Cruises to Nagasaki

長崎Nagasaki Prefecture, on the west coast of Kyushu

About Nagasaki

2 upcoming voyages call at Nagasaki

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 Nagasaki

For over two centuries Nagasaki was the only place in Japan where foreigners could trade, and the whole city is shaped by that: a Chinatown, a Dutch trading post on an artificial island, the oldest church in the country, and hillsides of houses built by British merchants. It is also the second city to have been bombed with a nuclear weapon, and the memorial to that stands twenty minutes from the ships. Ships berth at Matsugae, directly below the foreign quarter — Glover Garden and Oura Church are a walk, not a taxi ride.

Within reach of the port

Gunkanjima

Hashima, a coal mine on a rock two and a half kilometres round, which in 1959 was the most densely populated place on earth. It was abandoned in 1974 and left to the sea; landings resumed in 2009. The concrete apartment blocks gave it the outline of a warship and the name. A World Heritage site, reached by boat from Nagasaki, and landings are cancelled in poor weather.

Gunkanjima Conciergein Japanese — your browser can translate it

The Peace Park and the hypocentre

The bomb detonated over Urakami, north of the old centre, in August 1945. The park above it holds the Peace Statue; the hypocentre itself is marked a short walk downhill, and the museum is beside it. It is about twenty minutes from the port by tram.

Nagasaki Peace Museums (English)

Glover Garden and Oura Church

The hillside immediately above the cruise berth. Oura is the oldest surviving church in Japan, built in 1865 and now a National Treasure; the garden above it collects the houses of the merchants who arrived after the port opened, including Thomas Glover's, which is part of the same World Heritage listing as Gunkanjima.

Nagasaki Kunchi, 7 to 9 October

The autumn festival of Suwa Shrine, first danced in 1634 and held on the same three days every year. What makes it unlike other Japanese festivals is what the port let in: Chinese dragons, Dutch ships, Portuguese costume, all absorbed into the dances over four centuries. Seating in the shrine stands is ticketed and sells out.

Nagasaki Kunchi (official)

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 →

Official sources

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