Awashima

Awashimamerchant marine schoolMitoyokitamaebuneisland

Kagawa · Mitoyo

34.2714°N, 133.6330°E

Awashima is fifteen minutes by boat from Suda in Mitoyo and has a pale green wooden building at the harbour that was Japan's first merchant marine school, opened in 1897. It trained crews for the coastal trade until it closed, and it is preserved and open as the Awashima Maritime Memorial Hall — a school corridor, classrooms and navigational equipment, kept as they were.

The island was a port of call for the kitamaebune, the coastal freighters that ran between Hokkaido and Osaka, which is why a maritime school ended up here at all. It is quiet now: a few hundred residents, beaches, a hilltop view over the islands, and an inn at the harbour. Eight sailings a day, and the last one back matters because there is nothing else.

Essential Information

Opening Hours

Ferries run 8 times a day | Memorial hall keeps its own hours

Closed: Confirm ferry and memorial hall operating days before travelling

Entrance Fee

Ferry charged | Memorial hall admission set locally — confirm on arrival

Best Season

Spring and autumn | Summer for the beaches

Visit Duration

Half a day including the ferry

Getting There

Access Information

Awashima, Takuma-cho, Mitoyo. Ferries run from Suda port, about 15 minutes, with 8 sailings a day. From JR Takuma Station on the Yosan Line take the Takuma community bus toward Kakubeto to the Suda stop, about 20 minutes, then 1 minute on foot to the port. The Awashima Maritime Memorial Hall, in the buildings of the merchant marine school opened in 1897, is preserved and open to visitors. Le Port Awashima at the harbour provides accommodation and a restaurant. Confirm the last sailing before travelling.

Insider Guide

Premium

**Check the last boat.** Eight sailings a day and one inn on the island. Missing the last one is a night you did not plan. **The school is the reason to come.** Japan's first merchant marine school, 1897, kept as it was. Corridors, classrooms and navigation gear rather than a display about them. **Kitamaebune made it possible.** The island was a stop on the coastal freight route between Hokkaido and Osaka, which is why a maritime school is on a small island in the Inland Sea. **Fifteen minutes from Suda.** Which makes it a half-day trip rather than an expedition, unlike most of the Inland Sea islands. **Eat at Le Port.** The harbour inn's restaurant serves island cooking and is used by residents, and there is very little else.

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