Sapporo Station is the city’s main railway station located right downtown. Multiple shopping centers surround the station complex, particularly on its south side. Sapporo Station dates back to the early development of Hokkaido in the late 1800s, but its current building was opened in 2003. A replica of the original station building can be found at the Historic Village of Hokkaido.
The area’s most impressive tourist attraction is the T38 Observation Deck at the top of the JR Tower building that rises above the station. Occupying the tower’s 38th floor, 160 meters above ground, the observation deck is quite a bit taller than the 90 meter observation deck of the TV Tower in nearby Odori Park. Great effort was put into the observation deck’s design, including the viewing areas, information displays, music and even the washrooms.
The Sapporo Ramen Republic is a themed restaurant area on the 10th floor of the Esta shopping center, just east of the station’s south entrance. There are eight small ramen restaurants spread out across the nostalgically designed floor space. Ramen is one of the specialties of Hokkaido cuisine, and the shops represent some of the prefecture’s regional varieties, like Asahikawa Ramen and Hakodate Ramen. The Esta building also hosts a branch of the Bic Camera electronics store.