Maizuru: Red Bricks, Naval Port, and Memories of Repatriation (Drive)

Entering the wharf of JMSDF Kitasui Pier to view vessels is permitted only on designated public opening days. Please check the website of the JMSDF Maizuru District before visiting.

This driving course takes you through Maizuru Red Brick Park, lined with former Navy Maizuru Naval District red brick warehouses, and along JMSDF Kitasui Pier where destroyers and other vessels berth. You will then visit Maizuru Repatriation Memorial Museum, which conveys the history of postwar repatriation, and finish with a panoramic view of Maizuru Bay from Goro Sky Tower. Spend a full day tracing by car the modern progression of a town established as a naval port, as well as its memories as a repatriation port that welcomed countless people.

History and Regional Charm

Maizuru Bay is a natural good harbor with a narrow mouth and calm waters. In 1901 (Meiji 34), the Maizuru Naval District was established with Togo Heihachiro appointed as its first commander-in-chief, making Maizuru the sole Navy base facing the Sea of Japan. Alongside the development of the port following the establishment of the naval district, the urban area of Higashi-Maizuru was laid out in an orderly grid system, much as it appears today. The streets stretching from the station toward the sea were named after naval vessels, such as "Mikasa," "Hatsuse," "Asahi," and "Shikishima." While Nishi-Maizuru preserves the atmosphere of the Edo period, Higashi-Maizuru's streetscape conveys the history of modernization since the Meiji period.

Following the end of World War II, Maizuru became a port receiving repatriates and demobilized soldiers from former Manchuria, the Korean Peninsula, and Siberia. Over the 13 years between the first repatriation ship in October 1945 and the final one in September 1958, approximately 660,000 individuals were received here, and from 1950 onward, Maizuru was the only port welcoming repatriates. Through its red brick heritage and memorial museum, you can trace how this naval port town transformed in the postwar years into a haven welcoming people back home.

Key Highlights

• ​Maizuru Red Brick Park and Kitasui Pier​​: The red brick warehouses were built between 1901 and 1921 to store munitions and supplies for the naval district. Eight buildings in the park were designated as national Important Cultural Properties in 2008 as the "Former Maizuru Naval District Warehouse Facilities." Located west of the park, Kitasui Pier features piers dating from the naval district era inherited by the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force; with a wharf of approximately 1,000 meters, it is the longest among JMSDF bases.
• ​Maizuru Repatriation Memorial Museum​​: Opened in 1988, this facility shares the history of repatriation and Siberian internment. Among approximately 16,000 artifacts donated from across Japan, 570 items were inscribed on the UNESCO Memory of the World Register in 2015. Highlights include the "Shirakaba Nisshi" (White Birch Diary), a collection of waka poems written on white birch bark during Siberian internment, and museum storytellers are available to guide visitors through the exhibits upon request.
• ​Goro Sky Tower​​: Standing atop the 301-meter-high Mt. Gorogatake, this observation tower reaches a height of 50 meters. From the observation room at 325 meters above sea level, you can enjoy a 360-degree panorama of the rias coastline of Maizuru Bay and the city area, a vista selected as number one among the "100 Landscapes of Kinki." You can also watch destroyers navigating the bay from the observation deck.

Recommended Route and Duration

The estimated duration is about 5 hours. Parking is available at Maizuru Red Brick Park, where the 150-meter-long "Red Brick Road" in front of the warehouses is now used as a pedestrian walkway connecting the parking lot to the park. The exterior of the warehouses can be viewed freely. If time permits, taking the 30-minute "Navy-Related Port Cruise" boat departing from the park is also recommended for viewing vessels up close from the sea.

Kitasui Pier can be reached on foot, located about 540 meters west-northwest of the park. You can take in the naval port townscape extending from the red brick warehouses to the wharf lined with naval vessels.

Maizuru Repatriation Memorial Museum is located in Repatriation Memorial Park on a hill overlooking Maizuru Bay, approximately 4 kilometers in a straight line north-northeast of Kitasui Pier, and free parking is available. A tour of the museum takes about 30 to 40 minutes. Located 2 to 3 minutes by car from the museum is the reconstructed Repatriation Pier in the Taira district.

Finally, head to Goro Sky Tower, situated about 7 kilometers in a straight line southwest of the museum. Reaching the mountaintop is convenient by car, with free parking available. The location is also known as a viewpoint where a sea of clouds can be seen from October through February.

Summary of the Experience

Meiji-era red brick warehouses, wharves where naval vessels still dock, a memorial museum conveying the sentiments of those who longed for home, and Maizuru Bay seen from atop the mountain. Enjoy exploring by car to experience the historical trajectory of Maizuru, a town founded as a naval port that later became a haven for postwar repatriation.