What to know
Matsumae (松前) is a former castle town located just west of Cape Shirakami, the southernmost point of Hokkaido. Only 20 kilometers across the Tsugaru Strait from Aomori, Matsumae was the northern limit of Japan during the Edo Period and the sole feudal fief on the otherwise wild frontier of Hokkaido. The prosperous town attracted merchants involved in the shipping trade and was protected by a garrison at Matsumae Castle, the only Japanese-style castle ever built on Hokkaido.
Perched on a hillside vantage point, Matsumae Castle (also known as Fukushima Castle) established a foothold on Hokkaido to exploit the island's abundant natural resources. Toward the end of the Edo Period, the castle was equipped with cannons to defend against foreign ships. Like many Japanese castles, Matsumae Castle's original keep was destroyed several times over the centuries. The current three-story structure is a modern concrete reconstruction from the early 1960s, housing a local history museum that displays artifacts of the Matsumae clan, including items related to the Ainu.
The former castle grounds north of the keep have been transformed into the sprawling Matsumae Park, where rows upon rows of cherry trees are planted. Over ten thousand cherry trees representing more than 250 varieties can be seen around the grounds, earning the park a spot among the top 100 cherry blossom spots in Japan. Additionally, the park features a small Sakura Museum just north of the castle keep, with information about the development of the blossoms, along with photos and preserved specimens of the cherry tree types you can see around the grounds.
Thanks to the wide variety of cherry trees, Matsumae enjoys an unusually long blooming season from late April to late May. A sakura festival is held during much of that period, with food stalls, festival booths, and occasional live events on the grounds. The castle keep is also illuminated in the evenings until about 21:00 between April and November.
Matsumae's temple district lies adjacent to the castle grounds, just northwest of the keep. The district is filled with temples of various Buddhist sects. Many of these temples predate the construction of Matsumae Castle, making them some of the oldest and most culturally valuable structures in Hokkaido. Other notable sights in the temple district include the graveyard of the local Matsumae lords and the 200-year-old Kechimyaku Sakura (bloodline cherry), from which many of the park's cherry trees have descended.
Along the western edge of Matsumae Park is the Matsumaehan Yashiki, a small historical theme park that recreates Matsumae Town of the Edo Period with 14 buildings, including merchant houses, a magistrate's office, a shipping agent, and a guard station. Some buildings can be entered and display life-sized mannequins in period costumes. Visitors can also rent period costumes to wear while exploring the town.
Finally, the north end of Matsumae Park ends at the foot of Mount Shogun at a clearing in the cherry trees. This spot offers a viewpoint overlooking Matsumae's cherry groves to the Tsugaru Strait. The area is the entrance to the Hachijuhakkasho Hiking Circuit, a network of easy hiking trails on the side of Mount Shogun. A 20-minute trail leads through groves of mountain cherry trees to a hut about halfway up the mountain, with various Buddhist statues and monuments erected along the path.
A few other interesting attractions can be found in nearby Fukushima Town, located on the eastern side of Cape Shirakami from Matsumae. The town is notable as the northern end of the 54-kilometer-long Seikan Tunnel, the longest and deepest undersea rail tunnel in the world, which connects Hokkaido with Aomori Prefecture on Honshu.