After a short overnight cruise we arrive in Muroran this morning for our final destination and our last day in Japan.

Day 71 – May 13th.

Cruise Day 4 – Muroran, Japan.

Breakfast in the restaurant this morning, before heading out to Muroran our final port of call in Japan.

We docked early and have plenty of time to explore.

A bus is available for those that have not booked tours at a cost of $10, so we jump on and make our way to town. First impressions are of a run down place, very much in need of repair, a ghost town.

Muroran ghost town

As we hop on and off the bus for a few stops we can see than there’s more to Muroran than a ghost town.

The Muroran Hachimanguu Shinto Shrine

This shrine is at the top of these few steps.

The Hachimanguu Shinto Shrine

Muroran is famous for steel manufacturing

The town is famous for iron manufacturing, the local product is called “bolta”, and ‘nuts n bolts’ figures are made as souvenirs.

We stop off and check-in with the free wifi service that is available at one of the stores before heading off to the next stop on the bus.

Chuo-cho Downtown

This is where we saw the old train station which is now a display house, here we were treated to a cultural display and dance from locals. Wonderful how these folk are so proud of their history.

Traditional dance display

The Hakucho bridge at Muroran

Then we head back on the bus to the ship, passing over the Hakucho bridge, which is the largest suspension bridge in eastern Japan. Unfortunately the weather is not so great and the pictures don’t do it any justice.

The Hakucho bridge at Muroran

Even though our stop in Muroran was basically used as the point to visit the city Sapporo we had decided that the time to get there and back was too short to really get the most out of a city like that.

Back on board

We have to bring our passports for stamping and the line of people stretches for some distance, but it has to be done. You don’t need to wait in line, you can relax and wait for the amount of people to drop off and then go.

The crazy queue for passport check

After spending over an hour achieving this task we decided to take time out and have a coffee, an ice cream and read a bit.

Ice cream from the gelateria opposite the café al bacio

Later this evening we set sail for Petropavlosk in Russia, saying goodbye to Japan and our wonderful friends. But before we do it’s dinner time.

Dinner in the Metropolitan on Celebrity Millennium

With the sun setting and darkness rolling in we slowly farewell Muroran and Japan, what an amazing time we have had, a place that makes me feel very humble.

As the sun sets and night-time creeps in we slowly depart Japan

Until next time…

Let us know in the comments

We’d love to hear your thoughts on Muroran or Japan as a destination. Is Japan on your bucket list? Would you enjoy a plate of fresh sushi? Have you cruised to Japan before?

Let us hear from you in the comments below. If you want to continue reading about our cruise which now heads across to Russia then stay with us and enjoy the next post.