Naruto Raft Fishing Guide: Uchinoumi Bay, BBQ & Eat Your Catch (2026)

Most visitors come to Naruto for the whirlpools that churn under the Onaruto Bridge. Fewer know that on the other side of Oge Island lies Uchinoumi, a quiet bay almost closed in by islands, with fishing rafts floating on its surface.

This guide is for travelers who want to fish it. You can fish from a raft with a barbecue, from a small boat, or from the shore with rented gear, and if you stay at AoAwo Naruto Resort, the hotel can cook your catch for dinner.

If you are planning a trip this autumn, start with the hotel’s Raft BBQ & Fishing plan. In 2026 it runs only from October 1 to November 30.

We also cover a local raft operator, real bus times, and how to book when much of the booking here happens by phone, in Japanese.

Why Uchinoumi is the calm side of Naruto

Uchinoumi means “inner sea,” and the name fits. The bay is ringed by Oge Island, Takashima, Shimada Island and the narrow Konaruto Strait. According to Hosokawa Tosen, a raft operator in the fishing village of Dounoura, the water is as still as a pond, and you can usually keep fishing here even when the open sea is too rough.

That calm does not mean the water is dull. Hosokawa Tosen explains that the tide pours into the bay from three directions, creating layered currents, and that this is why so many kinds of fish turn up here. Look out across the water and you will see the rafts that anglers use, anchored in rows.

Wait, why are there rafts floating in the middle of a bay?

They come from the days when pearls were farmed here. Today they are fishing platforms you reach by boat.

Pearls were once farmed widely in Uchinoumi, and the rafts left over from that work now serve anglers. A boat takes you out, drops you on a raft, and comes back for you later. Because the rafts sit where the current is gentle, Hosokawa Tosen describes them as stable, and its rafts have a toilet and a roof for shade. If you worry about seasickness, that steadiness is the main reason to choose a raft over a boat.

Fishing here also has deep local roots. Dounoura, the village on the bay where Hosokawa Tosen is based, has fished these waters for generations. The operator’s website notes that Ryotaro Shiba’s travel series Kaido wo Yuku credits Dounoura fishermen with developing tegusu, a kind of fishing line, in the early Edo period. It adds that the village’s hand-line fishermen were so skilled that they traveled to teach their methods in Kii, Tosa, Iki and Tsushima.

Four ways to fish Uchinoumi

There are four practical ways for a visitor to fish this bay. Three are run by AoAwo Naruto Resort, the large seaside hotel on Oge Island, and you book them through the hotel. The fourth is Hosokawa Tosen, a local raft operator in Dounoura that you contact directly. The table below sets them side by side, and the sections that follow explain each one. Prices are as of October 2026, from the hotel’s official pages and the operator’s own price list. Prices may vary. Please check the official site for the latest information. The AoAwo prices are the hotel’s own, so please ask the hotel whether they apply to your booking.

Raft BBQ & Fishing with AoAwo Naruto Resort (Oct 1 – Nov 30, 2026)

This is the easiest way onto the water if you don’t speak Japanese and don’t own any gear. The hotel calls it “Feel like Tom Sawyer,” and the idea is simple: you spend about half a day on your own raft, fishing and grilling lunch.

The plan takes one group per day, on a first-come, first-served basis, for 2 to 5 people. You need to book at least a week in advance. The price is ¥9,900 per person with a rod, or ¥8,800 if you bring your own tackle. Children aged 3 and up (at least 90 cm tall) can join, and children aged 5 and under are free but get no meal or fishing set. A companion who wants only the boat ride, without fishing or BBQ, pays ¥2,000.

The price covers more than you might expect:

• A rod and reel for each person, two sabiki rigs and bait baskets each, and a block of krill bait per person
• A cooler for your catch and a printed guide to cleaning fish
• BBQ ingredients (meat, vegetables, rice balls and sauce), packed in a cooler
• One drink each, beer or a soft drink, chosen on the day
• A charcoal grill, simple chairs and a table
• The transfer from the hotel to the port and the boat out to the raft

On the day, you check in, go to the hotel’s Beach Land counter, and are driven about 10 minutes to the Uchinoumi fishing port. A boat takes you to the raft, where you fish and grill for around four hours. The plan finishes at about 16:00, and you are taken back to the hotel in time for the hot springs. The raft has a simple toilet. If the weather is rough, the trip may be cancelled for safety.

An instructor can join on request for up to four hours, until 16:00. As of October 2026 the hotel lists this at ¥11,000 for one person, tax included. Ask exactly what that covers when you book. Whatever you catch can be cooked for your dinner at the hotel, for an extra fee.

To book the raft plan, call AoAwo Naruto Resort at +81-88-687-2580 (10:00–18:00, Japan time). This number is for the raft plan, not for room bookings. The prices above are as of October 2026. Prices may vary. Please check the official site for the latest information.

Hosokawa Tosen: a local raft operator in Dounoura

Hosokawa Tosen is a local business that takes anglers out to its rafts and small anchored boats. Japanese anglers often call these small boats “kase.” It suits travelers who want a full day on the water, starting early, at a local price.

According to the operator’s price list, last revised in January 2023 and checked in October 2026:

• Raft fishing: ¥4,500 per adult, ¥2,000 per child (up to 6th grade)
• Kase (a small boat moored in place): ¥5,000
• Rod and reel set rental: ¥3,000. Sets are limited, and damage is charged.
• BBQ set rental: ¥2,000 for charcoal, a cast-iron grill and tableware for six. Food is not included.
• Bait for black sea bream (a ground-bait ball mix called dango): ¥700 per bucket

Prices may vary. Please check the official site for the latest information.

The first boat leaves about 30 minutes before sunrise, around 4:30 in summer and 6:30 in winter, and boats run as needed after that. Fishing ends at 16:00. If you want to leave earlier, the boat comes back once an hour, except at 13:00. Groups of four or more on a raft, or two or more on a kase, can request a specific spot when booking.

Bookings are taken only by mobile phone, at +81-90-3180-3960 (6:00–18:00). The operator’s landline does not take reservations, and its website is in Japanese only. The address is 2-61 Dounoura, Seto-cho, Naruto.

Boat fishing from AoAwo Beach Land

If you would rather move around than sit on a raft, the hotel runs two short boat trips from September 1 to December 31, 2026. Both are booked at the hotel’s fishing pond counter by 17:00 the day before. Anyone on board must be at least 110 cm tall and weigh at least 16 kg, and children may need a guardian.

• Rock fishing. About 90 minutes at slack tide, sometime between 10:00 and 17:00. It costs ¥5,500 per angler, including rod, rig, bait and life jacket, and ¥1,500 for a passenger who doesn’t fish. The targets are wrasse and scorpionfish (gashira). Staff give tips to first-timers. It takes 2 to 5 people, with up to 4 rods.
• Family fishing boat charter. About 90 minutes, departing at 12:00 or 15:00. It costs ¥20,000 per boat for 2 to 5 people, with up to 4 rods, and only the first two groups each day can book. Each extra 30 minutes costs ¥5,500. Targets include horse mackerel, sardines, barracuda, wrasse and scorpionfish.

The boat prices are as of October 2026. Prices may vary. Please check the official site for the latest information.

Fishing pond and sabiki rental for short visits

The fishing pond sits on the hotel’s own beach. It has two net pens of live fish, mostly sea bream and horse mackerel from the waters around Naruto. The larger pen is for experienced anglers, and the smaller one is for beginners. It costs ¥500 for 30 minutes, including the rod, and buckets, nets and gloves are free. It is open from 10:00 to 17:00.

Fish you keep are paid for separately. Here are the hotel’s guide prices:

You can also release what you catch. It is a good choice for children, or for adults who have only an hour before dinner.

For something closer to real fishing, the same counter rents gear until January 3, 2027, from 10:00 to 17:00. Book at least 60 minutes ahead.

• Sabiki set (¥2,500). A rod and reel, two bait baskets, two rigs and a block of krill. Sabiki is the classic Japanese family method: a line of small hooks with a feeder basket, jigged up and down for horse mackerel and sardines.
• Hole-fishing set (¥2,500). A rod and reel with sinkers and krill, for dropping a bait between rocks to catch rockfish.

The prices in this section are as of October 2026. Prices may vary. Please check the official site for the latest information.

Staff will recommend nearby piers, but they don’t go with you. Rules on where you can fish and what you can take vary from place to place. Before fishing from a public pier, check the rules in our guide.
👉 Do you need a fishing license in Japan?

What you can catch, season by season

Uchinoumi fishes well all year, but the catch changes with the water temperature. Two local sources list what to expect. The first is AoAwo Naruto Resort’s raft plan page, and the second is Hosokawa Tosen, which describes each season on its website. They don’t use the same seasons, so the table keeps them in separate columns rather than merging them.

Source: AoAwo Naruto Resort raft plan page and Hosokawa Tosen website, checked October 2026.

The two lists mostly agree. The difference is that Hosokawa Tosen describes winter on its own, and says the bay still produces flatfish, greenling and halfbeak when the water is at its coldest.

If you come for the October–November raft plan, you are fishing the autumn season. Sabiki rigs are the easiest way to catch horse mackerel and sardines, and halfbeak, flatfish and rockfish are possible as well.

Two local styles come up again and again in the descriptions.

• Dango fishing for black sea bream (chinu). The bait is wrapped in a ball of ground bait called dango and dropped to the bottom. The ball breaks apart and draws fish to the hook. Hosokawa Tosen is well known for this style. Dango fishing for black sea bream comes first in the rig guide on its website, and a customer’s story on the site describes a black sea bream tournament held on its rafts. It sells dango by the bucket.
• Live-bait flounder. Hosokawa Tosen says that in early summer some anglers catch small horse mackerel or sardines on sabiki rigs, then use them as live bait for flounder of 40–70 cm.

As with any wild fishery, what you catch depends on the tide, the weather and the day. None of these lists is a guarantee. They show what has been caught in that season.

Eat your catch: how cooking works at AoAwo

In Japan, eating what you catch is part of the fun of fishing. Some seaside hotels will cook a guest’s fish, as Awakan on Awaji Island does. AoAwo Naruto Resort offers this for all four of its fishing activities: the raft plan, the boat trips, the fishing pond and the rental gear. Its pages say that the fish you catch can be cooked and served at the restaurant at dinner.

So the hotel will actually cook the fish I caught myself?

Yes, it’s a regular hotel service. The cost depends on what you catch and how you got it.

Here is how the hotel lists the costs for each activity:

“From ¥550” means the final price depends on the fish and how it is prepared. The pond is the only option where you also pay for the fish itself, because the pens are stocked. These costs are as of October 2026. Prices may vary. Please check the official site for the latest information.

The hotel does not say which of its restaurants serves the catch. There are five: Irodori (local Awa cuisine), Four Seasons (French), Naruto (seafood), Umikaze (charcoal grill) and the Terrace Cafe Ohge. So when you hand over your fish, ask how and where it will be served, and check this also fits your dinner plan.

One more point. The hotel’s pages describe this cooking service for fish caught through its own activities. They don’t say whether it will cook fish you caught somewhere else, such as on a Hosokawa Tosen raft. If that is your plan, ask the hotel before you go.

On the raft, there is another option. The AoAwo plan comes with a charcoal grill and a printed guide to cleaning fish, so you can gut a few horse mackerel or sardines and grill them right there next to your BBQ lunch.

Which option fits you?

Price and season matter, but for most overseas visitors the biggest difference between these options is language. AoAwo Naruto Resort is a large resort hotel. Once you are staying there, you book the boat trips and rental gear at its own counter, and guest reviews on Trip.com and Booking.com say many of the staff speak English. Hosokawa Tosen is a local operator that takes bookings only by mobile phone, in Japanese.

I don’t speak Japanese. Can I still book a raft with the local operator?

Only by phone in Japanese, so it’s tough alone. Match the option to your situation instead.

Here is a simple way to choose:

Prices in the table are as of October 2026. Prices may vary. Please check the official site for the latest information.

Even at AoAwo, the raft plan is booked by phone at least a week ahead. If calling is difficult, the Booking tips section near the end of this guide covers a few ways to make it easier.

If you have also read our guide to Awakan on Awaji Island, here is the difference. At Awakan you walk down to the hotel’s own private pier and fish for free, whenever you like. Uchinoumi is about going out onto the water, on a raft or a boat, in a bay that is calmer than the open sea.
👉 Read our full guide to Awakan

Getting there

Naruto sits at the northeastern tip of Shikoku, just across the Onaruto Bridge from Awaji Island. Getting there is easy, but several of the buses that serve AoAwo Naruto Resort run only for passengers who have booked a seat.

Wait, a bus that only runs if I book it? Why?

Around here, some buses only run when a seat has been booked. No booking, no bus, so note these deadlines.

Fares in this section are as of October 2026. Prices may vary. Please check the official site for the latest information.

From Tokushima Awaodori Airport (UZS BUS)

Tokushima Awaodori Airport is the nearest airport, with flights from Tokyo Haneda and Fukuoka. From July 20, 2026, a new airport limousine called the UZS BUS links the airport with Naruto and the south of Awaji Island. It runs as a trial by Tokushima Prefecture. The route goes from the airport to Naruto Station, AoAwo Naruto Resort, the Otsuka Museum of Art and on to Awaji Island.

• Fare: ¥800 one way from the airport to AoAwo, children half price
• Booking: “reserved” services must be booked at least 3 days ahead at https://uzs-bus.com
• Where to get off: coming from the airport, the bus stops at the “AoAwo-mae” stop on the road outside the hotel grounds. Walk to the lobby from there.
• Going back: buses to the airport leave from in front of the hotel lobby, which is a different spot from the drop-off

Some older guides and booking sites still mention a free hotel shuttle from the airport. According to the hotel, that shuttle ended on July 19, 2026, when the UZS BUS started.

From Kansai Airport (bus + hotel shuttle)

There is no direct bus from Kansai Airport to the hotel. You take the airport limousine bus (Tokushima / Awaji Island line) to the “Kosoku Naruto” stop, then the hotel’s free shuttle.

• Limousine bus: about 2 hours 20 minutes from Terminal 1, ¥5,000 one way. All seats are reserved, through the Tokushima Bus reservation center (+81-88-622-1826, 9:00–18:00).
• Hotel shuttle: about 10 minutes from Kosoku Naruto. Book at least 3 days ahead on the hotel’s website.

Here is how the two timetables connect:

Even the earliest bus reaches the hotel in mid-afternoon, so plan any raft or boat trip for the next day. There is also a combined ticket via Kobe Sannomiya, “Kansai Airport ⇔ Kobe Sannomiya ⇔ Kosoku Naruto,” for ¥5,040 and valid for two days.

From Osaka, Kobe or Kyoto (direct highway bus)

Several highway bus companies stop right in front of the hotel, at “AoAwo Naruto Resort-mae.” According to the hotel, they include:

• West JR Bus, from Osaka and Kobe
• Tokushima Bus, from Kyoto, Shin-Kobe / Sannomiya and Osaka
• Kaifu Kanko, from Itami Airport, Osaka and Namba. It must be booked 2 days ahead, and it will not stop without a booking.

There are also direct buses from Okayama (once a day), Hiroshima (once a day) and Takamatsu (only on days when the Otsuka Museum of Art is open). Check each bus company’s own timetable before you travel.

By train (JR Naruto Station)

JR Naruto Station is the end of the Naruto Line. From Takamatsu, take the Limited Express Uzushio to Ikenotani and change to the Naruto Line, about 1 hour 20 minutes in all. From Naruto Station to the hotel it takes about 13 minutes by car or by local bus, or about 12 minutes on the UZS BUS (booking required).

To Hosokawa Tosen by local bus

Hosokawa Tosen is in Dounoura, on the other side of the bay from the hotel. Tokushima Bus’s Kitadomari Line runs from Naruto Station to the “Dounoura-minamiguchi” stop, about 2 minutes on foot from the operator. According to the timetable (revised October 2024), weekdays, weekends and holidays have the same times.

The fare from Naruto Station shows as ¥290 on Google Maps. The timetable itself doesn’t list fares. The first bus arrives at 06:38, after the first boat has left, so you will join a later boat. After the last pick-up at 16:00, the 16:42 bus gets you back to Naruto Station at 17:03.

By car, Hosokawa Tosen is about 11 minutes from Naruto Station and about 16 minutes from AoAwo Naruto Resort, according to Google Maps.

By rental car

With a car you can combine Uchinoumi with the whirlpools and Awaji Island in one trip. From Kansai Airport to AoAwo Naruto Resort it is about 1 hour 59 minutes and 158 km via the Kobe-Awaji-Naruto Expressway, with tolls, according to Google Maps. The hotel is right by the Naruto-kita exit of the Kobe-Awaji-Naruto Expressway, and its parking is free, with space for 200 cars.

👉 See the route from Kansai Airport to AoAwo Naruto Resort on Google Maps
👉 Compare Kansai Airport rental cars on EconomyBookings

To drive in Japan you need an International Driving Permit issued under the 1949 Geneva Convention or, for some countries, an official Japanese translation of your license.

Staying at AoAwo Naruto Resort

AoAwo Naruto Resort is a southern European-style beach resort inside Setonaikai National Park, with 206 rooms (165 Western-style and 41 Japanese-style) facing the sea. Every room is non-smoking. Check-in procedures start at 12:00, rooms are usually ready from 15:00 (this depends on your plan), and check-out is by 11:00.

The location works for anglers. The fishing pond and rental counter are on the hotel’s own beach, the raft plan starts at its door, and Uchinoumi is a short drive away. When you come back salty and tired, the hot springs are waiting.

Rooms and Wi-Fi

Besides standard twins and Japanese-style rooms, the hotel has themed rooms. The Awa Ai rooms are decorated by Tokushima indigo-dye artisans, and the Van Gogh Sunflower Room was made with the nearby Otsuka Museum of Art.

For Wi-Fi, since June 2023 every room has had its own dedicated NTT fiber line with speeds of up to 1 Gbps. That is useful for uploading catch photos or checking the next day’s tide. The front desk also lends useful items free of charge, while stock lasts, including phone chargers, extension cords, humidifiers, strollers and baby baths.

The hot springs (and the tattoo rule)

The hotel sits on its own natural hot spring, Naruto Onsen. The water is a weakly alkaline sodium chloride spring (pH 8.0) drawn from 1,120 m underground, and the hotel says it is very salty and keeps you warm long after bathing. There are two baths:

• Hanada (1st floor): a rock-built open-air bath right by the sea, where you can hear the waves. Men’s and women’s sides switch at set times.
• Ruri (8th floor): a view bath looking out over the sea, with a sauna. The men’s and women’s sides are fixed. Depending on the season, Tokushima citrus such as hassaku, sudachi and yuzu float in the water.

On clear mornings the sun rises over Awaji Island, and on full-moon nights a “moon road” of light stretches across the water. Cameras and phones are not allowed in the baths. Children of elementary-school age and older use the bath for their own gender.

Many hot springs in Japan have long refused guests with tattoos, so this is often the first thing overseas visitors ask about.

I have a tattoo. Can I still use the hot springs here?

Probably yes. The hotel relaxed its rule in April 2026, as long as the tattoo is small enough to cover.

Under the hotel’s body art guidelines, in effect from April 15, 2026, guests with tattoos can use the hot springs, the outdoor pool and the beach if the tattoo can be covered by two of the hotel’s own cover stickers. The hotel may still ask you to keep covered any design that other guests could find intimidating.

The same page still shows an older line saying tattoos are not allowed, so ask about the cover stickers when you check in.

English support

The hotel’s website has an English version, but it does not list which languages the staff speak. Guests are more specific. According to reviews on Trip.com, many staff speak good English and explain the facilities carefully. Booking.com reviewers mention English-speaking staff and English signs for finding your way around the buildings.

On Rakuten Travel’s English site, the hotel has a review score of 4.4 from 507 reviews and holds Rakuten’s Japan Quality accreditation.

Evenings at the hotel

According to the hotel, you can watch an Awa Odori performance every night, the famous Tokushima folk dance. Depending on your plan, dinner can be the local Awa cuisine buffet, a charcoal grill, Japanese kaiseki or a French course. You can pay by major credit card, Japanese IC transport cards, or QR payments including WeChat Pay and Alipay.

👉 Check rates for AoAwo Naruto Resort on Klook

Nearby Japanese experiences

Uchinoumi sits in the middle of Naruto’s best-known sights, so a fishing day fits easily alongside the whirlpools and one of Japan’s more unusual art museums. A local bus from in front of the hotel runs to the Otsuka Museum of Art, Naruto Kanko Port and Naruto Park, according to the hotel.

The Naruto whirlpools and Uzu no Michi

The Naruto Strait, between Shikoku and Awaji Island, is famous for whirlpools that form as the tide rushes through the narrow channel. They are strongest at certain points in the tidal cycle, so check the day’s whirlpool times before you go.

The easiest way to look down on them is Uzu no Michi, a walkway built into the Onaruto Bridge. According to Klook, its observation room has a glass floor about 45 m above the sea. Next door, the Eddy Onaruto Bridge Memorial Hall has exhibits that Klook lists as including VR sightseeing and a submarine simulator.

According to Klook, tickets are valid for 90 days. Prices, availability, and cancellation terms vary by date, so please check the booking page for the latest details. You show the e-ticket on your phone at the gate, so you need mobile data there.

👉 Get Uzu no Michi / Eddy tickets on Klook

If you want to get down to water level, whirlpool sightseeing boats run from piers near Naruto Park. Check the operator’s own website for times and fares.

Cruising Uchinoumi itself

The hotel runs its own short cruises too. One point to know first: the hotel’s 20-minute “Onaruto Bridge cruise” (¥3,000 per person) goes around the Naruto Strait area, but the hotel states clearly that it is not a whirlpool-viewing cruise.

For something quieter, the hotel charters the small boat Tanukichi-maru around Uchinoumi itself (until January 3, 2027, except July and August; transfer to the pier included; book by 17:00 the day before):

• Uchinoumi course: 30 minutes, ¥5,000 per boat
• Takashima loop: 60 minutes, ¥10,000 per boat
• Ukiyo-e course: 90 minutes, ¥16,000 per boat. It visits the spot shown in Utagawa Hiroshige II’s Edo-period print of the Konaruto Strait, from his series Sixty-Eight Views of the Provinces. According to the hotel, the view has hardly changed since then.

The cruise prices in this section are as of October 2026. Prices may vary. Please check the official site for the latest information.

Otsuka Museum of Art

About 3 minutes by car or 4 minutes by bus from the hotel, the Otsuka Museum of Art displays more than 1,000 Western masterpieces reproduced at full size on ceramic panels. According to the hotel, the works come from over 190 museums in 26 countries, and include the Mona Lisa, Van Gogh’s Sunflowers and Picasso’s Guernica. The hotel also says the viewing route is about 4 km long, so give it at least half a day.

You can buy a ticket online before you travel. Prices, availability, and cancellation terms vary by date, so please check the booking page for the latest details.

👉 Get Otsuka Museum of Art tickets on Klook

Awa Odori and the start of the Shikoku pilgrimage

Tokushima is the home of Awa Odori, one of Japan’s best-known summer dance festivals. You don’t need to come in August to see it, because the hotel puts on a performance every night.

Naruto is also where the Shikoku 88-temple pilgrimage begins. Ryozenji, Temple 1, is in Naruto, and many pilgrims start their circuit of the island there.

Booking tips and what to bring

Phone bookings when you don’t speak Japanese

The two numbers you are most likely to need are:

• AoAwo Naruto Resort: +81-88-687-2580 (10:00–18:00), for the raft plan. This number is not for room bookings.
• Hosokawa Tosen: +81-90-3180-3960 (6:00–18:00), in Japanese only

Calling from abroad can be a problem in itself. Many travel eSIMs are data-only and cannot make ordinary phone calls. If you are staying somewhere else in Japan before Naruto, ask your accommodation whether they can call for you.
👉 How to choose an eSIM for fishing trips in Japan

A data plan still covers the e-tickets, maps and bus booking sites you will use on this trip.
👉 See Saily’s Japan plans

A booking timeline

Several things here have to be booked in advance, and the deadlines differ:

• At least 1 week before: AoAwo Raft BBQ & Fishing
• 3 days before: UZS BUS reserved services, and the free shuttle from Kosoku Naruto
• 2 days before: Kaifu Kanko highway bus
• By 17:00 the day before: AoAwo rock fishing, family boat charter and the Tanukichi-maru cruise
• 60 minutes before: AoAwo sabiki and hole-fishing gear rental
• Ahead of your trip: the Kansai Airport limousine bus (all seats reserved)

Raft and boat trips can be cancelled when the weather or sea is rough, so leave a spare day if fishing is the main reason for your trip.

What to bring

• Warm months: a hat, sunglasses and sunscreen. There is not always much shade on the water.
• Autumn and winter: windproof, waterproof layers, gloves and a warm hat. It feels much colder on the water than on land.
• For Hosokawa Tosen: your own food and drinks, because the BBQ set comes without food. Ask how to pay when you book.
• Your own rods: fine at both AoAwo (the raft plan is ¥8,800 without a rod, as of October 2026) and Hosokawa Tosen.

Flying in with your own tackle? Airline rules for rods, hooks and reel batteries are covered here:
👉 How to bring fishing rods to Japan and get from the airport to your fishing spot

FAQ

Is there a toilet on the raft?
Yes. AoAwo’s raft has a simple toilet, and Hosokawa Tosen says its rafts have toilets and roofs.

Can children join?
AoAwo’s raft plan is for children aged 3 and up who are at least 90 cm tall. Its boat trips need a height of at least 110 cm and a weight of at least 16 kg. Hosokawa Tosen charges ¥2,000 for children up to 6th grade, as of October 2026. The fishing pond has no age limit listed.

Can I bring my own fishing gear?
Yes. AoAwo’s raft plan is ¥8,800 per person without a rod, as of October 2026, and at Hosokawa Tosen the rod rental is optional. Prices may vary. Please check the official site for the latest information.

Is the AoAwo raft plan available in December?
No. In 2026 it runs from October 1 to November 30. For winter fishing, Hosokawa Tosen operates year-round.

What happens if the weather is bad?
Raft and boat trips may be cancelled for safety. Check with the operator on the morning of your trip.

Will the hotel cook fish I caught with Hosokawa Tosen?
The hotel’s pages describe cooking for fish caught through its own activities. They don’t cover fish caught elsewhere, so ask the hotel before you go.

Do I need a fishing license?
That depends on where and how you fish. See our guide for the details.
👉 Do you need a fishing license in Japan?

How do I get there without a car?
From Tokushima Awaodori Airport, take the UZS BUS. From Kansai Airport, take the limousine bus to Kosoku Naruto and then the hotel shuttle. Both need advance booking. Hosokawa Tosen is reached by the Kitadomari Line bus from JR Naruto Station.

Plan your Uchinoumi fishing trip

Uchinoumi is a rare thing: a calm, sheltered bay right next to one of Japan’s most powerful tidal currents. You can fish it from a raft with lunch on the grill, from a small boat, or, with Japanese, from a local raft at first light. And if you stay at AoAwo Naruto Resort, the catch can end up on your dinner table.

Book the hotel first, since the raft plan, boat trips and cooking all go through it:

👉 Check rates for AoAwo Naruto Resort on Klook
👉 Get Uzu no Michi / Eddy tickets on Klook
👉 Get Otsuka Museum of Art tickets on Klook
👉 Compare Kansai Airport rental cars on EconomyBookings

Planning more fishing around the Seto Inland Sea? See what bites when, all around the region.
👉 Seto Inland Sea fishing guide