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Kaiwomaru Park and the Shinminato Bridge walkway
1 / 4Kaiwomaru Park and the Shinminato Bridge walkwayPhoto: Ltd.super Express bound for E235 / CC BY-SA 4.0
Tap a photo to see it large. 4 photographs, every one credited.
A four-masted training barque of 1930 you can board for ¥500, closed Wednesdays. Then a free walkway under the bridge deck with the Tateyama range over the port. The walkway closes in strong wind; the lifts are at both ends.
- Short enough to be certain of: 2 hr door to door, so even a tender day works.
- On a 4–6h ashore call our verdict is "Yes" — ship, then the 12:30 auction and lunch at the market, then the bridge. from fushiki it is a taxi each way at about ¥4,000 (our estimate).
- It is not only a photo stop: a fish tank a kilometre deep, and the three creatures that define it.
- Closed Wednesdays. Check the day before you plan around it.
Why Kaiwomaru Park and the Shinminato Bridge walkway is famous
A fish tank a kilometre deep, and the three creatures that define it
The Kaiwomaru was launched in Kobe in January 1930 with her sister Nippon Maru, to train officers for the merchant fleet. She sailed until 1989 and is a four-masted barque of 97 metres. Ten times a year all her sails are set, weather permitting; the 2027 dates are not yet published. The Shinminato Bridge beside her opened in 2012, with the walkway under the road deck following in 2013.
The sea floor drops to a thousand metres within sight of the shore. That one fact explains a glowing squid, a translucent shrimp caught nowhere else, and a yellowtail with its own annual press announcement.
Kaiwomaru is a four-masted sailing ship moored beside the park, and you can go aboard and below decks. Ten times a year every sail is set. The 2027 dates are not yet published, and in 2025 the weather allowed only four of the ten.
The park sits where the Shinminato harbour meets the bay, under the Shinminato Bridge. Under the road deck runs a free walkway with lifts. From it the port, the ship and the Tateyama range line up on a clear day. Add the Kittokito Ichiba fish market 800 m away and you have a full half-day without a train.
The earliest catch record at Namerikawa
Sweetfish sushi from Yoshimura Shinpachi; the shogun Yoshimune praises it
Watase Shōzaburō names hotaruika; the species carries his name in Latin
Jōganji river mouth to Uozu port, 1.3 km offshore
Shinminato's market and shrimp are at the berth. The squid cruise and Himi's yellowtail belong to specific months, and the squid museum covers the gap.
Things worth knowing
- Wednesday is the day to avoid: the ship is closed and the auction does not run. In 2026 the Azamara (1 April) and Diamond Princess (8 July) calls fell on Wednesdays.
- The Manyosen tram to Takaoka takes 45 minutes and runs every 15 minutes from the Kaiwomaru stop, a 10-minute walk from the park.
- The tram takes cash on exit or a national IC card; no credit cards and no paper tickets. A one-day pass is ¥900, and a pass plus ship ticket ¥1,200.
- The walkway closes in strong wind. Do it first if the view is the reason you came, then the ship.
- Shiroebiシロエビ — White shrimp. Caught commercially only in Toyama Bay; translucent raw, "the jewel of the bay".
- Hotaruikaホタルイカ — Firefly squid. A finger-length squid that glows blue and comes inshore to spawn, March to May.
Kaiwomaru Park and the Shinminato Bridge walkway and your ship
Both pins on one map, so the distance is a fact rather than a feeling.
Where the 2 hr goes
Counted from the moment you step off the gangway. The hour before all-aboard is not in this bar; it is already set aside.
15 minutes each way is the measured figure for taxi ~15 min from the fushiki wharf; on foot from the kaiwo berth, not the optimistic one. If your ship is late, cut the 1 hr 30 min in the middle. Never cut the hour at the end.
Questions people send us
Is my ship docked at Kaiwomaru Park?
Only if it is small. Azamara Pursuit, Le Soléal and similar ships use the Kaiwo berth beside the park. Westerdam, Diamond Princess and every ship over about 32,000 GT dock at Manyo Wharf No. 3 in Fushiki. That is 8 km west, so you need a taxi to get here.
Can I see the fish auction?
Yes, it is free and starts about 12:30 at the fishing port next to Kittokito Ichiba. It does not run on Sundays, Wednesdays or port holidays. The number for checking, 0766-84-1233, is answered in Japanese only.
How long does the Kaiwomaru take?
About 30 minutes on board. Boarding closes 30 minutes before the 17:00 closing time, and the ship is shut every Wednesday, 29 December to 3 January, and during hull maintenance.
Routes that already include it
Each one is a finished day we have walked and timed, with this stop in it. Read the route rather than assembling it yourself.
What to put beside it
Each of these still lands you back aboard with the hour to spare.
3 hr 40 min for bothShokoji temple, on foot from the wharf
The one sight you can walk to from the big-ship berth.
See the detail →
4 hr for bothAmaharashi Coast and the Tateyama view
Onna-iwa rock, the Himi-line train and the 3,000-metre Tateyama range across the bay, on a clear day.
See the detail → 4 hr for bothKittokito Ichiba and the 12:30 auction
The Shinminato fish market, 9:00–17:00, with restaurants inside and a midday auction at the fishing port next door from about 12:30.
See the detail →