Article

01397 ／るすつむら

Hokkaido 虻田郡

Rusutsu Village

Open from May 29 to the end of October.

Mount Shiribetsu

Photo by Wakimasa (Public domain)

01 ／ Place name

The village says its name was taken fromAinu Ru-sutsu, a road at the foot of a mountain.

The village says its name comes from the Ainu Ru-sutsu, meaning a road at the foot of a mountain. National Route 230, running from Sapporo toward Lake Toya hot spring, passes through the center of the village. Its predecessor road was begun in 1890 and completed in 1894.

Village: Ru-sutsu = a road at the foot of a mountain
Route 230 runs through the village center
Predecessor road: begun 1890, completed 1894

02 ／ Farm site

The farm said to be at Izumikawa lastedonly a little over two years.

This farm was settled by comrades of the newspaper Heimin Shimbun. The village board of education records that it existed from April 1905 to the end of 1907. The Mother's Thoughts statue in Red Shoes Park was made in the image of the girl in the children's song Red Shoes. The board adds that the girl did not come to the village.

April 1905 to end of 1907 (village board of education)
Said to be at Izumikawa
Statue stands in Red Shoes Park

03 ／ Monument

A park holds a monument honoringthe work behind a starch potato.

The village says that poor farmers were helped by a potato grown by Mr. Masuda, Mr. Onishi and others of the village. It was recognized as an excellent variety in 1938, and around 1947 to 1951 it made up about half of Hokkaido's potato acreage. A monument was raised in honor of that work.

Recognized as an excellent variety in 1938
Around 1947-51, about half of Hokkaido's potato acreage
Monument in the park

Rusutsu Village from the sky

Now and 1974–78. Tap a photo to zoom in.

Now1974–78

Wide (about 6 km across)

Close (about 1.5 km across)

Now (shot May–July 2025)Shot 1974–78

Source: Geospatial Information Authority of Japan (GSI) GSI Tiles（全国最新写真（シームレス）／国土画像情報（第一期：1974〜1978年撮影））

Open in GSI Maps (now)Open in GSI Maps (1974–78)

Living here

Fifty minutes by bus from Kutchan Station.

about 2,000 people
Rural district town

There is no railway station in the village, and the village office stands in the town center along Route 230. In the Donan Bus timetable revised on October 1, 2026, the trip from Kutchan Station to Rusutsu takes 50 minutes with no transfer. The village itself says one hour from Kutchan Station.

People living here: 1,911people
Area: 119.84km²
Households: 959households
Rent (average for rentals): —
Healthcare: 0 hospitals ／ 2 clinics

Area and habitable land at the same scalee-Stat B1101 / B1103

Children waiting for childcare: —1 nurseries and similar
Home purchase subsidy: —
Average annual temperature: —

These 3 items are waiting on a nationwide data source. We do not fill them with estimates.

ACCESS

Where you can go from here.

Rusutsu Village in Japan42.737°N 140.876°E

to KutchanLocal bus50min

Travel times follow 道南バス公式『郊外路線』の時刻表PDF『11 倶知安－ルスツリゾート』（R8.10.1 改正。https://www.donanbus.co.jp/cms/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/11_R8.10.1_rusutsu.pdf）の『倶知安駅前～真狩～ルスツリゾート～洞爺湖温泉』。倶知安駅前発→留寿都着：▲6:45→7:35・8:10→9:00・11:05→11:55・12:15→13:05・13:45→14:35・15:45→16:35・18:10→19:00（すべて50分。▲は土曜・日曜・祝日運休）。逆向き（留寿都→倶知安駅前）は 7:06→8:00・7:56→8:50・9:36→10:30・12:26→13:20・15:16→16:10・17:06→18:00・19:26→20:20（すべて54分）。村公式『留寿都村へのアクセス』（企画観光課）は『倶知安駅から（倶知安～真狩～留寿都～洞爺湖温泉線）1時間』 (checked 2026-10-29). They vary by time of day.

Shape

Borders 4 municipalities.

Territory of Rusutsu Village

Boundaries: National Land Numerical Information (Administrative Area Data), MLIT. Processed by Machigatari.Lakes: National Land Numerical Information (Lake Data), MLIT. Processed by Machigatari. Prepared with the approval of the Director-General of the Geospatial Information Authority of Japan, using its Digital Map 25000 (Spatial Data Framework) and Digital Map 25000 (Place Names and Public Facilities). (承認番号平27情使、第585号)

North to south

11.5km

Toyako Town, Makkari Village, Kimobetsu Town, Date City

Rusutsu Village isthis kind of town.

01Mount Shiribetsu takes about an hour and a half for experienced climbers, or about two hours at a leisurely pace; it is open from May 29 to the end of October
02The village says its name was taken from the Ainu Ru-sutsu, meaning a road at the foot of a mountain. Route 230 runs through the village center, and the farm is said to have been at Izumikawa
03A park holds a monument to a starch potato variety. The bus from Kutchan Station to Rusutsu takes 50 minutes

If something caught your eye, ask the town itself.

Rusutsu Village official site ↗Wikipedia ↗

From this town's themes