The is a privately owned
ferry service crossing the
Tsugaru Strait
The is a strait between Honshu and Hokkaido in northern Japan connecting the Sea of Japan with the Pacific Ocean. It was named after the western part of Aomori Prefecture. The Seikan Tunnel passes under it at its narrowest point 12.1 miles (1 ...
, which separates the Japanese islands of
Hokkaido
is Japan's second largest island and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by the undersea railway Seikan Tunnel.
The lar ...
and
Honshu
, historically called , is the largest and most populous island of Japan. It is located south of Hokkaidō across the Tsugaru Strait, north of Shikoku across the Inland Sea, and northeast of Kyūshū across the Kanmon Straits. The island se ...
. The company, , was founded in 1973 and runs between the cities of
Aomori on the northern tip of Honshu and
Hakodate
is a city and port located in Oshima Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. It is the capital city of Oshima Subprefecture. As of July 31, 2011, the city has an estimated population of 279,851 with 143,221 households, and a population density of 412.8 ...
in southern Hokkaido.
Route
This route links the
Port of Hakodate in Hakodate with the Port of Aomori in
Aomori. A trip takes three hours and twenty minutes one way, and is operated by four ships: the ''Hayabusa'', ''Hayabusa 3'', ''Asakaze 5'', and ''Asakaze 21''. Each ship makes two round trips a day, with a total of eight round trips per day between Aomori and Hakodate. With the conversion of the
Seikan Tunnel
The Seikan Tunnel ( ja, 青函トンネル, or , ), is a dual-gauge railway tunnel in Japan, with a portion under the seabed of the Tsugaru Strait, which separates Aomori Prefecture on the main Japanese island of Honshu from the northern isl ...
from conventional trains to the
Hokkaido Shinkansen
The is a Japanese high-speed Shinkansen rail line that links up with the Tōhoku Shinkansen in northern Aomori Prefecture in Honshu and continues on into the interior of Hokkaido through the undersea Seikan Tunnel. Construction started in May ...
, this route has seen a resurgence in ridership as a budget alternative between Aomori and Hakodate.
Fleet
See also
*
*
References
External links
*
{{Hokkaidō transit
1973 establishments in Japan
Transport in Aomori Prefecture
Transport in Hokkaido
Ferry transport in Japan
Ferry companies of Japan