Rebun and Rishiri Ferry: Fares, Times and Winter Schedule

Last checked against official sources on 2026-10-23

Heart Land Ferry's fuel surcharge is not being collected from October 2026, and the operator confirmed on 14 October 2026 that it will not be collected from January 2027 either. An adult 2nd class ticket from Wakkanai costs ¥3,590 to Rishiri and ¥3,950 to Rebun one way. The ship Boreas Soya retires on 31 October 2026, online booking is suspended until early November, and the winter timetable starts on 1 November.

What has changed recently

Heart Land Ferry runs the car ferries from Wakkanai to Rishiri and Rebun. Several things changed in 2026, and English-language guides may not reflect them.

• Fuel surcharge introduced, then not collected. A surcharge started on 1 April 2026, applying when ship fuel goes above 117 yen 99 sen per litre and reviewed every three months. It was not collected from October 2026, and on 14 October 2026 the company said it will not collect it from January 2027 either (the July–September 2026 average was 126.2 yen per litre). The fare table shows a surcharge of 0.
• Fares: a fare increase was announced on 5 July 2024 for 1 October 2024. That table has the same figures as the one now valid for 1 January–31 December 2026, so older guides quoting lower prices are out of date.
• Boreas Soya retires on 31 October 2026 after 23 years on the route. A new ship, Trollius Soya, was launched on 16 July 2026 and is due to enter service in early spring 2027.
• Online booking is down. The web reservation system is under maintenance and is planned to restart in early November 2026. Until then, book by phone on 0162-23-3780.
• 31 October 2026 is also the last day of the onboard shop for the season and of the Seaside Restaurant yu-rai in the Wakkanai terminal. After that, only vending machines sell food and drink on board.
• Boarding gates: quay works that began in May 2026 are finished. Since 20 September 2026, passengers for Rishiri use passenger gate 1 and those for Rebun use gate 2.

Getting to Wakkanai Port

All sailings to the islands leave from the Wakkanai Port Ferry Terminal at 2-7-1 Kaiun, Wakkanai. Wakkanai is the end of the JR Soya Main Line from Asahikawa; the city's transport page links to JR Hokkaido, ANA and Soya Bus for timetables.

• From JR Wakkanai Station: about 15 minutes on foot, or about 2 minutes by taxi.
• From Wakkanai Airport: about 35 minutes by bus or about 30 minutes by taxi.
• By car: the terminal car park has about 90 spaces and charges 1,000 yen per day, or 2,000 yen for one night.
• Left luggage: all four ferry terminals (Wakkanai, Oshidomari, Kutsugata and Kafuka) have coin lockers.

On Rishiri, the Oshidomari terminal is about 10 minutes by taxi from Rishiri Airport and Kutsugata about 20 minutes.

Routes, crossing times and fares

Three routes are sold: Wakkanai to Rishiri (Oshidomari), Wakkanai to Rebun (Kafuka), and between the two islands. Fares are one way, include consumption tax and are valid for 1 January–31 December 2026.

The fare table lists one Wakkanai–Rebun fare, so calling at Oshidomari does not change the price shown. Crossing times come from the April–October 2026 vessel schedule.

• Children: elementary-school children pay half. Up to two pre-school children aged 1 or over travel free with each adult, unless they use reserved seats.
• 1st class (lounge, island-view seat or tatami room) includes a seat charge of ¥660 on Wakkanai routes and ¥310 between the islands.
• Special cabin: each person also pays the 2nd class fare. Cabins hold 6 people on Cyprea Soya and Boreas Soya and 4 on Amapola Soya.
• Discounts: students with a student ID get 20 percent off 2nd class, groups of 15 or more get 10 percent off, and passengers with disability certificates pay half fare.
• Ticket books: 11 tickets for the price of ten, valid two months.
• Payment: cash or major credit cards; contactless and QR payment at the Wakkanai counter started on 8 April 2026.

Timetable: summer, autumn and winter

The 2026 timetable is valid for 1 January–31 December 2026 and has five seasonal periods. Times below are departure – arrival. Up to two extra sailings a day may be added. The winter timetable starts on 1 November and matches the one used from 1 January to 27 April.

Wakkanai and Rishiri (Oshidomari)

Wakkanai and Rebun (Kafuka) (times in brackets call at Oshidomari on the way)

Rishiri and Rebun

Booking, tickets and check-in

• When booking opens: from 09:00 two months before the same date, for cars and individuals. Groups of 15 or more can book from 1 November of the previous year. For a round trip or a loop around both islands, the island and return legs within 14 days of the outward trip can be booked together.
• Phone booking is open 09:00–17:00 on 0162-23-3780. Online booking is suspended until early November 2026 (see above). Cars booked online get 5 percent off.
• You can board without a reservation if there is space. Reservations for 2nd class cabins are not taken for fewer than 15 people, so buy a 2nd class ticket at the counter or from a ticket machine on the day. There are three machines at Wakkanai and one each at Oshidomari and Kafuka; they take cash or chip credit cards with a PIN.
• Check-in: the counter opens about an hour before departure. Check in at least 40 minutes before for 2nd class, cars, bicycles and motorcycles. If you hold a 1st class, special cabin or reserved seat ticket, collect it at least 20 minutes before departure or the reservation can be cancelled.
• Cars: bring the vehicle inspection certificate. Same-day bookings are possible only for sailings from 11:00 and close 2 hours before departure. During the voyage the car deck is closed. Only the driver boards from the vehicle waiting area; passengers use the boarding bridge.
• Cancelling: phone cancellations cost nothing. For web bookings, cancelling after the ship has departed costs 100 percent. If your sailing is cancelled, the booking is cancelled too and you must book again.
• Agency vouchers must be exchanged for a ticket at the terminal counter.

Weather cancellations and the seasons

Typhoons and low-pressure systems can cancel sailings depending on wave height, wind direction and wind speed, and a sudden change in weather can cancel a sailing or change the port used. The operator does not phone passengers about cancellations. Instead, it sends alerts through its LINE official account, and the phone line 0162-23-3780 gives the day's operating status from 05:30 every day.

Winter storms are the main risk: on 6 February 2026 the Wakkanai terminal closed at 15:00 after a blizzard warning, every sailing that day was cancelled, and the next day's decision was due at 05:30. Leave a spare day before any fixed flight or train home.

Ships, luggage, cars and pets

Every sailing in the timetable is on a conventional car ferry, and no separate fast service or fare class appears. The operator's vessel schedule names three ships, Amapola Soya, Cyprea Soya and Boreas Soya, and shows which one sails on each day. The schedule says ships and times can change for weather or other reasons.

• Amapola Soya has 1st class island-view seats, reserved 2nd class seats, a pet room, a free luggage room and a baby room. For the time being its reserved 2nd class seats are being opened as unreserved seating.
• Cyprea Soya and Boreas Soya have 1st class lounge seats, tatami rooms and 2nd class cabins. Pets cannot be taken into the cabins on these two ships.
• On board: Wi-Fi on all ships, vending machines, no restaurant, no seat power outlets for passengers and no blanket rental. Bring your own food; the Heart Land Shop on the first floor of the Wakkanai terminal sells food and souvenirs and stays open until the last departure of the day. Cabins are non-smoking, with smoking areas provided.
• Seasickness: lower decks and the middle of the ship sway less; Amapola Soya and Cyprea Soya have fin stabilisers.

Luggage, vehicles and animals

• Luggage: the fare table lists a checked-baggage charge of ¥1,100 per piece (up to 2 m for the sum of three sides and up to 30 kg). A folding bicycle in a carry bag within those limits is free, but carrying three or more pieces of baggage, a folding bicycle included, triggers the baggage fee. There are no coin lockers on the ships, but Amapola Soya has a free luggage room.
• Bicycles and motorcycles: they cannot be reserved and are taken first come, first served on the day, and may be refused when the ship is full. A bicycle costs ¥3,300 from Wakkanai and ¥1,650 between the islands. A motorcycle under 750cc costs ¥7,000 and ¥3,500; 750cc and over costs ¥12,000 and ¥6,000.
• Cars (one way from Wakkanai to Rishiri / to Rebun): under 3 m ¥16,540 / ¥18,610; under 4 m ¥21,650 / ¥24,270; under 5 m ¥27,400 / ¥30,710. The driver's 2nd class seat is included. Vehicles taller than 3.8 m may be refused.
• Pets: ask the operator before boarding. They travel in a cage in a designated place or in the pet room on Amapola Soya.

What we could not confirm

• Train and bus timetables and fares from Sapporo or Asahikawa to Wakkanai; check JR Hokkaido and Soya Bus.
• Airport bus and taxi fares to the terminal; the operator's pages give different amounts for the same trip, so check on arrival.
• Whether 2nd class unreserved seats can be booked in advance; the booking page and the FAQ page say different things, so ask when you call.
• Which ships will run from 1 November 2026 until Trollius Soya enters service, and the exact start date in 2027.
• The 2027 timetable and 2027 fares; the fare table on the site ends on 31 December 2026.
• The exact date online booking restarts; the operator says only early November 2026.
• Crossing times in the winter timetable; the published vessel schedule covers April to October 2026.
• Any high-speed or jet-foil service on these routes; none appears on the operator's pages.
• How many days a year all sailings are cancelled; the operator's FAQ does not give the figure in text.

Sources

1. Heart Land Ferry: Fare table for the Wakkanai–Rishiri/Rebun routes, 1 Jan–31 Dec 2026 (Japanese) — checked 2026-10-23
2. Heart Land Ferry: Timetable, Wakkanai–Rishiri (Japanese) — checked 2026-10-23
3. Heart Land Ferry: Timetable, Wakkanai–Rebun (Japanese) — checked 2026-10-23
4. Heart Land Ferry: Timetable, Rishiri–Rebun (Japanese) — checked 2026-10-23
5. Heart Land Ferry: Vessel operation schedule April–October 2026, with crossing times (Japanese, PDF) — checked 2026-10-23
6. Heart Land Ferry: Terminal access and boarding guide (Japanese) — checked 2026-10-23
7. Heart Land Ferry: Reservations and boarding procedure (Japanese) — checked 2026-10-23
8. Heart Land Ferry: Frequently asked questions (Japanese) — checked 2026-10-23
9. Heart Land Ferry: Notice of 14 October 2026 on not collecting the fuel surcharge (Japanese) — checked 2026-10-23
10. Heart Land Ferry: Notice of 31 March 2026 introducing the fuel surcharge (Japanese) — checked 2026-10-23
11. Heart Land Ferry: Fare revision notice of 5 July 2024 (Japanese, PDF) — checked 2026-10-23
12. Heart Land Ferry: Fare table attached to the 2024 revision notice (Japanese, PDF) — checked 2026-10-23
13. Heart Land Ferry: Retirement of Boreas Soya (Japanese) — checked 2026-10-23
14. Heart Land Ferry: Launch of the new ship Trollius Soya (Japanese) — checked 2026-10-23
15. Heart Land Ferry: Onboard shop closing for the season (Japanese) — checked 2026-10-23
16. Heart Land Ferry: Closure of the terminal restaurant (Japanese) — checked 2026-10-23
17. Heart Land Ferry: Online booking maintenance and restart (Japanese) — checked 2026-10-23
18. Heart Land Ferry: Boarding gates restored from 20 September 2026 (Japanese) — checked 2026-10-23
19. Heart Land Ferry: Cancellation after departure, web bookings (Japanese) — checked 2026-10-23
20. Heart Land Ferry: Wakkanai terminal closed for bad weather, 6 February 2026 (Japanese) — checked 2026-10-23
21. Heart Land Ferry: Contactless and QR payment at ticket counters (Japanese) — checked 2026-10-23
22. City of Wakkanai: Transport information page (Japanese) — checked 2026-10-23