Naruto Whirlpool Cruise — Fukura

photo by Pinqui · CC BY-SA 3.0

photo by Puchi-masashi · CC BY-SA 4.0

From Fukura port a motor vessel passes within a few metres of whirlpools up to 20 metres across.

The Naruto Strait, just 1.3 km wide between Awaji and Shikoku, links two bodies of water (the Seto Inland Sea and the Kii Channel) whose tides are out of step: four times a day the difference in level between the two sides, up to 1.5 metres, creates a very strong current and whirlpools that at the spring and autumn peaks reach 20 metres in diameter, among the largest in the world. The boats sail from Fukura port, on the Awaji side, and pass within a few metres of the whirlpools; the best time changes every day with the tide and is posted at the ticket office half an hour before departure.

The whirlpools form in the Naruto Strait, between the municipality of Minamiawaji (Awaji, Hyogo) and the city of Naruto (Tokushima); this cruise leaves from Fukura port, on the Awaji side, and is not to be confused with the ‘Uzu-no-Michi’ walkway on the bridge, which is instead on the Naruto side, in Tokushima.

ℹ️ Boarding at Michi-no-eki Fukura (a public rest area with shops and restaurants, common along Japanese roads outside towns), Uzushio Dome Nanairikan building; be at the ticket office at least 30 minutes beforehand. Cruise of about an hour, 2,500 yen for ages 13 and over (fare since 2020).

🚉 福良バスターミナル · 3 min walk

Sources: uzu-shio.com · awajishima-kanko.jp · uzunomichi.jp

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