The Tokyo Bay Aqua Line connects Tokyo Bay in a straight line from Chiba and Kanagawa. Umihotaru is a service area located at the relay point of the Tokyo Bay Aqua Line. From Umihotaru, you can enjoy a 360° view of Tokyo Bay. This time, we will introduce in detail the spectacular view from Umihotaru, which offers a 360° view of Tokyo Bay on the Tokyo Bay Aqua Line.
①What is Umihotaru, the spectacular floating parking area on the sea?
Umihotaru is a parking area located halfway along the Tokyo Bay Aqua Line. It opened in 1997. It opened with the opening of the Tokyo Bay Aqua Line. The design is reminiscent of a luxury cruise ship.
- ❶Origin of the name Umihotaru.
- ❷ Built on Kisarazu artificial island.
- ❸Relay point between “undersea tunnel” and “bridge”
- ❹Structure of sea fireflies.
- ❺You can enjoy a 360° view of Tokyo Bay from the observation deck.
- ❶ Origin of the name Tokyo Bay Aqua Line.
- ❷Structure of Tokyo Bay Aqua Line.
- ❸ Civil engineering Apollo project.
- ❹Effects of the opening of the Tokyo Bay Aqua Line.
❶Origin of the name Umihotaru.
The origin of the name sea firefly is the plankton “sea firefly”. The plankton “sea firefly” has the characteristic of glowing blue mysteriously in the sea at night. Its glowing appearance may have been inspired by the lights of sea fireflies.
❷ Built on Kisarazu artificial island.
Umihotaru is a parking area built on top of Kisarazu artificial island. Kisarazu Artificial Island is an artificial island built approximately 5km offshore from the Kisarazu coast. This location is approximately 25m deep. Umihotaru was built on a rectangular artificial island with a total length of approximately 650m and a total width of approximately 100m.
❸Relay point between “undersea tunnel” and “bridge”
Umihotaru is a relay point between the “undersea tunnel” and “bridge” of the Tokyo Bay Aqua Line. In fact, Umihotaru is more than just a parking area. Approximately 10km from the Kawasaki side is connected by the underwater tunnel “Aqua Tunnel”, and conversely, approximately 5km from the Kisarazu side is connected by a bridge called “Aqua Bridge”, and the relay point (entrance/exit) is Umihotaru. Therefore, Umihotaru is a special parking area.
❹Structure of sea fireflies.
Umihotaru is a parking area floating on the sea that resembles a luxury cruise ship. Therefore, the structure has been adopted as that of a luxury cruise ship. The hierarchy consists of 5 floors. The 1st to 3rd floors are parking lots, and the 4th and 5th floors are commercial facilities. The 4th and 5th floors are equipped with shops, restaurants, refreshment facilities, etc., and the inside is like a shopping mall.
❺You can enjoy a 360° view of Tokyo Bay from the observation deck.
Umihotaru offers a 360° view of Tokyo Bay from its observation deck. There is an observation deck on the 5th floor, the top floor of Umihotaru. Since it is surrounded by the sea 360 degrees, you can enjoy a panoramic view of Tokyo Bay from the observation deck. You can see Mt. Fuji, Tanzawa, Mt. Tsukuba, Sky Tree, etc., as well as the coastal areas of Yokohama, Kawasaki, Tokyo, and Chiba. The view from the observation deck of Umihotaru is the most spectacular view of Tokyo Bay.
➁【Tokyo Bay Aqua Line】 Big project of 1.4 trillion yen!! ︎
Tokyo Bay Aqua Line is a toll road that crosses the central part of Tokyo Bay. The official name is “Tokyo Bay Crossing Road.” The section connects Kawasaki City, Kanagawa Prefecture to Kisarazu City, Chiba Prefecture.
It opened in December 1997.
❶ Origin of the name Tokyo Bay Aqua Line.
The origin of the name Tokyo Bay Aqua Line was decided through a public contest. In fact, there were only three total applications for the Tokyo Bay Aqua Line. It is said that “Tokyo Bay Aqua Line” was chosen because Ikuo Hirayama, who was the chairman of the selection committee at the time, evaluated it as “sounding good and easy to call.”
❷Structure of Tokyo Bay Aqua Line.
The structure of the Tokyo Bay Aqua Line is a unique road that combines a bridge and an undersea tunnel. The 4.4 km from Kisarazu to Umihotaru is a bridge, and the approximately 9.5 km from Kawasaki to Umihotaru is an undersea tunnel. The total length is 15.1km, connecting Kisarazu and Kawasaki in about 15 minutes. A characteristic of bridges is that the bridge girders and piers also have curves. The feature of the submarine tunnel is that it is a 13.9m diameter tunnel built approximately 60m below the sea surface, and is designed for cars to pass through. When you enter the undersea tunnel from the bridge, the scenery changes dramatically.
❸ Civil engineering Apollo project.
The Tokyo Bay Aqua Line was nicknamed the “Apollo project of civil engineering” due to the difficulty of its construction. It took approximately 36 years from concept to completion. The total project cost was 1,482.3 billion yen, making it a fairly big project.
❹Effects of the opening of the Tokyo Bay Aqua Line.
With the opening of the Tokyo Bay Aqua Line, the travel time from Chiba Prefecture to Kanagawa Prefecture has been significantly shortened. Up until now, traveling from the Keihin area in Kanagawa Prefecture to the Boso area in Chiba Prefecture required traveling approximately halfway around Tokyo Bay. However, with the opening of the Tokyo Bay Aqua Line, it is possible to shorten the distance by approximately 60 km and the time by approximately 45 minutes.
➂Access information to Umihotaru.
Here you will find detailed information about access to Umihotaru. Umihotaru’s address is “Nakajimajisaki Umihotaru, Kisarazu City, Chiba Prefecture.”
❶Route from Kisarazu Civic Center to Umihotaru by car
Kisarazu Civic Hall (2-13-40 Kaibuchi, Kisarazu City, Chiba Prefecture) ⇒ National Route 409 (Tokyo Bay Aqua Line) ⇒ Umihotaru
The total travel distance is approximately 35.1 km, and the travel time is approximately 40 minutes.
Summary of Umihotaru & Aqualine.
This time, we introduced the spectacular view from Umihotaru, a 360-degree panoramic view of Tokyo Bay on the Tokyo Bay Aqua Line. Umihotaru is Japan’s first parking area built on the ocean. The view from the observation deck is amazing, and you can enjoy a 360° view of Tokyo Bay. When you visit Kisarazu City or Kawasaki City, we recommend that you stop by Tokyo Bay Aqua Line and Umihotaru.
▲Official site
Thank you for reading to the end. I will continue to convey the beauty of Japan. I hope to enrich your lives even a little. I look forward to your opinions and feedback. I hope you will check out other content on Instagram and YouTube.
See you again…
▲ I will continue to post more like this in the future. Thank you for your support.
Reactions from people in various countries‼︎
Comment