Until 1926 it was called ‘waterfall cave’: the name came with Hirohito's visit.
More than 11.2 kilometres of passages make it the largest limestone cave in Japan; the tourist route covers about one kilometre, an hour there and back, at a constant 17 °C all year round. It was called Taki-ana, ‘waterfall cave’, until in 1926 the crown prince (the future Emperor Shōwa) visited and explored it in person: since then it has borne its current name. The most photographed stretch, ‘hundred plates’ (百枚皿), is a series of terraced travertine pools that recall a rice paddy carved into the rock.
A limestone cave in the Akiyoshidai plateau, a Special Natural Monument since 1964 together with the karst surface. It is open to the public all year round, New Year's Day included.
ℹ️ Hours 9:00–16:30 (9:00–17:30 from 1 July to 30 September; 8:30–17:30 during Golden Week and Obon). Adult ticket (high school and above) 1,600 yen in normal season, 1,900 yen in high season, 1,350 yen from December to the end of February; junior high 1,300 yen, elementary school 850 yen. Additional adventure course 300 yen, 10–15 minutes. Car park 500 yen/day. Address: 山口県美祢市秋芳町秋吉3449-1, 5 minutes by car from the Akiyoshidai interchange on the Chūgoku Expressway, about 40 minutes by bus from JR Shin-Yamaguchi Station.
🚉 秋芳洞 · 8 min walk
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Nearby
Akiyoshidai Natural Science Museum700 mphoto by そらみみ (Soramimi) · CC BY-SA 4.0
Akiyoshidai Karst Plateau700 mphoto by そらみみ (Soramimi) · CC BY-SA 4.0
Manokura no Ōiwago, the boulder field12.2 kmphoto by 茂林寺たぬき · CC BY-SA 4.0
Yuda Onsen16 kmphoto by そらみみ (Soramimi) · CC BY-SA 4.0