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Central Kagawa (Coastside)Seto Ohashi Commemorative Park

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The building of the Seto Ohashi Bridge was a painstaking process that lasted nearly 10 years. Visitors can study this history in detail at Seto Ohashi Commemorative Park near the Shamijima district of Sakaide, at the foot of the bridge on the Shikoku side. Opened in 1988, the park is the former site of an open-air exhibition that was held to celebrate the completion of the bridge that same year. The free-to-enter Seto Ohashi Commemorative Hall in the park details the challenges and triumphs of the construction project, while the playgrounds and sports fields nearby offer plenty of space for play and recreation. Another place of interest is the Hama Ritsurin garden, designed by the sculptor Nagare Masayuki (1923–2018), whose giant rock sculptures provide an interesting contrast with the bridge.

Seto Ohashi Commemorative Hall
Located in Seto Ohashi Commemorative Park, the Seto Ohashi Commemorative Hall is a pavilion built for the celebratory exhibition that was held here in 1988 to mark the opening of the Seto Ohashi Bridge. The distinctive building features several glass pyramids on the roof and a facade with high concrete columns. It was designed by the architect Yamamoto Tadashi (1923–1998), who also drew up the plans for the Seto Inland Sea Folk History Museum and several other buildings in Kagawa. The displays in the hall’s four exhibition rooms provide insight into the history and structure of the bridge, from the first proposal of the idea more than a century ago to the construction work and the engineering technology employed. These topics are explored with the help of dioramas, videos, and other visual aids. On the roof is a scenic lookout with close-up views of the bridge.

Access

(Seto Ohashi Commemorative Park) From JR Sakaide Station: 17-minute bus ride to "Seto Ohashi Kinen Koen" bus stop

Operating Hours

9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (Admission until 4:30 p.m.)

Closed

Mondays (If a Monday falls on a holiday, closed the following weekday) *Open every day during Golden Week and summer vacation
December 29 to January 1

Fees

Free