Townapedia
Oarai Town Hall
Oarai Town Hall · Kiku-zou, CC BY-SA 3.0
Zonsopgang boven de Stille Oceaan, gezien vanaf de kust van Ōarai, -zondag 16 oktober 2016
Zonsopgang boven de Stille Oceaan, gezien vanaf de kust van Ōarai, -zondag 16 oktober 2016 · t.kunikuni, CC BY-SA 2.0
Ōarai banner Sunrise over the horizon on the Ōarai Coast
Ōarai banner Sunrise over the horizon on the Ōarai Coast · t.kunikuni , cropped by Tmv, CC BY-SA 2.0
Aqua World
Aqua World · Jennie Kondo (Jennie Valdivieso Kondo - Grialte), CC BY-SA 3.0
Ogushikaizuka park 03
Ogushikaizuka park 03 · Motokoka, CC BY-SA 4.0
Oarai Marine Tower
Oarai Marine Tower · TTTNIS, Public domain

Ōarai, Japan

大洗町

Ōarai is a town of 15,787 people in Ibaraki, Japan, founded in November 3, 1954.

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Population15,787 GeoNames
Local name大洗町
RegionIbaraki
Elevation22 m 72 ft
FoundedNovember 3, 1954
Time zoneAsia/Tokyo
Land area23.9 km²
Nearest airportIbaraki Airport (IBR) 21 km

Why visit Ōarai

Townapedia lists 55 museums and landmarks, 30 parks and trails, 104 places to eat, 41 places to stay and 2 attractions in and around town.

Highlights include Aqua World, 大洗町幕末と明治の博物館, Kamiiso-no-Torii and Ōgushi Shell Mound.

About Ōarai

Ōarai (大洗町, Ōarai-machi) is a town located in Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan. As of 1 July 2020, the town had an estimated population of 15,867 in 6,881 households and a population density of 664 inhabitants per square kilometre (1,720/sq mi). The percentage of the population aged over 65 was 34.0%. The total area of the town is 23.89 square kilometres (9.22 sq mi).

From the Wikipedia article Ōarai, Ibaraki (this version), under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Things to do2

Aqua World

Zoo and aquarium · 2.3 km

Aquarium in Ōarai, Ibaraki, Japan

Mo-Su 09:00-17:00

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大洗文化センター

Cinema and theater · 0.8 km

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Museums and landmarks55

大洗町幕末と明治の博物館

Museum · 0.8 km

09:00-17:00, We off

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Kamiiso-no-Torii

Monument and historic site

神磯の鳥居は、太平洋の岩だらけの海岸に位置する神聖な鳥居で、近くの神社への入口を象徴しています。この崇敬される場所は、神々が降り立ったと信じられており、祭神の降臨地と伝わります。精神的な反省と礼拝の中心となっており、特に元旦には、訪れる人々が新年の初日の出を目撃し、祈りを捧...

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Oarai Marine Tower

Monument and historic site · 1.2 km

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大串貝塚

Monument and historic site · 3.9 km

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富士神社

Monument and historic site · 1.3 km

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敬神

Monument and historic site · 1.5 km

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Kamiiso Memorial Monument

Monument and historic site

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Kira Kira Dream Bell

Monument and historic site · 2.6 km

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Oarai Gallery

Museum

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ガールズアンドパンツァーギャラリー

Museum · 1.4 km

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ダイダラボウ

Monument and historic site · 4.0 km

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伊勢神宮

Monument and historic site · 2.3 km

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43 more on the map.

Parks, trails and playgrounds30

Ōgushi Shell Mound

Park · 3.7 km

Historic site in Japan

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NAKAMINATO Marina

Marina and boat launch · 2.5 km

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スポーツ&カルチャー しおかぜみなと

Park · 4.0 km

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ロケット公園

Park · 4.5 km

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一丁目公園

Park

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一文舟渡花の郷

Park · 2.3 km

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三角公園

Park · 4.1 km

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名平洞公園

Park · 4.3 km

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和銅児童公園

Park · 1.1 km

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大洗GC

Golf course · 1.2 km

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大洗サンビーチ海水浴場

Beach · 2.7 km

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18 more on the map.

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Restaurants and cafes104

ほげほげcafé

Cafe · 1.3 km

Sa[1,3,5] 10:00-16:00

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Tsuka Cafe

Cafe · 1.6 km

2, 大洗町

Mo-Su 10:00-19:00

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ココス

Restaurant · Italian · 1.0 km

09:00-02:00

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ライダーズカフェ 風の隠れ家

Cafe · Cafe, Japanese

Mo-Su 11:00-17:00

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回転寿司森田

Restaurant · Sushi · 3.1 km

7, ひたちなか市

Open in Google Maps · +81 29-2634-801

市場寿し

Restaurant · Sushi · 3.2 km

Mo-Fr 10:00-13:50+; Sa,Su 10:00-14:50+

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ume*cafe WAON

Cafe · 0.7 km

Mo-Su 10:00-18:00; We off

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フレッシュベーカリー コルソ

Bakery · 1.8 km

Tu off

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Sansui

Restaurant · Seafood

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Tailai

Restaurant · Sushi · 1.0 km

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あんばいや

Restaurant · Japanese · 0.6 km

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お魚天国

Restaurant · Seafood

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92 more on the map.

History

The villages of Isohama and Ōnuki within Higashiibaraki District and the village of Natsumi within Kashima District were created with the establishment of the modern municipalities system on April 1, 1889. Ōnuki was elevated to town status on January 26, 1894. Ōnuki and Isohama merged on November 3, 1954, to create the town of Ōarai. A portion of Natsumi was annexed by Ōarai on July 23, 1955.

In 1928, Nisshō Inoue, the founder of the far-right militant organization Ketsumeidan (血盟団, League of Blood), relocated to Ōarai, where he established Risshō Gokokudō (立正護国堂, Righteous National Defense Temple), which served as a youth training center advocating a militarist revolution in Japan, eventually resulting in the 1932 League of Blood Incident.

Since 1998 the chief of a factory association in Oarai has invited Japanese descendants and migrants from North Sulawesi, Indonesia, to work for seafood industries. A majority of the Indonesian inhabitants were later arrested for being undocumented.

From the History section of Ōarai, Ibaraki on Wikipedia, under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Where to stay41

Churches and places of worship71

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Shopping35

Gas and EV charging8

Schools, colleges and libraries16

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Healthcare16

Map of Ōarai

250 places. The map loads OpenStreetMap tiles when you open it.

Getting there and nearby towns

Ibaraki Airport (IBR) is the nearest airport with scheduled flights listed in OpenStreetMap, 21 km away.

  • Katsuta 9 km northwest, about 9 min by car
  • Tomobe 26 km west, about 26 min by car
  • Kashima-shi 39 km south, about 39 min by car
  • Tsuchiura 42 km southwest, about 42 min by car
  • Takahagi 46 km north, about 46 min by car
  • Sawara 48 km south, about 48 min by car
  • Tsukuba 49 km southwest, about 49 min by car
  • Omigawa 52 km south, about 52 min by car
  • Chikusei 54 km west, about 54 min by car
  • Shimodate 54 km west, about 54 min by car

Drive times are estimates from straight-line distance, not routes.

Reviews, tips and questions

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Sources and licences

Photo credits

Page built November 4, 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us or suggest a place.