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Sail Training Ship Nippon Maru

The Legendary Sailing Ship

The Nippon Maru is a Sail Training Ship that has trained 11,500 cadets and sailed a total of 1.83 million kilometers in half a century since her debut in 1930. In 1983, the Sailboat Nippon Maru is permanently docked in Yokohama Dockyard No. 1 for visitors to experience.

The Nippon Maru 日本丸, which was used for sail training, debuted in Kobe in 1930. During her 54 years of service, the Nippon Maru sailed a total of 1.83 million kilometers, equivalent to 45 and a half times around the globe. The white Nippon Maru is also known as the Swan of the Pacific Ocean.

Manywhere Trivia:
Another sister sailship named Kaiwo Maru 海王丸, born in the same year as Nippon Maru, is currently docked in Imizu, Toyama Prefecture for display.

The Nippon Maru served as a material carrier during World War II and resumed sailing training again after the war, with a Total Number of over 11,500 Cadets Trained according to statistics. At the end of the last century, the Nippon Maru was retired due to the aging of the ship, and in 1983 it was permanently docked at Yokohama Minato Mirai 21 in the Yokohama No. 1 Dockyard, telling the stories and history of Yokohama port together with the Yokohama Port Museum in the Nippon Maru Memorial Park.

Manywhere Trivia:
The Yokohama No. 1 Dockyard itself is a major national cultural property of Japan, where thousands of ships were repaired over 84 years from 1899 to 1982.

The Lifeboat

Nippon Maru currently has three decks open for visitors, with the top deck having a wide view, Four Masts with Numerous Cables, which is used to control the opening and closing of the sails. From time to time each year, the Nippon Maru will open all 29 sails on board to give a glimpse of the ship as it sails away with the wind.

The lower cabin is partially open, where you can visit Engine Room, Officers' Parlor, the Captain’s Office, the classrooms and dormitories to experience what life was like for the cadets when they trained in the old days.