PORT OF NAGOYA PUBLIC AQUARIUM, NAGOYA, JAPAN

名古屋港水族館 . 나고야 항수 족관

(This is a postdated post. Trip took place in Oct 2011.)


I love visiting aquariums, and today, we were visiting the Port of Nagoya Public Aquarium 名古屋港水族館.

We got off at Nagoyako Station 名古屋港駅, and I spotted the sign for the aquarium.

First, we had to walk through the Jetty ジェティ before we could reach the aquarium. The Jetty had lots of shops and restaurants, but I saw very few people.

Operating Hours: 10.30am - 8.30 / 9.30pm (Closed on most Mondays)

View of the port at the end of the Jetty Boardwalk (turn right to the aquarium)

The Nagoyako Seatrain Land 名古屋港シートレインランド theme park is near the port!

Aquarium (North Building)

Aquarium (South Building)

The Fuji Antarctic Ice-Breaker Ship 南極観測船ふじ, and
Nagoyako Port Building 名古屋港ポートビル in the background

We entered from the North Building, and visited the areas "Dolphin Pool イルカプール", "Under the Northen Lights オーロラの海", "Diverse World of Whales 進化の海" and the "Underwater Viewing Gallery 水中観察窓".

Dolphin Pool イルカプール

Bottlenose dolphins

Beluga Whales

Diverse World of Whales 進化の海

Underwater Viewing Gallery 水中観察窓
- claims to be the world's largest viewing panel at 29m x 4m

Shiokaze Plaza しおかぜ広場 - picnic lawn with views of Port of Nagoya

Moving on to Level 3, where the Main Pool メインプール was.
Acks! We just missed the dolphin show イルカパフォーマンス (30 mins)!

(Mom's Notes: Click here for the show and mammals feeding time schedules. Select the date of your visit and the corresponding times will be shown; in Japanese)

Then we took the long accessway to the South Building, to see the areas "Marine Life Around Japan 日本の海", "Tropical Marine Life 赤道の海", "Australian Freshwater Life オーストラリアの水辺", and the "Antarctic Marine Life 南極の海".



Marine Life Around Japan 日本の海

Tunnel トンネル水槽

Kuroshio Tank 黒潮水槽
10 mins Blue Pilchard マイワシのトルネード Show

 

To the Deep Sea Gallery 深海ギャラリー

 Underwater Tunnel 水中トンネル

Coral Reef Tank サンゴ礁の海

 

Loggerhead sea turtle ウミガメ回遊水槽

 Whale Specimens ミンククジラの標本

 Penguin Tank ペンギン水槽

Penguin Information Corner ペンギン情報コーナー

At the exit on Level 1, there was a Touch Pool タッチタンク near the Gift Shop.

Mom decided to have lunch at the Tortoise Food Court トータス @ Level 3 of the aquarium (South Building).

Buying our meal coupons

Fried chicken and fries for me, vegetable udon for Mom
They even have kids cutlery in the food court!

View from the food court

I saw the turtle crawl out at the Turtle Sand Pit ウミガメが産卵する人工砂浜 near the food court

Mom's Notes

• iPod audio guides in English are available for rent at 300円. If you don't have your passport on hand, the rental fee will be 3,000円 instead (the deposit of 2,700円 is refundable upon the return of the audio set). Audio guides can be loaned from the reception counter @ the entrance (Level 2 North Building)
• Descriptions and labels are mostly in Japanese
• Navigating the aquarium is akin to navigating a maze with several turns. Trying to find one's way back to a specific exhibit requires approaching the staff for some help!
• What probably sets this aquarium apart from the others that we have visited, including those in Singapore, is the opportunity to see Beluga Whales and Orcas. The Kuroshio Tank 黒潮水槽 show is a highlight for me as it uses classical music that seems amazingly attuned to the movements of the school of fishes in the tank!
• Think the claim of being the World's Largest Acrylic Panel has been overtaken by the S.E.A. Aquarium in Resorts World Sentosa, Singapore (2012) which measures 36m x 8.3m (see Guinness World Records)

     Address:    455-0033 名古屋市港区港町 1-3
     Tel:           052-654-7080

     Directions:  5 mins walk from Nagoyako Station 名古屋港駅 Exit No. 3 (last stop of
                      the Meiko Line 名港線 and Meijo Line 名城線)

Click here to download the English brochure.


Admission Fees:

Adults & High School Students (above 10 years old) 2000円
Elementary School Students (7-9 years old)            1000円

Child (4-6 years old)                                            500円

There is a combination ticket that covers entry to the aquarium + Nagoya Maritime Museum 名古屋海洋博物館 + Fuji Antarctic Ice-Breaker Ship 南極観測船ふじ + Observation Deck of Nagoyako Port Building 名古屋港ポートビル
   Adults & Teens (above 10 years old)           2400円
   Elementary School Students (7-9 years old) 1200円

 

Opening Hours:

Varies, and generally from 9.30am - 5/8pm; refer to the calendar.