs inland via Konbu Station and Rankoshi, the Raiden Line runs along the coast between Suttsu, Minato-machi and Iwanai, and the seasonal Niseko Line runs to the Goshiki Onsen area.53 The town's free Ranran-gō (らんらん号) community bus runs set routes on set weekdays and is open to anyone.53
  • Roads: National Route 5 (Otaru/Sapporo–Hakodate) runs through the town centre, and Route 229 follows the coast. Hokkaido Route 66, the Niseko Panorama Line, crosses the mountains to Tōya.731 From Sapporo, Route 5 takes about 3 hours to Konbu. Route 230 via Kimobetsu and the Iwanai–Tōya road takes just under 3 hours.25 Parts of the main roads are on the Shikotsu–Tōya–Niseko Scenic Byway.7
  • Nearest hub and airport: For work, school and hospital visits, residents look mostly to Niseko and Kutchan.53 The nearest major airport is New Chitose, reached through Sapporo or by car across the Niseko area. No travel time was confirmed.
  • Taxi: Kobushi Hire (こぶしハイヤー) is based in town.7 Yukichichibu is about 30 minutes by taxi from JR Konbu Station.25

Practical tips

  • When to go. Flowers are at their best from late July to early September.34 October brings the new-rice festival and Kirara Republic festival, and November the Kome-1 Grand Prix.4023 In winter the Niseko powder draws skiers, and snowmobile tours run.3075
  • Visitor information. The Rankoshi Tourism & Local Specialities Association (蘭越町観光物産協会) has its office in Machi no Chaya at Rankoshi-chō 130 on Route 5, about 5 minutes on foot from JR Rankoshi Station (tel. 0136-51-2810). The shop is open 9:00–17:00. Its restaurant serves 11:00–14:00, with the café open until 17:00. Closed 31 December–3 January. Machi no Chaya has free parking for 30 cars and a PC for tourist information.5230
  • Winter. About 7.5 m of snow falls in an average winter.49 The road to Niimi Onsen closes at a winter gate.4 Check road conditions before driving the Niseko Panorama Line in the off-season.
  • Wildlife. The town posts brown bear (ヒグマ) sightings online. The latest posts, from late July to mid-August, report footprints and droppings in paddies and farm roads near Kyōei, Nagoma and Shimizu.80 Carry a bell and keep food locked away when camping.
  • Onsen etiquette and cash. Yukichichibu takes cash only, bans phones and valuables in the bathing area, and does not admit children under five.25
  • Fishing. The Shiribetsu has set open and closed seasons for angling, published by the town.81
  • Events and road closures. Rallies and cycle races close roads. The UCI Gran Fondo World Championships, for example, passed through Kutchan, Niseko, Rankoshi and Kyowa on 30 August 2026.30
  • Seasonal closures. The Shell Museum, Kogane Onsen and the campgrounds are open only from spring to autumn.5478

More about Rankoshi

At a glance
Field Details
Type Town (町)
Subprefecture Shiribeshi (後志総合振興局)
District Isoya District (磯谷郡). Rankoshi is the only municipality left in the district.6
Population 4,568 at the 2020 Census.27 The preliminary 2025 Census count is 4,346 (2,114 men, 2,232 women; 2,037 households), 4.9% fewer than in 2020.8 The resident register (住民基本台帳) counted 4,429 people (2,145 men, 2,284 women) in 2,439 households on 1 January 2026, including 237 foreign residents.9 Hokkaido's Juki-net reference figure for 31 August 2026 is 4,304 (2,075 men, 2,229 women), including 195 foreign residents.10 The town's Population Vision gives 4,566 for 2020, which is the sum of its three age groups.11
Area 449.78 km² (GSI, 1 April 2026).12 It is the largest municipality by area in Shiribeshi.2 It measures 23.2 km east–west and 31.1 km north–south.1
Density About 9.6 people/km² (resident register, August 2026); 10.2/km² at the 2020 Census (calculated)
Municipal history Split from Shiribetsu Village (尻別村) in 1899 as Minami-Shiribetsu Village (南尻別村), with its office at Mena (now Nagoma).1314 Second-class village in 1909.15 First-class village in 1940.7 On 1 December 1954 the village was renamed Rankoshi and became a town the same day.1316 On 1 April 1955 it took in the Kita-Shiribetsu area of Suttsu (now Minato-machi).16 In 2004 it left a five-municipality merger council and stayed independent.17
Neighboring municipalities Shiribeshi: Niseko, Kutchan, Suttsu, Kuromatsunai, Iwanai, Kyowa. Iburi: Toyoura.7 The town's own plan lists six neighbours and leaves out Kutchan.2 Kutchan meets Rankoshi on the Iwaonupuri and Nitonupuri peaks.1819
Symbols Town tree and flower: kobushi magnolia (こぶし), designated in 1985 (23 December).131 Emblem (1 December 1954): a stylised orchid (蘭) inside a ring of four katakana "コ".1 No town bird was found.
Mascot Love-chan (らぶちゃん), created on 24 December 1996. Two Rankoshi junior-high students won the public contests for the design and the name. The name joins "ra" from Rankoshi and "bu" from kobushi, and the character is a kobushi-flower fairy.20
Official website https://www.town.rankoshi.hokkaido.jp/

Name origin
  • Rankoshi (蘭越). The town says the name is a corruption of the Ainu ranko-us-i (ランコ・ウシ), "a place with many katsura trees".1 The Hokkaido government's Ainu place-name list gives the same reading, "katsura – grow in clusters – place" (カツラ・群生する・所), after the scholar Yamada Shūzō. The same list shows a second place called Rankoshi, in Chitose, with the same meaning.35 The kanji (蘭 "orchid", 越 "cross") only spell out the sound.
  • Why the town is not called Minami-Shiribetsu. From 1899 to 1954 the village was Minami-Shiribetsu ("South Shiribetsu"). When it became a town, it took the name of Rankoshi, the locality where its office stood. Japanese Wikipedia, citing the 1964 town history, gives the reasons. No station, post office or district was actually called Minami-Shiribetsu, so visitors got confused. "Rankoshi" was better known in Sapporo and Otaru. And "Minami-Shiribetsu" was hard to say clearly over the telephone.7
  • Shiribetsu (尻別). The river name comes from the Ainu sir-pet. Yamada and the Hokkaido Regional Development Bureau read it as "mountain river", a river that comes from deep in the mountains.3629 Other readings are si-ri-pet, "very high river" (Uehara), and "great high river" (Nagata). The list marks these as doubtful.36
  • Isoya (磯谷), the district name, is from the Ainu iso-ya, "rocky-shore bank".6

History
  • Before the Meiji era. The town's chronicle opens with a Nihon Shoki entry of 659 about a government post at "Shiribeshi". It then records Shakushain's War of 1669, which reached "Isoya" and left 20 dead. A Tsugaru record of the same period notes ten dwellings each on the Shiribetsu and Isoya rivers.37 Timber merchant Hidaya Kyūbei (飛騨屋久兵衛) began cutting Ezo spruce along the Shiribetsu in 1702. From 1737 he held five-year felling contracts that yielded 14,000–18,000 koku of timber a year.37
  • Isoya trading post. The coast was part of the Matsumae domain's Isoya basho (イソヤ場所).6 In 1807 inspectors found a trading house (運上家) at Shiribetsu but no Ainu homes; the nearby Ainu houses were at Shimakotan and Notto, further along the coast.37 In 1832 the post's contractor founded an Inari shrine at Kita-Shiribetsu. In 1856 contractors from Isoya and Iwanai cut the Raiden road over the cliffs to the north. In 1857 the explorer Matsuura Takeshirō travelled the Shiribetsu with four guides.37
  • Early settlers. A man from Tsugaru (Aomori) began farming at Nagatoro (now Hatsuta) in 1858. In 1871 five households from the former Yonezawa domain settled at Yonago (now Kyōei).37 In the 1880s–90s groups came from Ishikawa (several parties; 26 households went to the Mekunnai plain in 1891 alone), Kōchi, Iwate, Toyama and Aomori. In 1890 Tomabechi Kinjirō led 17 migrant households onto a 3-million-tsubo lease at Ōyachi.382 Around 1900 large tenant farms were opened with settlers from Ishikawa, Niigata, Gifu, Saitama and elsewhere. Kagawa settlers gave the Sanuki (讃岐) district its name.14391540
  • Hot springs and rice. A geyser found below Chisenupuri in 1885 grew into Yumoto Onsen.38 Koikawa Onsen at Konbu opened in 1890.4 Narita Onsen (1896, now Yakushi) and Niimi Onsen (found in 1908) followed.1439 A Toyama settler began a trial paddy near the river mouth (東土場) in 1885, and a Shiga settler's trial paddy at Washinosawa yielded five bales of rice in 1894.38
  • 1899–1914. Minami-Shiribetsu Village split off in 1899 with 517 households and 2,212 people.14 The Hokkaido Railway (now the JR Hakodate Main Line) opened on 15 October 1904 with Isoya (now Mena), Rankoshi and Konbu stations.39 By 1909 the village had 7,688 people.15 In a storm in August 1913 a train fell into a river between Mena and Neppu, killing 7 people and injuring 67. In February 1914 the village office moved from Mena to Rankoshi.15
  • Mining and power. Sulfur was mined on Niseko-An from 1879, with Mitsui taking over in 1886.38 Hydroelectric plants opened at Konbu in 1938 and Rankoshi in 1951.7 Manganese was worked near Niimi from 1951, and a sulfur refinery opened at Konbu in 1956.4116
  • Town status. Rankoshi became a town on 1 December 1954 and took in the coastal Kita-Shiribetsu area on 1 April 1955.16 In 1958 the Niseko hot springs (Yumoto, Konbu, Niseko, Niimi) were designated a national health-resort spa by the Ministry of Health and Welfare. The Niseko range became part of the Niseko-Shakotan-Otaru Kaigan Quasi-National Park in 1963.162
  • Late 20th century. The Saalfelden sister-city link began in 1969.33 The town-run Chisenupuri ski area reopened in December 1991 with longer runs and a new double chairlift, the year the Shell Museum opened.42 Direct-sales centres at Furusato no Oka and Minato opened in 1992.43 In 1997 the Hokkaido rice-quality study group named Rankoshi one of ten "Special A" (特A) districts for Kirara 397 rice.44 In 1998 fossils of the "Rankoshi sea cow" (ランコシカイギュウ) were dug from the Shiribetsu riverbed below the Rankoshi power station.17
  • Recent years. In September 2004 the town council voted to leave the merger council with Niseko, Makkari, Kimobetsu and Kutchan.17 The two roadside stations opened in 2003 and 2005.1745 In 2011 the Kome-1 Grand Prix began, and 2014 saw the first Niseko Classic cycle race and the first Seseragi festival. A safety-prayer ceremony for a Hokkaido Shinkansen tunnel section (Konbu Tunnel, Katsuradai) was held in 2014.22 A tsunami evacuation tower went up at Minato in 2021.24 On 29 June 2023, arsenic-bearing steam burst from a geothermal survey well at Yunosato. Nineteen people reported feeling unwell before the vent was sealed on 28 August.7

Geography & climate
  • A river basin. Rankoshi lies in the south-west of Shiribeshi. Mountains ring a basin, and the Shiribetsu, the largest river in southern Hokkaido (道南), flows about 30 km east to west through the middle of town to the Sea of Japan.1 The river rises at Ōtaki in Date, is 126 km long and drains 1,640 km². It reaches the sea at Isoya in Rankoshi.229 Inside the town it gathers 54 tributaries, including the Konbu and Mena rivers.2 The town's coastline is about 4 km long.5
  • Mountains. The Raiden and Niseko groups stand to the north. Peaks include Raiden-yama (雷電山, 1,211.3 m),46 Mekunnai-dake (目国内岳, 1,220 m),47 Chisenupuri (チセヌプリ, 1,134.2 m)48 and Iwaonupuri (イワオヌプリ, 1,116 m), which is an active volcano.18 The area belongs to the Niseko-Shakotan-Otaru Kaigan Quasi-National Park (ニセコ積丹小樽海岸国定公園). Horobetsu-dake and Horonai-yama rise in the south-west.2
  • Land use. Forest covers more than 78% of the town.2 In the tax records (1 January 2023), forest covers 187.70 km², wilderness 35.11 km², paddy fields 34.71 km², upland fields 8.03 km² and building land 3.19 km².1
  • Climate. The basin has an inland climate, with hot summers and cold winters.2 The JMA Rankoshi station has 1991–2020 normals of 7.8 °C for the year, −4.2 °C in January and 20.9 °C in August. Normal precipitation is 1,220.4 mm a year. About 746 cm of snow falls each winter, and the average deepest snow cover is 129 cm.49 Records at the station are 35.4 °C (23 August 2023), −24.7 °C (25 January 1985) and 200 cm of snow cover (21 February 1988).50 The town is a designated special heavy-snow area (特別豪雪地帯).1

Economy & industry

  • Farming is the core industry. The 2020 agricultural census counted 245 farm households, 154 of them main-business farms (主業). There were 3,970 ha of cultivated land (2,930 ha paddy, 1,040 ha upland) in 2022.51 Crop figures for 2023:

    Crop Area (ha) Harvest (t)
    Rice 1,540 8,370
    Buckwheat 204 253
    Soybeans 188 335
    Wheat and barley 111 329

    Source: town industry statistics.51

  • Rice quality. To lower protein content, growers accept smaller yields and hold back on nitrogen fertiliser.52 In 2022 a Rankoshi grower's Yumepirika won the top gold award at a national rice contest.24 Growers on the higher ground are moving to mixed rice-and-field farming. They grow melons, strawberries, asparagus, tomatoes, pumpkins and spinach, and the town's industry page mentions some beef and dairy farms.21 The 2023 livestock survey, however, counted a single dairy farm (71 cows) and no beef-cattle farms.51

  • Fishing and forestry are small. In 2023 the town had 3 fishing households with 3 fishers and 2 boats. The 2022 catch was worth ¥39.5 million.51 Almost all of that value is in sea animals rather than shellfish (¥87,000).51 The focus is on cultivating stocks such as sea urchin, and the fishers work with the Suttsu fisheries cooperative from Shiribetsu fishing port.212

  • Jobs. At the 2020 Census, 25.4% of working residents were in primary industries, 15.3% in secondary and 59.3% in tertiary.1 The working population fell from 4,438 in 1975 to 2,252 in 2020; primary-industry workers fell by 74.3% over the same period.2

  • Tourism. The town recorded 597,800 visitors in FY2023: 531,200 day-trippers and 66,600 overnight guests. About 90% of visitors come for the day.532 Yukichichibu draws about 50,000 bathers a year and the Shell Museum about 3,000. Sales at the two roadside stations' direct-sales centres have been flat.2 The town is part of the Niseko tourism zone with Niseko and Kutchan.30 Most new businesses now target overseas visitors, and foreign investment has raised demand for housing.2

  • Population. Census population fell from 8,574 in 1975 to 4,568 in 2020, a 46.7% drop. The share of residents aged 65 or older rose from 10.6% to 40.0% over the same period. The town projects 3,848 people in 2030 and 2,640 in 2050.211 The town's answers include housing for migrants and young families, support for new farmers, and joint research with universities on growing medicinal plants.224

Local specialties
Specialty Category Details & where to get it
Rankoshi rice (らんこし米): Yumepirika, Nanatsuboshi Rice The town's signature product. At the roadside stations and Yūsenkaku a 5 kg bag of Yumepirika costs ¥5,600 and Nanatsuboshi ¥4,900.54 It is also the main furusato nozei gift.55 The Rankoshi Shinmai Matsuri (new-rice festival) in October sells direct from more than 15 farms.40
Rice-ball set meals and onigiri Local food Machi no Chaya (街の茶屋), the town's antenna shop on Route 5, cooks only Rankoshi rice. Onigiri include plain salt (¥130), salmon (¥190) and "fox-cub butter" (子ぎつねバター, ¥180).52
Rankoshi ice cream (らんこしアイスクリーム) Dairy Made from fresh milk at the ice-cream plant next to Rankoshi Furusato no Oka. Vanilla costs ¥220. Also sold in shops around town.545657
Rankoshi soba Noodles Soba made from Rankoshi-grown buckwheat is served at Furusato no Oka.5758 Dried soba called Hana no Machi (花のまち) is a furusato nozei gift.59
Pickles and wild-vegetable products Preserves Melon pickled in sake lees (メロン粕漬), celery kimchi, butterbur in moromi, udo pickles, sanshōzuke (三升漬) and boiled bracken or bamboo shoots. Sold at both roadside stations and Yūsenkaku.5457
Rankoshi no Taiyō (蘭越のたいよう) Tomato juice 1,000 ml bottle, ¥1,080.54 The town's tomato growers' group marked its 10th anniversary in 2008.22
Niseko Yukiman (ニセコ雪饅) Sweets From Okashi no Horikawa (お菓子のほりかわ). It won the honorary president's gold medal at the 16th National Confectionery Exposition in 1965. The shop also makes a rice-flour roll cake from Rankoshi rice.6058
Keiryū-yaki (渓流焼) Sweets A bean-paste cake from Kashiho Keiryūdō (菓子舗渓流堂).58
Rice-flour financiers Sweets A furusato nozei gift, sold as a 15-piece set of 3 flavours.59
Local sake Rankoshi Yume Kizuna (蘭越ゆめ絆) and UPAS (ウパシ) Drink Yume Kizuna was launched in December 2017.22 UPAS is a sparkling sake made from organically grown Rankoshi rice.59
Shells and shell crafts Souvenirs Rare shells from around the world, shell crafts and accessories at Shell Plaza Minato.45
Nemagari bamboo craft (根曲がり竹細工) Craft Kept alive by a local research group, which marked its 30th anniversary in 2013.22
Furusato nozei gifts Various Rice first, plus Yūsenkaku bath tickets and stay vouchers, Kita-akari potatoes and sweets.5559

Culture & festivals
Event When Highlights
TGR Rally Challenge in Rankoshi September in 2026 (13 September); the 2025 round was held 31 May–1 June A Toyota Gazoo Racing rally on gravel (unpaved) roads.40
ARK Rally Kamui July (10–12 July 2026) Round 5 of the JAF All-Japan Rally Championship, with forest gravel stages in the Niseko, Kyōgoku and Rankoshi areas and spectator areas.40
Rankoshi Seseragi Matsuri (らんこしせせらぎまつり) Late July (25–26 July 2026) Held at Shiribetsu River Ranran Park, with local food and stage shows. The fireworks on the first night are fired by Wajima Enka (和島煙火), a Rankoshi firework maker, with seven firms from other prefectures.40
Flower-bed contest and flower-bed bus tour Late July; early August Flower beds all over town are judged, then shown on a bus tour. Flowers are at their best from late July to early September.34
Mitsuwa Bon dance and fireworks (三和盆踊り・打上花火) 8 August 2026 Run by volunteers of the Mitsuwa (みつわ) district at the Mitsuwa Hotaru-no-Sato hall (Aza Mitsuwa 414). Fireworks at 20:00 in 2026, 30 minutes earlier than usual. Roads around the venue close from 19:00, and shuttle buses run.40
Rankoshi summer Bon dance (納涼盆踊り大会) 15 August 2026 Held in the Machi no Chaya car park, with a beer garden from 16:00, a children's Bon dance at 17:30, children's hand-held fireworks at 18:45 and the adult dance from 19:15.40
Mena Hachiman Shrine eve festival (目名八幡神社宵宮祭) September Two dances are performed. Sanuki Mizuho Kagura (讃岐瑞穂神楽) was begun around 1903 by settlers from Kagawa in the Sanuki district. The Shimo-Garō lion-dance kagura (下賀老獅子舞神楽) is said to have been brought from Kuroishi, Aomori, in 1914 by settlers in what is now Aioi.40
Kirara Republic founding festival (キララ共和国建国祭) Early October (4 October 2026, 30th) A "mini independent nation" named after Kirara 397 rice, founded in 1994. The shopping street serves a giant mushroom hot pot, with a flea market and live music.4061
Rankoshi Shinmai Matsuri (らんこし新米まつり) October (10–11 October 2026, 6th) New-crop rice sold direct by more than 15 growers at the Sanson Kaihatsu Center, 10:00–14:00. Park at Ranran Park and take the free shuttle. The winner of a rock-paper-scissors contest takes home a 60 kg bale of rice.40
Kome-1 Grand Prix in Rankoshi November (15th final on 21 November 2026) Growers from all over Japan send rice for screening, held 21–28 October in 2026. The final at the Sanson Kaihatsu Center runs knockout tasting rounds. In past years the judging was open to the public with tastings; the 2026 side events were still undecided in September.2340
  • Performing arts. The Ōnanbu Kagura preservation society (大南部神楽保存会) performed in Saalfelden in 1996.33 The Shimo-Garō lion dance appeared on NHK's Furusato no Uta Matsuri at the Otaru Civic Hall in December 1967, and the show was broadcast nationwide.62
  • Shrines and temples. Rankoshi Hachiman Shrine was founded in 1898, with its deity brought from Saki Shrine in Ishikawa.14 Mena Hachiman Shrine dates from 1907.39 A memorial to unnamed pioneers was set up at Zuiryūji temple in Nagoma in 1956.16
  • Local history. The Rankoshi Furusato Learning Centre (蘭越ふるさと学習館) fills the former Nagoma Elementary School with old rice-farming tools, a restored home, a classroom and a horse stable. It opens only by appointment (tel. 0136-57-5030).63

Ainu heritage

The sources consulted document little Ainu history specific to Rankoshi. The town chronicle shows dwellings along the Shiribetsu and Isoya rivers in the 17th century and records that Shakushain's War of 1669 reached Isoya, leaving 20 dead.37 By 1807 the Shiribetsu river mouth had only a Japanese trading house; the nearest Ainu settlements (27 houses) were on the coast at Shimakotan and Notto, now part of Suttsu.37 The living legacy is mostly in place names:

  • Rankoshi, ranko-us-i: many katsura trees.35
  • Shiribetsu, sir-pet: mountain river.36
  • Chisenupuri, cise-nupuri: a mountain shaped like a chise, the traditional Ainu house.48
  • Isoya, iso-ya: rocky shore.6
  • Mena (目名), from the Ainu river name mena. Its meaning is unclear; "tributary", "thin stream" and "pool" have all been proposed.64
  • Konbu (昆布), also uncertain. It may come from tokonpo-nupuri ("small lump mountain") or from a legend that kelp was once found on a mountaintop after a tsunami.65

No Ainu cultural facility was found in the town. The main national centre, Upopoy, is in Shiraoi.

Sister & friendship cities
  • Saalfelden am Steinernen Meer (Salzburg, Austria), sister city since 15 October 1969. The link grew out of the town ski lift at Chisenupuri, finished in December 1967. The Austrian ambassador, who came each year with instructors of a Japan–Austria ski school held there, attended the opening, and the town asked for help finding a partner. Saalfelden, home town of the ski school's head, was suggested. The agreement was signed at Saalfelden town hall, and the mayor of Saalfelden came to Rankoshi in 1972 to sign a Japanese-language version.33 Rankoshi High School has been twinned with an HBLA school in Saalfelden since 1995. Town study tours have visited every year since October 1989.33 For the 55th anniversary in 2024, Rankoshi sent samue work clothes, and Saalfelden replied with goods from its international jazz festival.82
  • No domestic sister or friendship city was found.

Notable people
  • Kaneishi Seizen (金石清禅), politician and former member of the House of Councillors.7
  • Kodera Jirō (小寺次郎), diplomat. He headed the Foreign Ministry's European Affairs Bureau and was ambassador to Saudi Arabia.7
  • Komatsu Ken'ichi (小松研一), engineer and former president of Toshiba Medical Systems.7
  • Wajima Naoyuki (輪嶋直幸), NHK radio and TV exercise instructor. He was the sixth "exercise big brother" (たいそうのおにいさん) on Okaasan to Issho.7
  • Masuda Masato (増田雅人), game designer, creator of Pro Wrestling (Nintendo) and Fire Pro Wrestling.7
  • Nanbu Akiko (南部明子), educator and first president of Kōen Gakuen Women's Junior College.7

Sources

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

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