Excursion Shukunegi village & tub boat ride tour at Sado

Explore the rich industrial and cultural heritage of Sado Island, once home to Japan’s most productive gold mine and a center of advanced mining technology during the Edo period and beyond.

Begin at the historic Sado Gold Mine, discovered in 1601 and developed into a major source of gold and silver for the Tokugawa Shogunate. Over nearly four centuries of operation, the mine yielded approximately 78 tons of gold and 2,300 tons of silver, becoming the largest gold mine in Japan. Walk through a 280-meter underground tunnel, where life-like mechanical figures illustrate the working conditions and mining techniques of the Edo era. Visit the museum to learn how gold coins, or koban, were created and take the rare opportunity to touch a 12.5-kg pure gold ingot.

Continue to the Sado Bugyosho Site, the reconstructed magistrate’s office that administered the island directly under shogunate rule. This faithfully recreated compound offers insight into Sado’s political significance and the highly organized governance that supported the region’s mining operations.

Your final visit is the atmospheric Kitazawa Flotation Plant, a National Historic Site and a symbol of Japan’s industrial modernization. This vast ruin once housed advanced flotation facilities that applied copper beneficiation techniques to gold and silver extraction, successfully, and for the first time in the world. Built to boost wartime production, the plant processed more than 50,000 tons of ore per month and was regarded as the largest facility of its kind in the East.

Conclude your exploration enriched by the dramatic history, technological achievements, and enduring legacy that earned Sado Gold Mine a place on Japan’s Tentative List for UNESCO World Heritage recognition.

Note

Please note: Guests will walk approximately 1 km in total and climb around 200 steps inside the Sado Gold Mine tunnel. Comfortable clothing and sneakers are recommended.