Kure combines maritime history with art and distinctive urban spaces. Its highlights range from the submarine “Akishio” and views of ships to museum collections, architecture and walking routes. When planning your visit, it helps to first decide what interests you most: maritime experiences, art or time outdoors.
Submarines and ships from different perspectives
One highlight is the history of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force. The JMSDF Kure Museum shows the interior of the submarine “Akishio,” which was in service with the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force until 2004. Visitors can board the submarine on display and get a sense of the conditions and life inside during a dive. Visitors may also have the opportunity to speak with serving and former members of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force.
The Kure Bay Ship Tour offers a different perspective: from the water, you can see large ships under construction, as well as ships and submarines of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, at close range. The ships and submarines in view may vary. On the open-air second deck, passengers can listen to a guide’s commentary. Together, the chance to see inside a submarine and views of ships under construction and in service offer two distinct maritime experiences.
Museums, collections and architecture
Irifuneyama Park is home to the Irifuneyama Memorial Museum, which tells the story of Kure as a former naval port town. The museum is centered around the former residence of the commander of Kure Naval Base. The residence was designated an Important Cultural Property of Japan in 1998. The park is also home to the Kure City Museum of Art, a solid brick building.
The art museum holds 919 works by Japanese and international artists, including Bourdelle’s “Hercules the Archer” and Renoir’s “Girl in a Straw Hat.” The building itself also has distinctive features: a hipped roof with Japanese tiles and a façade of brick-red hexagonal tiles. There is also a haiku monument to Masaoka Shiki in Irifuneyama Park. The art collection, architecture and literary monument offer different points of interest.
Walking routes and streetscapes
Museum Street is a tree-lined promenade with red brick paving and 18 sculptures. Around Irifuneyama Park, sculptures and other objects, green pines and a natural woodland backdrop shape a path that invites visitors to stroll and relax. If you want to combine a museum visit with time outdoors, this offers a different way to experience the area than exploring the galleries.
The seasons are also reflected in the streetscape: azaleas bloom along Kuramoto Street in spring, while the ginkgo trees turn color in autumn. The brick-patterned sidewalk is also part of the street’s character. If you’re planning your visit around the season, spring and autumn offer different highlights; when looking for hotels in Kure, you can also consider which seasonal sights interest you.
Alley Karasukojima is a walking path whose name brings together a place name and a word from another language. Karasukojima was once a small island, 30 to 40 meters across, in Kureura. During the Taishō period, the area was filled in to create a torpedo firing range; “alley” means a narrow path in English. In the Ryōjō area, you can also see unusual hillside houses known as “staircase houses (Ryōjō’s 100 Steps).” Nearby in Kure, a monument marks the former site of the Kure Naval Arsenal’s technical training school. Remains of an air observation post and bunkers have been preserved in the area.
Discover more destinations: Onomichi, Higashihiroshima, Hiroshima, Fukuyama, Fuchū, Kurogawa, Mihara, Miyoshi.
For the broader travel overview: Hiroshima Prefecture.
