Shimoda Floating Aquarium
Shimoda Floating Aquarium
AQUARIUM
Created in a natural cove, the Shimoda Floating Aquarium is home to thousands of different creatures waiting for you to explore. The aquarium is home to a sea stage (watch the dolphins swimming in the cove), show arena, underwater museum, restaurant and numerous animal exhibitions, including jellyfish, otters, penguins and many more.
The aquarium has many events for you to enjoy, as well as much sea-life local to the Izu Peninsula. Definitely don’t miss out on this day full of fun for all the family!
A large car park capable of holding 200 cars is available for free.
Wheelchairs and strollers are allowed, however someone is required to push these around the aquarium as the staff cannot help. Depending on the tide, the slopes may become quite steep. Two wheelchairs can be rented from the ticket office.
There is also a restaurant and cafe available inside the facility. Please note that these are only open from between 10:30 and 15:00. The menu can be found here (only available in Japanese).
OPENING HOURS
MONDAY
TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
SATURDAY
SUNDAY
9AM – 4:30PM*
9AM – 4:30PM*
9AM – 4:30PM*
9AM – 4:30PM*
9AM – 4:30PM*
9AM – 5PM
9AM – 5PM
*Open until 5pm on a public holiday.
Note: Final admission is one hour before closing as it takes around an hour to see all the exhibits.
PRICES
ADULTS (junior high and above)
CHILDREN (from 4 years to the end of elementary)
SENIORS (over 65)
￥2,100 (￥1,900)*
￥1,050 (￥950)*
￥1,600
*Discount available by printing off the voucher found on their website.
Note: for people with disabilities both you and your carer can enter the facility for half price.
Note: Discounts are also available for groups of 10 or more.
Event Schedule:
Wonder Ocean Marine Dolphin Show
09:20, 11:00, 13:00, 15:00
Enjoy the bottlenose dolphins living in this natural cove perform tricks and surf alongside their trainers.
Marine Fantasy Dolphin Show
09:50, 13:30, 15:50
Watch the dolphins perform in a 500-ton marine stadium pool, entirely covered with glass.
Marine Fantasy Seal Show
09:50, 13:30, 15:50
Watch the seals show off their talents on both land and sea. Make sure to stay for the underwater show performed with their trainer.
Smile Ship Seal Show
11:45, 14:10
At the sea lion house you can learn about the ecology and characteristics of seals.
Seal Feeding Experience
12:30
Feed the seals for a fee of ￥500 per two fish (dependent on food supply). Only 14 spaces available, 7 in the morning and 7 in the afternoon. For your chance to feed the seals, try your luck with the gacha machine at the entrance. It will be complete luck if you win the chance.
Note: Temporary cancelled as of April 2021.
Note: Dependent on condition of the seals.
Message from the Seals
After the 12:30 seal show
A seal appear with a message written on their board for a loved one. You can also take a photo with the seal. Please note you will have to arrange this before the seal show.
Note: Temporary cancelled as of April 2021.
Penguin Feeding Show
11:25, 15:25
Learn about the ecology and characteristics of penguins while they are fed. After the explanation you can take a commemorative photo with the penguins.
Penguin Walk
11:50
Watch the penguins take their lunch stroll around the penguin pool. There is no penguin walk in the summer.
Note: Temporarily cancelled as of April 2021 due to problems with bird flu.
Note: May be cancelled due to the weather and/or conditions of the penguins.
Penguin Touching Experience
12:15
Experience touching the Humboldt penguins for free. Limited to 5 people per day.
Note: Temporary cancelled as of April 2021.
Note: May be cancelled due to the weather and/or conditions of the penguins.
Penguin Feeding Experience
12:30
Feed the penguins for a fee of ￥200 (dependent on food supply).
Note: Temporary cancelled as of April 2021 due to problems with bird flu.
Note: Dependent on condition of the penguins.
Underwater Fish Feeding Show
09:00 (summer only) 10:35, 14:35
Watch the divers feed the fish underwater in the Aqua Dome. Features fish local to the Izu Peninsula.
Sea Turtle Feeding Experience
Within opening hours only on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays
Feed the sea turtles at the turtle pond for a fee of ￥100 (dependent on food supply).
Note: Temporarily cancelled as of April 2021.
Otter Feeding Experience
13:00
Feed the otters for a fee of ￥500 (dependent on food supply). Limited to 20 meals a day and is on first-come-first-served basis.
Note: Dependent on condition of the otters.
Fish Feeding Experience
Within opening hours
Feed the fish in the tide pool for a fee of ￥100 (dependent on food supply).
Shark Experience
Within opening hours
Experience touching a bullhead shark for free! Please ask the staff for more details.
Note: Temporary cancelled as of April 2021.
Aquarium Behind-the-Scenes Tour
12:00, 14:10 (on Saturdays, Sundays, holidays – including school holidays)
Follow the staff through the aquarium for a behind-the-scenes view of aquarium life. Meet at the entrance to the Marine Stadium to participate. Limited to 15 people and costs ￥500 per person.
Note: Temporary cancelled as of April 2021.
“Dr. Fish” Experience
Within opening hours
Experience the dead skin eating fish for free!
Note: Temporary cancelled as of April 2021.
Sea Kayaking Experience
08:30 ~ 10:00, 10:10 ~ 11:50, 12:10 ~ 13:50
Row around the cove in a kayak and interact with the dolphins. Anyone from elementary age can participate! During the second and third sessions you can also watch the dolphin show from on top of the kayak. Please enquire about this at the entrance as they will provide you with a name card. This can be booked here (Japanese only).
JUNIOR HIGH STUDENTS AND ABOVE
ELEMENTARY STUDENTS
￥9,000
￥7,000
Insurance, paddles, kayaks and life jackets are included in the entry fee. It costs ￥500 to rent waterproof shoes and ￥500 for a wet suit if you wish to use one.
Please bring the following items with you: towel, waterproof shoes (available for rent), hat, clothes you can get wet (swimsuit, rush guard, rain gear, etc) and a waterproof camera (mobile phones are not allowed).
They do not accept responsibility for any damages to your items during the kayaking.
Note: Other rental fees may be charged.
Note: May be cancelled due to weather conditions or the condition of the dolphins. If it is cancelled they will try to contact you as far in advance as they can. There is also a risk that there is an accident so please be aware to act safely while kayaking. Cancellation fee is 100% on the day, 80% on the previous day and 50% two days prior. Changing the scheduled date is free. If they cancel due to weather then you will not be charged.
Review
This is definitely a fun day out for all the family, even with access for people requiring wheelchairs. When you arrive there are sea turtles at the entrance. After admiring these, enter the reception desk building, don’t walk in the gift shop entrance like we accidentally did! Buying the tickets is relatively simple so don’t worry if you don’t speak Japanese. Just make sure you show the discount if you’re planning on using it.
Heading outside you will be greeted with a walkway over the cove with dolphins swimming to your right. Feel free to stop and observe. In the centre of this walkway there is the underwater museum. It’s quite small and there are stairs so I’m not sure that people with wheelchairs can access this part, however it’s fine to miss it out. It’s mostly small, underwater creatures, although there is a big tank where you can watch the fish being fed.
Walking along to the right you might see the seals swimming about. They are held in a fairly small area which is a shame as they look like they want to swim about more. This connects to the seal exhibit so if you’re on time for the attractions head inside and watch them. Make sure to keep an eye on the plastic dome on the left as sometimes the seals will pop their heads up to look around. We watched the “Smile Ship Seal Show” which was quite short but they try to make it interesting even if you don’t understand the explanations about the seals. They should do some tricks and hold up a sign so make sure to clap loudly as a thank you!
The aquarium has many more individual exhibits for the animals but I don’t go into too much detail. Walking around you can experience all the animals they have to offer. I don’t think the jellyfish exhibit is wheelchair friendly so this might be one of the few things you won’t be able to see. We ended up missing a lot of the shows when we visited so I can’t give you much input on the shows themselves, although the main stage looks to be quite large so I definitely want to come back to watch the main dolphin and seal shows.
There is a restaurant and cafe inside the aquarium, however we did not go to this. The food looks to be decent enough, although slightly overpriced.
ADDRESS
Shimoda Floating Aquarium,
22-31 Sanchome,
Shimoda,
Shizuoka Prefecture,
415-0023
+81558223567 (Japanese only)
https://shimoda-aquarium.com/ (Japanese only)
RECOMMENDED ROUTE:
The aquarium provides a large, free car park so I recommend visiting here by car if you can. You can take the train down to Shimoda from Atami, however, it is a 22 minute walk from the station or a taxi ride from there.
Things nearby:
MONUMENT OF JAPAN’S OPENING TO THE WORLD
MURAMATSU HARUO MONUMENT
ADMIRAL PERRY’S ARRIVAL MEMORIAL STONE
