![[Yokosuka] Battleship Mikasa: You can experience an existing battleship up close. The only place in Japan.](/_astro/thumbnail-en.cZxjoqLa_ZYR1RT.webp)
Battleship Mikasa
Battleship Mikasa is a battleship of the former Japanese Navy era locate in Yokosuka City, Kanagawa Prefecture. She is made of steel with a total length of 132 meters and a displacement of 13,000 tons. Her main armament is her four 30cm guns, making her the only pre-dreadnought battleship in existence in the world.
She was built in England in 1902 and served in the Russo-Japanese War. After the end of the war in 1945, she was to be preserved as a commemorative ship.
She is currently preserved and exhibited at Mikasa Park in Yokosuka City.
During the Russo-Japanese War, she served as the flagship of the Combined Fleet of the Japanese Navy, carrying Heihachiro Tōgō, Commander-in-Chief of the Combined Fleet, and defeated the Baltic Fleet of the Russian Navy at the Battle of the Sea of Japan in 1905.
- Cultural property designation
- World’s three largest commemorative ships
- Japan Heritage
- Viewing hours
- [April - September] 9:00am - 5:30pm
- [March/October] 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
- [November to February] 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
- Ship closure day
- December 28th to 31st
- Viewing fee
- General: 600 yen
- Over 65 years old: 500 yen
- High school student: 300 yen
- Elementary and junior high school students: Free
- Required time
- 30 ~ 90 minutes
- Telephone number
- +81-46-822-5225
- Official website
- https://www.kinenkan-mikasa.or.jp/
- Nearest parking lot
- Mikasa Park Parking Lot (charged)
- Access
- Walk: 15 minutes walk from Yokosuka Chuo Station on the Keikyu Main Line
- Bus: From JR Yokosuka Station, take the [Chuo 1] Mikasa Loop Bus and get off at Mikasa Koen bus stop
- Taxi: 10 minutes from JR Yokosuka Station, cost around 1,000 yen
- Location
- 82-19 Inaoka-cho, Yokosuka City, Kanagawa Prefecture 238-0003
After purchasing the admission ticket, go to the battleship
An admission ticket is required for admission.
There is a souvenir shop called “Mikasa Shop” next to the battleship. There is an automatic ticket vending machine next to the store where you can purchase admission tickets, so purchase your admission ticket there before boarding the Mikasa.
| Admission fee | |
|---|---|
| General | 600 yen |
| 65 years or older | 500 yen |
| High school student | 300 yen |
| Elementary and junior high school students | Free |
Amazing! A huge battleship with a total length of 132m
The first thing that strikes you when you arrive is its size. The total length of Battleship Mikasa is 132m.
Being a battleship, there are many guns on the sides, with seven 15cm guns and four 8cm guns on the port side alone.
Mikasa is the only battleship in Japan that you can board. There are very few opportunities to see battleships these days, so being able to see them up close like this is a very rare opportunity.
Huge! 30cm main gun
When you go up to Mikasa’s deck, you can also see her huge 30cm main gun. This is the front main gun.
When you line it up with a person, you can see how big the gun is.
Mikasa has main guns installed in the front and rear, two each, for a total of four 30cm guns. This is her 30cm gun in the rear.
The rear main gun displays a shell that is the same size as the one that was actually fired.
The weight of the shell is 400 kg, the maximum range of her is 10 km. The shell was loaded with a large amount of highly explosive Shimose gunpowder, and the detonator had a safe and highly sensitive Ijuin fuse attached to the bottom of the bullet.
Ship guide map
A guide map of the ship is included in the brochure.
You can get pamphlets on-site, but they are also available on the official website, so you can view them online before going to the site.
- Memorial Ship Mikasa Pamphlet (PDF)
The brochure states that it takes her 30-60 minutes.
The ship is spacious and there are quite a lot of exhibits, so if you want to take your time and explore the ship, including breaks, we recommend allowing 60 to 90 minutes for the trip.
Limited to Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays! free guide
On Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays, Mikasa offers free tours of the ship by volunteers.
- Start time
- 10:10am
- 11:00am
- noon
- 1:00pm
- 2:00pm
- 3:00pm
It takes about 30 minutes.
After listening to the guide’s explanation, we recommend actually walking around the ship on your own, as this will help you learn more about Mikasa and make new discoveries.
Video room/rest room
There is a video room on the ship where you can watch explanatory videos about the Russo-Japanese War and Mikasa.
The video room also doubles as a rest room and is equipped with vending machines.
Recommended order to enjoy Battleship Mikasa the most
If you want to tour Mikasa, we recommend the following order.
- Watch the video in the video room
- Participate in free guide information
- Tour the ship yourself
In the video room, you can watch explanations of history such as “Heihachiro Tōgō,” “Baltic Fleet,” “Capture of Port Arthur,” and “Russo-Japanese War.”
First, learn about the Russo-Japanese War and Mikasa through videos, then listen to the free guide. From there, if you tour the ship, even if you don’t know anything about Mikasa or the Russo-Japanese War, you will gain a better understanding and make new discoveries as you look around the exhibits.
Fully equipped and safe.
Battleship Mikasa is well-equipped, so you can stay there for a long time with peace of mind.
- There are many benches on the deck so you can take a break while walking around.
- There is a toilet
- There is a vending machine in the break room
- There is a Smoking area
Total length 120m vast exhibition area
Once you get off the deck, you can go inside the battleship, but it is all an exhibition space. Total length 120m. If you look at the photo, you can see how spacious it is.
There are a surprising number of exhibits on board the ship, from displays of period furniture and equipment to historical documents. The furniture in each room is from that time.
officer’s room
Uniforms and instruments of the time
Reception room
Director’s Office (Heihachiro Togo’s room)
These are just a few. The interior of the ship at the time and a wealth of historical materials are on display.
There is also a simulator where you can operate a battleship, and there are so many battleship models that it would be no exaggeration to say that they have all the Japanese battleships, so even children should have fun.
A time to think about history and life while feeling a battleship up close.
Since it is a battleship, its place of action is war.
Battleship Mikasa was active during the Russo-Japanese War in 1905 .
He boards a battleship to protect his country, and behind victory there is defeat, and human life is involved. Thousands, tens of thousands, even millions of lives have been lost in wars over the years.
War is a foolish act. However, regardless of the purpose of the war, I believe that soldiers who sacrificed their lives for their country and loved ones should be respected.
Please come and enjoy Battleship Mikasa with the utmost respect.
