Tanuki Koji

(Image: www.welcome.city.sapporo.jp)

Tanukikoji is an approximately 1km-long arcade with about 200 shops that runs east to west in downtown Sapporo. The roofed arcade which can be used regardless of the weather starts at Nishi-1-chome and ends at Nishi-7-chome. The arcade was developed during the frontier period. In 1869, when the Meiji government established the Hokkaido Development Commission in Sapporo, shops and restaurants began to pop up in what is known today the Tanukikoji 2 and 3-chome areas. Later in 1873, the neighborhood became known as “Tanukikoji”. The arcade, which many tourists visit, features both old and new shops, souvenir shops, and karaoke bars. The lively arcade may offer a new discovery everywhere you reach.