Oga

Godzilla Rock spitting fireball

Oga (男鹿市; oga-shi) is a city in western Akita prefecture. The city covers a large peninsula -- the Oga Peninsula (男鹿半島; oga-hantō).

Understand

Oganavi is the city's official multilingual guide site.

Get in

The JR Oga train line connects Akita and Oga, by way of Katagami City.

Get around

Like most of Akita, a car is very convenient. While there are some buses, they run infrequently and may be impractical.

See

• 1 Goshado (五社堂) (from the Akagami Shrine, walk up the 999 Stone Stairs). This set of five shrines overlooks the coastline. 
• 2 Akagami Shrine (赤神神社) (on Highway 59 in Honzanmonzen). This shrine is the starting point for the hike to Goshado. 
• 3 Namahage Museum (男鹿市役所 なまはげ館), 北浦真山字水喰沢９９９９ (go generally west by car from Oganaka; there are many zigzagging roads, so use a map), ☏ +81 185-22-5050. 08:30-17:00. This is a museum about namahage, the demons that scare children in Akita every New Year's Eve. Adults ¥500, kids ¥250. 
• 4 Oga Aquarium GAO (男鹿水族館GAO), 戸賀塩浜字壷ケ沢９３, ☏ +81 185-32-2221. Mar-Oct 09:00-17:00, Nov-Feb 09:00-16:00, Golden Week and Obon 08:30-18:00. Akita's only aquarium. Adults ¥1,000, kids ¥400. 

Do

Namahage Sedo

• Shinzan Trail (Start at either the Akagami Shrine or the Namahage Museum.). This hiking trail goes from the Akagami Shrine to the Namahage Museum. It goes near the summit of Mt. Honzan (本山), which makes for a short side venture. The trail takes around 4 hours, one way, and bus service at either end is infrequent. Free. 
• Namahage Sedo (なまはげ柴灯). 2nd weekend in February, Friday-Sunday, 18:00-19:30PM. This namahage performance involves demons coming down from the forest to scare children. There is also dancing, drumming, and mochi throwing. 

Eat

• Family Restaurant Sono (ファミリーレストラン 園). A restaurant serving curry with cutlets, spaghetti, and other family-friendly dishes. (updated Apr 2024)
• 1 Ogaya (おがや). Serves Oga Ramen, ramen made in local water from local ingrediants. (updated Apr 2024)

Sleep

• 1 Miyazawa Kaigan Auto Campground (宮沢海岸オートキャンプ場キャンパルわかみ), 野石字大場沢下１−７８, ☏ +81 185-22-8222. Check-in: 14:00, check-out: 10:00. This resort and campground is rather expensive, but it is well-situated on the beach in northern Oga. There are campsites and cabins, and also an onsen for bathing. Car sites for ¥6,000 per site; non-car sites for ¥4,000 per site; open camping area for ¥2,000 per tent. 

Go next

The capital city Akita is just to the SE. From Akita, there are many travel options in and out of the prefecture.

• Katagami
• Ikami
• Ogata
• Mitane
• Noshiro
• Shirakami-Sanchi
• Daisen
• Yurihonjo