Katsuragahama Park

In short

Katsuragahama Park is a seaside park on Kurahashijima Island in Kure City. Spreading out before it is Katsuragahama, a beach where pine groves stretch along white sands, counted among the "100 Selected White Sand and Green Pine Beaches" and located within Setonaikai National Park.

• ​White Sands and Green Pines Beach​​: Visitors can enjoy a stroll along the shore while taking in the scenery woven together by white sand, green pine groves, and the calm waters of the Setouchi sea. In summer, it bustles with beachgoers
• ​Katsurahama-jinja Shrine and the Pines of Man'yo​​: The main hall, rebuilt in 1480, is a national Important Cultural Property. The pine grove within the shrine grounds is designated as a Hiroshima Prefectural Historic Site, as a landscape that accords with the spirit of the Man'yoshu poems composed when an envoy mission bound for Silla anchored at this island in 736
• ​Nagato Shipyard History Museum​​: It introduces shipbuilding and maritime transport from ancient to modern times, and visitors can go inside a full-scale reconstruction of a kentoshi-sen (a ship of the Japanese missions to Tang China)

History and Highlights

​Katsuragahama Park​ is a seaside park located on Kurahashijima Island in Kure City. It is situated in Hon'ura, Kurahashi-cho, the central area of Kurahashi. Spreading out before the park is ​Katsuragahama​​, a beach where pine groves stretch along white sands, located within Setonaikai National Park.

Kurahashijima Island is believed to be the island anciently known as "Nagatoshima." In 736 (the 8th year of the Tenpyo era during the Nara period), an envoy mission bound for Silla anchored their ship at this island, and eight poems composed at that time are included in Volume 15 of the Man'yoshu. The pine grove within the grounds of Katsurahama-jinja Shrine, facing the beach, has been designated as a Hiroshima Prefectural Historic Site under the name "Man'yoshu Historic Site: Nagatoshima Matsubara," as it preserves a landscape that accords with the spirit of those poems. Additionally, Hon'ura was a harbor well-suited for anchoring ships, and it is said that ships bound for foreign countries were built here from ancient times, making it known as a shipbuilding center through the Edo period.

Viewing and Experience Points

• ​White Sands and Green Pines Beach​​: Katsuragahama is counted among the "100 Selected White Sand and Green Pine Beaches." Visitors can enjoy a stroll along the shore while taking in the scenery woven together by white sand, green pine groves, and the calm waters of the Setouchi sea. In summer, it bustles with beachgoers.
• ​Katsurahama-jinja Shrine and the Pines of Man'yo​​: Katsurahama-jinja Shrine, dedicated to the guardian deity of Kurahashi, stands on a small hill overlooking the beach. The main hall (honden) was rebuilt in 1480 (the 12th year of the Bunmei era during the Sengoku period) and is a building rich in regional character, designated as a national Important Cultural Property. In the shrine's pine grove, visitors can imagine the ancient scenes depicted in the Man'yoshu poetry.
• ​Encountering Shipbuilding History​​: Near the beach stands the Nagato Shipyard History Museum, which introduces shipbuilding and maritime transport from ancient to modern times, where visitors can go inside a full-scale reconstruction of a kentoshi-sen (a ship of the Japanese missions to Tang China). Next to the beach is also "Katsuragahama Onsenkan," a day-use hot spring facility.

Walking Tips

From in front of Kure Station, local buses run bound for Katsuragahama Onsenkan. By car, it takes about 45 minutes from Kure Station. When crossing to Kurahashijima Island from the mainland by car, you will cross the bridge over the Ondo-no-Seto Strait. Visiting the nearby spot "Ondo-no-Seto Strait" along the way allows you to enjoy the journey out to the island as well. Since the beach, shrine, history museum, and hot spring facility are clustered close together, parking your car and exploring on foot is recommended.