Ukai — fishing with trained cormorants — has been practised on the Nishiki River for something like four centuries. On summer nights a fisherman in a pointed black cap and straw skirt stands in the bow of a narrow boat beneath a blazing iron fire-basket, handling several cormorants on leashes as they dive for ayu, the sweetfish of clear Japanese rivers.
Iwakuni is one of a small number of places in Japan where the tradition continues, and the setting is hard to beat: the boats work the stretch just upstream of Kintaikyo, with the illuminated arches as a backdrop.
Top things to do: Cormorant Fishing (Ukai)
Watch from a pleasure boat
Spectators ride in roofed yakatabune boats that are poled out to follow the fishing boat. The outing lasts around an hour, with the fishing itself the climax. Seats are typically booked through the local tourism association, and meal options are sometimes offered.
Watch from the bank or the bridge
You can see the firelight and the boats for free from the riverbank and from Kintaikyo itself. You lose the close-up, but the picture of the fire drifting below the arches is memorable.
Make an evening of it
Eat early at one of the riverside restaurants or ryokan, watch the ukai, then walk the lit bridge once the boats have gone in. This is the best reason to stay the night in summer.
How to get there
- Where: boats leave from the riverbank close to Kintaikyo.
- When: evenings in the summer season, roughly from the beginning of June to early September.
- Getting back: buses to the stations thin out in the evening — check the last departure or arrange a taxi.
Insider tips
- Reserve boat seats ahead for weekends and August; check the current fares when you book.
- Sailings are cancelled when the river is high or the weather is bad, so keep a back-up plan.
- Bring insect repellent and a light layer; it is cooler on the water.
- Spring visitors can ride the same pleasure boats by day for blossom viewing.
Best tours & tickets: Cormorant Fishing (Ukai)
These experiences are the easiest way to see Cormorant Fishing (Ukai) and the rest of Iwakuni:
Private food tour from €83 Iwakuni: Food and Drink Tour with a Local Guide
A short private tour for eating and drinking your way into Iwakuni with someone who lives there. What you try depends on the day and the guide, but the town’s specialities — pressed Iwakuni sushi, lotus root, local sake — are the obvious candidates. No reviews on GetYourGuide yet, so read the listing carefully.
- Local dishes and drinks chosen by a resident guide
- A relaxed two hours on foot
- Private: your party only
Private walk from €95 Kintaikyo Bridge and Iwakuni Castle with a Local Guide (3 Hours)
The one GetYourGuide tour that starts in Iwakuni itself and covers exactly what most visitors come for. A local guide walks you over Kintaikyo, explains how the arches are built and rebuilt, leads you through Kikko Park and takes you up to the castle keep above the river. A private tour, so the pace is yours.
- Cross the five wooden arches with a local guide
- Kikko Park and the old samurai quarter
- Up the hill to Iwakuni Castle for the view
