If you’re exploring Japan’s Mie Prefecture, stop by Toba City. It’s a beautiful, small city along the coastline where you can see blue skies and turquoise waters on a clear day.
Justin and I went through the less-traveled Kansai area of Wakayama, Kumano Kodo, and Mie, and spent one day in Toba City. We wanted to explore Toba Aquarium to see a dugong and other majestic marine mammals and visit a few sights in the area. We weren’t disappointed with our visit.
If you’re wondering whether the day was enough time to see the attractions, it was. Even a few hours here would be sufficient time.
So, we wanted to share our 1 day Toba itinerary and include what we did and even a place to eat. You can easily replicate this schedule or update it based on your interests.
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Map
Click on the map to see the exact location of places to visit in Toba in a day. Credit: Map data: Google
What to Do in Toba in 1 Day
*Note: After arriving in Toba, we suggest walking to each of the attractions listed below. They’re within a 15 minute walk from each other.
Visit the Pokémon Lid (Manhole Cover).
If you’ve followed our blog, we love finding the nearest Pokémon manhole covers (also known as Poké Lids). These Poké Lids are around the country and are often in less touristy spots to encourage tourism.
We have a blog post on how to find these Poké Lids on your next trip to Japan.
There is one manhole cover near Toba Station (鳥羽駅). It’s located at the Sadahama East Park (Dolphin Park) (佐田浜東公園（ドルフィン公園）) and behind the water fountain.
It has two adorable Pokémon characters – Oshawott & Dewgong. Oshawott, the sea otter with a yellow shell, is the mascot for the Mie Prefecture. Dewgong is the closest character to a dugong, the mascot of Toba Aquarium.
Free to visit.
Address: 1 Chome Toba, Mie 517-0011, Japan
Click here to see location on Google Maps.
Visit Toba Aquarium to see beautiful marine mammals and sea creatures.
After a quick stop at the Pokémon manhole cover, walk 650 meters (about 9 to 10 minutes) to Toba Aquarium. It’s a fun experience for families, children, and anyone who loves ocean creatures.
Opened in 1955, this aquarium has over 1200 species of marine creatures and mammals.
We can see why Serena the dugong is the mascot of Toba Aquarium!
We loved seeing the majestic dugong (which is the aquarium’s mascot), walruses, sea otters, penguins, African manatees, and more. The animals were very adorable and the tanks looked clean and well-kept for the sea animals well-being.
There are a few performances to check out, such as sea lions feeding, penguin walk, and walrus meet and greet. You can easily skip these if you aren’t interested in seeing them.
It’s recommended to stay a minimum of 2-3 hours. Since we enjoyed seeing the exhibits, we stayed for a total of 3.5 to 4 hours.
While the aquarium has on-site cafes and restaurants, we took a lunch break in between and left the aquarium. We got a re-entry stamp before leaving to go to lunch.
Read our blog post about our Toba Aquarium experience here.
Toba Aquarium is surrounded by a gorgeous ocean.
Address: 3 Chome-3-6 Toba, Mie 517-8517, Japan
Climb the stairs to Shiroyama Park/Toba Castle Ruins.
Across from Toba Aquarium is a former castle site and now Shiroyama Park/Toba Castle Ruins (城山公園 鳥羽城跡). You’ll need to walk to the nearest street light to cross the street and then go up the steps to reach the top of the park.
This old castle is 40 meters above sea level, so some stair climbing is required to reach the top.
The park is small and very quiet. We didn’t see anyone around when we visited.
One of the coolest parts about this park is the Heart Toba sign. You can stand next to the heart and pretend that you’re an “I” so the sign would read “I Heart Toba.” It’s what we did!
I tried to be the letter I so the sign can read, I Heart Toba.
From the top of the park, you can see specks of turquoise ocean views, Mikimoto Island, and the roof of Toba Aquarium.
The castle ruins were a bit lackluster as there weren’t any buildings except the stone wall. But the park had signage of the a castle topography.
Here is what to expect when visiting the Toba Castle Ruins
Free to visit.
Address: 3 Chome-4 Toba, Mie 517-0011, Japan
Try Tekone sushi at Nanokoshi Chaya (Optional).
We took a lunch break at Nanakoshi Chaya 七越茶屋. It takes less than 10 minutes to walk there from the Toba Aquarium.
This place is tourist-friendly since there is an English menu. We liked how this place served regional cuisine.
Nanakoshi Chaya is a yummy place for lunch in Toba
What intrigued us about this place is the Tekone sushi. It’s a specialty food in Mie Prefecture with marinated tuna sashimi on a bed of rice and topped with chopped shiso leaves and ginger. The dish had a surprisingly strong ginger flavor, so if you don’t like ginger, we suggest trying a different dish.
We also tried the homemade Ise udon. This udon had a thicker texture with a soy sauce broth. It was yummy.
Our meal was 1400 yen per person and we had plenty of food. Cash only.
Address: 3 Chome-4-32 Toba, Mie 517-0011, Japan
Visit Mikimoto Pearl Island (Optional).
Mikimoto Pearl Island (ミキモト真珠島) is a private island owned by Mikimoto Pearl Museum. It is a tourism site highlighting the pearl production and cultivation. The museum has information on pearl history and how to collect them.
Mikimoto Pearl Island
If you have your timing right, you could see a demonstration of ama divers (mostly women) in traditional diving outfits and collecting oysters on the seafloor.
Click here for more information about the island.
We didn’t visit as we aren’t interested in pearls.
But on the way to the aquarium and Mikimoto Pearl Island, we saw many pearl shops. So you can buy jewelry at one of these shops.
Address: 1-chōme-7 Toba, Mie 517-0011, Japan
How to Get to Toba
By Train
We recommend taking the train to travel around Mie Prefecture. You can use Google Maps to check out the train schedule from your starting location.
The main station is Toba Station (鳥羽駅), operated by Japan Railways (JR) and Kintetsu Railways. The attractions are within a 5 to 10 minute walk from the station.
You can use your JR Wide Area Pass or JR Ise-Kumano-Wakayama Area Pass at the Toba Station. We used the 5-Day JR Ise-Kumano-Wakayama Area Pass and thought it was convenient to use around Mie Prefecture.
We started our day trip to Toba from Matsusaka Station (松阪駅), so it took 45 minutes to get here by train.
By Car
Driving a car is also a possibility. Toba Aquarium and Mikimoto Pearl Island have public parking lots.
Where to Stay in Toba or Nearby Cities
Toba has a few places to stay overnight. Please click on either the Booking or Agoda links below to find the perfect place within your budget.
As mentioned earlier, we didn’t stay in Toba. We stayed at Just Inn in Matsusaka, which is 45 minutes away by train.
Or, you can stay in Ise, another city near Toba. We visited Ise for a few hours as they have a few large shrines in the area.
Final Thoughts
If you have a half day or a full day to spare when exploring Mie Prefecture, stop by Toba City.
We know it’s a short day trip, yet exploring places such as Toba Aquarium and Toba Castle Ruins will be a memorable experience. Since this area isn’t as crowded, you can fully enjoy the attractions at your leisure.
Have extra time? Consider visiting Ise City for a few hours to explore the attractions, such as the large shrines. Iseshi Station is a 13 to 18 minute train ride from Toba Station.
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