Cruises to Chichijima

父島the Ogasawara Islands, about 1,000 km south of Tokyo

About Chichijima

2 upcoming voyages call at Chichijima

Times shown are as scheduled and can change. Weather, sea conditions and port operations may shorten a call or prevent it — always check the latest information from NYK Cruises, and once aboard, from the ship.

About Chichijima

Islands that have never been joined to a continent, so what lives here arrived by wind, wing or current and then became something else — which is why they were inscribed as World Natural Heritage in 2011. Chichijima is the largest and has the only town, a population of about two thousand, and no airport: the regular ferry from Tokyo takes some twenty-five hours each way, which is why arriving by ship is not the slow way here but the fast one.

Within reach of the port

What lives here and nowhere else

The islands were inscribed in 2011 on the strength of evolution in isolation — land snails in particular, which diverged into dozens of species valley by valley. Guides on the island explain what to look at; much of the interior is restricted to protect it.

Ogasawara Village (official)in Japanese — your browser can translate it

Minamijima

A limestone islet off the south-west corner with a drowned karst landform — a sunken sinkhole open to the sea. Entry is by guided tour on a set route, with numbers and season limited, because the surface is fragile.

Ogasawara Village (official)in Japanese — your browser can translate it

The water

Sperm whales are resident year round and humpbacks pass in winter and spring; dolphins are seen from boats most days. The colour the water takes here has its own name in Japanese — Bonin Blue, after the old Western name for the islands.

Ogasawara Tourist Association (official, English)

Shore excursions

NYK Cruises run their own guided excursions at each port, booked by guests themselves through My ASUKA PLANS — the booking window opens before departure and depends on your cabin class. They are conducted in Japanese. Going ashore independently is always an option.

How pre-boarding reservations work →

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