Visit HYOGO

This was Japan’s best tin mine, once praised as the best in the Orient, and produced more than 90% of Japan’s tin. Its tunnels, with a total length of around 1,000 km, are laid out like an ant’s nest underground. Their length is equivalent to the direct distance from Tokyo to Fukuoka. This vast underground labyrinth boasts the largest quantity of tin in Japan, and is the proof that this mine continued to support the manufacturing industry in Japan.

In the tunnels, one of Japan’s largest rock drills and the rails of the trolleys that carried the ore have been left as they were. The traces of the pickaxes left in the walls are very moving.

After heading outside, make your way to Akenobe Museum Daiichi Yokujo. This houses and displays items that evoke the past, such as ore from Akenobe Mine, equipment used in the mine, and the school flag from the former Akenobe Elementary School.

You can also buy original goods connected with the mine at the Akenobe Nature School store. Particularly popular options include keychains made from polished rocks from the mine and goods based on the one-yen train, with a retro feel. You’ll find special items only sold here, perfect for you to take home as a memory of your trip.

Make sure you try riding the “one-yen train.” This well-loved railway was in active use as the means of transportation for the local people until the mine closed, and earned its nickname because it cost just one yen to ride

You time on the somewhat nostalgic carriage as it sways and takes you slowly between the mountains, lush with greenery, will surely become a heart-warming memory that will help you forget the hustle and bustle of the everyday.