Morioka Bus Center Guide: Food, Shopping & Visitor Tips

“Morioka Bus Center” serves as the base for strolling around Morioka. Reborn as a new facility in 2022, this place has been transformed from a location merely for waiting for conventional buses into a place where you can eat, drink, and have fun.

On the 1st floor, there is a food hall and shops where popular local stores gather, while on the 2nd floor, there is a coffee shop where jazz plays, and on the 3rd floor, it is equipped with accommodation facilities and even a sauna—making it a place packed tightly with “fun.”

In this article, based on photos actually taken and visited by the author, we introduce the charms of Morioka Bus Center, where you can eat, drink, and enjoy yourself.

Charms of “Morioka Bus Center”

Main Building Having Regained Its Original Bus Center Role

Since the old center was closed in 2016, vacant land continued for a while, but through the 2022 renewal, its function as Morioka’s eastern gateway was revived once again.

The new main building secures a spacious waiting space rather than being a mere stop, allowing you to wait for buses comfortably in air-conditioned and heated surroundings. Digitally displayed guideboards are also easy to understand, playing a role as an important infrastructure and foot of transport for Morioka citizens.

Adjacent to the bus center waiting room, the eatery (Soba-dokoro Nambu) has a full lineup of menus that can be easily enjoyed, starting with the famous “Niku Soba” (meat soba). The style of being able to eat quickly during bus waiting time inherits the good points of the traditional bus center.

Niku Soba is a filling bowl topped with plenty of meat simmered sweet and savory. In addition, side menu items such as soft-serve ice cream, coffee, and shaved ice in the summer are also well-stocked. While being a new and clean space, the charm lies in being able to savor the somewhat comforting sensation of “station soba / bus-waiting gourmet.”

Eating and Drinking at the Annex’s Izakaya, Restaurant, and Food Court

The annex next to the main building is in a food hall format where popular local stores gather, allowing you to enjoy meals and alcohol in a free style. Counters where you can taste Morioka’s craft beer or local sake, skewer grills, authentic cuisine, and more offer a diverse range of genres.

Because it is an open space without partitions, you can combine and enjoy menus from several shops, casually drinking during the day by yourself, or spending lively time in a group, feeling the liveliness typical of present-day Morioka. It is a substantial spot that makes you want to visit for the purpose of eating and drinking here, not just for time spent waiting for a bus.

Recommended Shop “Morioka Craft Beer BAEREN”

When you want to have a quick drink while waiting for a bus, what is just right at such times is Morioka’s craft beer, BAEREN. At this counter inside the annex food hall, you can enjoy authentic craft beer that Morioka boasts to the world.

Being able to order casually starting from a single glass is a delightful point. While having an authentic bar atmosphere, because it is an open location inside a bus center, you can savor Morioka’s taste without hesitation even during a short time before departure.

Recommended food is the roast plate of Short-Horn Beef, Platinum Pork, and Iwate Chicken assortment (1,000 JPY), a food menu item that pairs just right with BAEREN’s bitter beer.

Having a glass of your preferred beer chosen from “Colonia,” “Tsunagu Beer,” “Lemon Radler,” “Classic,” “Alt,” and “Schwarz” is simply irresistible.

Annex Equipped with a Super Sento Facility

On the 3rd floor of the bus center’s annex, a full-fledged thermal bath facility, “SPA & SAUNA KANAN SPA,” is fully equipped. Being able to refresh in a sauna or large public bath during bus waiting times or between movements is a facility of a rare configuration nationwide.

• Authentic Finnish-style Sauna: Featuring an authentic sauna capable of self-löyly, offering quality that even sauna lovers can be satisfied with.
• Selectable Cold Plunge and Outdoor Air Bathing: With a firmly chilled cold plunge and outdoor air bathing in the rooftop area, you can experience an authentic “totonoi” (sauna-refreshment state) while being in the middle of the city.
• Stylish and Clean Space: A modern interior overflowing with cleanliness unique to a new facility opened in 2022.
• Empty-handed Use Possible: Because amenities such as rental towels are also well-stocked, it offers the casualness of being able to drop by on a whim between sightseeing or business trips.

Hotel Annex “HOTEL MAZARIUM”

On the 3rd floor of the annex is the lifestyle museum hotel “HOTEL MAZARIUM.” This hotel is characterized by art works produced by Heralbony scattered throughout guest rooms and shared spaces, creating a special space where staying itself becomes an art experience.

While located in a very convenient location inside the bus center building, stepping inside offers a modern and calm atmosphere that makes you forget the hustle and bustle outside. Adopting Simmons beds in all rooms, it is also committed to comfortable sleep. Directly connected to the previously introduced “KANAN SPA,” it serves as a stay base where you can feel Morioka’s new culture while enjoying saunas and spas.

Toshiko Akiyoshi Jazz Museum

Located inside the “HOTEL MAZARIUM” lounge on the 3rd floor of the annex is the “Toshiko Akiyoshi Jazz Museum,” which traces the footsteps of world-renowned jazz pianist Toshiko Akiyoshi. It is a precious spot where not only fans, but anyone can casually touch upon that culture.

Inside the building, Toshiko’s precious photos and materials, as well as numerous awarded trophies, are exhibited. At the attached cafe “Cafe Bar West38,” it is also possible to enjoy coffee, the famous jazz curry, or alcohol while listening to authentic jazz. Live performances are also held regularly, allowing you to enjoy an adult time typical of Morioka where high-quality music flows, all while being inside the bus center.

Key Points to Note for “Morioka Bus Center”

Key Point to Note: Buses via the Bus Center Do Not Appear on the Bus Center’s Electronic Display Board

Regarding the splendid electronic display board inside the Morioka Bus Center building, there is actually a rule that “what is displayed here are only buses that originate from or terminate at the Bus Center (or highway buses, etc., that enter inside the premises).”

Many buses coming from the Morioka Station direction that “pass through the Bus Center and go further beyond (such as Prefectural Central Hospital or Chabatake)” do not enter inside the building and stop at the outdoor street-side bus stop. These are not displayed on the indoor monitors at all.

If you panic thinking “the bus I want to ride does not appear on the display board” and wait inside the building, a situation where the bus passes by the outdoor street-side bus stop could occur. It is important to confirm in advance whether the bus you want to ride is an “inside-premises type” or a “stops at the outdoor bus stop type.”

(Departure/arrival platform inside the Bus Center premises)

(Bus stop in front of the Bus Center)

Location and Access of “Morioka Bus Center”

Location

Morioka Bus Center is located at “Nakanohashi-dori” in central Morioka City. From JR Morioka Station, take the “Morioka City Center Loop Bus ‘Dendenmushi'” leaving from each departure point at the East Exit Bus Terminal, or a bus bound for Chabatake/Suidobashi, taking about 10 to 15 minutes. It is located right at the “Morioka Bus Center” drop-off.

In the case of walking, it takes about 20 to 25 minutes from Morioka Station passing through Odori Shopping Street or Nakatsu River. Surrounding areas are adjacent to “monaka” and “Hotline Sakanacho,” making it truly the starting point for strolling around town. When coming by car, using the attached dedicated parking lot or nearby coin parking is smooth.

“Frequently Asked Questions” for “Morioka Bus Center”

Summary: “Morioka Bus Center”

Morioka Bus Center, renewed in 2022, overturns the former image of a waiting area, reborn as a multifunctional spot packed with Morioka’s “food, culture, and healing.”

As a stroll base for the Nakanohashi and Sakanacho areas, or as a travel destination itself. Utilize the renewed Morioka Bus Center cleverly and enjoy deeper Morioka sightseeing!