Fukushima Aquamarine — Attraction in Iwaki

One of Fukushima's greatest attractions, and in my opinion it lives up to the reputation. It's a very large aquarium/animal exhibit, possibly the largest in Tohoku. The architecture itself is striking, and the whole thing is quite smartly laid out, designed to lead you efficiently through all of the exhibits while providing side hallways that let you double back if you want to see other parts again.

It's not just fish in tanks either, they have a few land animal areas, some play areas for kids (including a little enclosed beach that you can splash around in with the fish if you want), and an observation tower that lets you gaze out over the sea and harbor. They even have a cool waterfall, and several educational/historical exhibits. It genuinely feels like in addition to being something of an amusement park, the Aquamarine wishes to instill in its visitors an appreciation for the environment, its denizens and history, and how mankind can improve its relationship with them.

And for the quantity and variety of experiences they're offering, they're not asking a lot for the entry fee and don't ask for much extra for any the "extracurricular" experiences. I would recommend setting aside around 2 hours to see everything the Aquamarine has to offer.

The surrounding area is quite nice too, with a large boardwalk, the nearby Aeon Mall, and the Lalamew with a bunch of restaurants...

This aquarium is so impressive that even adults will have fun, with a large tank that represents the "tide sea" where the cold Oyashio Current and the warm Kuroshio Current meet off the coast of Fukushima Prefecture, and a coral reef sea where brightly colored fish swim. We also recommend the backstage tour!

DATA

50 Tatsumi-cho, Onahama 0246-73-2525 9:00-17:30 (last entry 16:30), winter (12/1-3/20) 9:00-17:00 (last entry 16:00) Open everyday Adults 1,850 yen, elementary, middle and high school students 900 yen, preschoolers free on some days *Exhibited creatures are...

Interesting, yet confusing. The aquarium tries to many things at once, with exhibits showcasing whaling history, Antartic geography, not one, but two greenhouse like areas and fossils galore.

This may be due to the layout changing after the tsunami, but it is a 10min walk outside after the "entrance" until you enter the main area. And the first bathroom inside is a 3 min walk from there.

The river otter and large tank are very cool, as are the greenhouses. Too many creatures stuck alone in very tiny tanks, while others had huge tanks with...