Sea Life Nagoya (Aichi/Nagoya City)
Urashima Taro and Princess Otohime... Was Ryugu-jo Palace in Nagoya?
SEA LIFE Nagoya is an aquarium adjacent to LEGOLAND Japan. It's packed with features to stimulate your sense of adventure, such as the Sunken Ship zone, where you can peer into the ocean from the floor of a ship. A must-see is the Dragon Palace zone, where a statue of Urashima Taro riding a turtle is installed in the tank. The sight of a 3-meter-long nurse shark swimming leisurely instead of a sea bream or flounder is more dreamy and dynamic than a fairy tale!
Yamanashi Prefectural Fuji Spring Water Village Aquarium (Oshino Village, Yamanashi)
Lie down and enjoy the fish! A relaxing aquarium with tatami mats
Oshino Village is home to a group of springs fed by underground water from Mount Fuji. The greatest attraction of the Yamanashi Prefectural Fuji Spring Water Village Aquarium, which uses beautiful spring water to exhibit freshwater fish, is the astonishing clarity of its tanks. The most refreshing feeling reaches its peak in the Horizontal Aquarium, where you can lie down on tatami mats and watch the fish. You can see the green forest beyond the tank, and before you know it, you'll feel like you're a fish in a mountain stream...
The facility is also known as the "Aquarium in the Forest," and is surrounded by abundant greenery. You can experience the charm of river fish that live alongside the forest, which is different from those found in the sea.
Muroto Abandoned School Aquarium (Muroto City, Kochi Prefecture)
Sharks in a school pool?! Learn about the world of fish at an abandoned school
Fish swimming in a school's 25m pool?! This fantasy has been made a reality at the Muroto Abandoned School Aquarium, which has been converted from an elementary school building into an aquarium. Standing by the pool, you can see sharks and sea turtles swimming leisurely, creating a mysterious feeling of nostalgia mixed with amazement. All the fish on display have been collected locally. It's the perfect place to learn about the local sea.
Kuji Underground Aquarium Science Museum Moguranpia (Kuji City, Iwate)
A female diver swims in the tank! The world's only free-diving demonstration
Built inside an underground tunnel that was formerly a work pit for the Kuji National Oil Stockpile Base, the aquarium is an exciting space where you can experience the feeling of exploring. The exhibits mainly feature sea creatures from the Sanriku region, but the highlight is a free-diving demonstration by the "northernmost female diver" who is still active in the local city of Kuji! She swims freely in the tank, catching sea urchins like a mermaid. Come and see the real-life "Ama-chan" before your eyes.
The popular "Sakanaku Corner" features fish raised by Sakanakun, a lover of the Sanriku sea. Many of the museum's original illustrations are also on display.
Shibetsu Salmon Science Museum (Shibetsu Town, Hokkaido)
The ultimate "touch and feel" experience! A sturgeon "snaps your finger"
The Shibetsu Salmon Science Museum is a facility that boasts the largest number of salmonid fish exhibits in Japan. The fish ladder tank, where you can see wild salmon swimming upstream, is popular, but in recent years, the area where you can interact with sturgeon has been a hot topic. If you timidly stick your finger out...chop! It doesn't hurt because sturgeon don't have teeth, and it seems that many people are becoming addicted to the unique feel of the fish. It's a thrilling experience that you should definitely give it a try.
The fish ladder tank allows visitors to peer into the Shibetsu River, where approximately 100,000 salmon swim upstream every year, and you can even observe wild salmon spawning in November.
Northern Land Aquarium (Kitami City, Hokkaido)
A frozen river at the base of a raging waterfall?! A wild aquarium where you can feel the wildness
Kitami City, Hokkaido, is one of Japan's coldest regions. The Northern Aquarium takes advantage of the cold to exhibit the world's first "fish swimming under a frozen river." In winter, you can observe the fish surviving in the bitter cold. In the Waterfall Basin Tank, which artificially recreates the rapids of a waterfall basin, you can also see the robust fish swimming upstream. It's a space that condenses the beauty of life in the great outdoors.
Inside the museum, there is a button that will make the director appear! Whenever he is not there, the director will actually come out and explain the exhibits.
