Cruise Port Guide
The bucket-list things to do — and who runs each one.
Here’s the bucket list for your day ashore: the most extraordinary thing to do at each stop, who runs it, and how to book it direct — so you can weigh it against your ship’s excursion and pick what suits you.
A government-licensed multilingual guide unlocks both sides of the Kanmon Straits in one seamless private day — Mojiko's Meiji-era retro quarter, Shimonoseki's waterfront, and the iconic bridge framing it all. The bucket-list moment: a port city frozen beautifully in time, decoded just for you.
Glide across the legendary Kanmon Straits on a private boat charter, watching a parade of massive ocean-going vessels thread through one of the world's busiest waterways beneath the soaring Kanmon Bridge. An unmissable, cinematic perspective on Japan's maritime soul.
Stroll the perfectly preserved early-20th-century streetscape of Mojiko Retro — the former Moji Customs House, the elegant old station, the Blue Wing Bridge — then sit down to Moji's most iconic dish: the legendary baked curry, born right here in this port town.
Ascend 103 metres to the glass-walled observation gallery atop the Mojiko Retro district for a sweeping 360° panorama that takes in the Kanmon Bridge, the surging straits, the city of Shimonoseki directly opposite, and the dramatic sweep of northern Kyushu coastline.
Discover the extraordinary underwater world of the Kanmon Straits at the Kaikyokan — an immersive aquarium and maritime museum where the star residents are the fugu (pufferfish) that made this region world-famous, alongside a captivating live window onto the world's busiest waterway.
Cross to Shimonoseki — the global capital of fugu (pufferfish) — to experience the spectacular Karato Market, where the finest pufferfish in Japan are auctioned and sold, then sit down to the ultimate fugu omakase tasting prepared by a licensed master chef. A singular, irreplaceable culinary bucket-list moment.
⚓ Your bucket-list concierge
Tell us your sailing and we'll send the bucket list for every port — the most extraordinary thing to do at each, and the operator who runs it.
We send the plan to your account’s own address — never to one typed into a box. Free, and Google works.