Getting there & away
Land
Bus
Between April and mid-November, JR runs five to eight buses daily from stop 8 outside the train station to Towada-ko (¥3000, 4¾ hours); the last bus leaves at 2.30pm. The bus stops at the Hakkōda ropeway (cable car; ¥1070, 50 minutes), then runs via the glorious Sukayu Onsen (p533; ¥1300, one hour) onto the Oirase Valley and the lake.
JR also operates six buses daily to both Morioka (¥3160, three hours) and Sendai (¥5700, five hours), and one night bus to Tokyo (¥10, 000, 9½ hours); buses depart from the Highway Bus stop 10 outside the station-side tourist information office.
To visit Osore-zan (Shimokita-hantō), direct buses leave the ASPAM building at 11.55am, 1.55pm and 5pm for Mutsu via Noheji (¥2520, 2¾ hours).
Train
The JR Tsugaru Kaikyō line runs from Aomori via the Seikan Tunnel to Hakodate on Hokkaidō (tokkyū, ¥5140, two hours). Kaisoku trains do the trip in 2½ hours, and on some of these services (¥3150) you take the Seikan Tunnel tour.
The JR Tōhoku Main line runs south from Aomori to Morioka (tokkyū, ¥5960, two hours), from where you can zip back to Tokyo in 2½ hours on the shinkansen. The Ōu Main line runs via Hirosaki to Akita (¥3260 4½ hours) where you can pick up the Akita shinkansen.
Boat
Passenger ferries to Hakodate leave year-round (¥1850, 3¾ hours), while one ferry departs for Muroran (Hokkaidō) daily at 1.30pm (¥3460). Coming back, an overnighter leaves Muroran at 11.25pm (¥3460, 6¾ hours each way).
The ferry terminal, on the western side of the city, is a 10-minute taxi ride from Aomori station.
Air
There are frequent flights from Aomori airport to major Japanese cities (Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, Nagoya) and an international connection to Seoul. Airport buses are timed for flights and depart from the front of the ASPAM building and Aomori station (¥560, 40 minutes).
Aomori
- Aomori Overview
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Getting there & around
- Practical information
