New aquarium billed as a high-tech facility opens in Kobe

The Yomiuri Shimbun

November 1, 2021

KOBE — Kobe Port Museum, a cultural facility featuring a next-generation aquarium, opened Friday in Kobe’s Chuo Ward.

The aquarium is billed as a high-tech facility that combines an aquarium and art.

The museum marks a new tourist attraction in the west pier area of the Port of Kobe.

A large number of people, mainly families and couples, visited the facility on Friday.

Dubbed Atoa, the aquarium is located on the 2nd to 4th floors in the four-story building. Atoa exhibits 3,000 organisms, mainly fish, from about 100 different species.

The aquarium uses lighting and music to create a magical atmosphere, and exhibitions are presented uniquely. For example, one display uses a spherical tank three meters in diameter to house cherry anthias.

Atoa is managed by Aquament Co., a Kobe-based firm that operates Shikoku Aquarium in Utazu, Kagawa Prefecture.

Advance reservations are required in principle, and tickets can be purchased one month in advance via an exclusive website.