Ukai Dinner Boat (Nagara River)

The Ukai Dinner Boat experience on the Nagara River in Gifu City is one of Japan's most theatrical dining occasions, combining a full-course meal of ayu sweetfish with a ringside view of the ancient cormorant fishing practice known as ukai. The tradition of using trained cormorants to catch river fish has been practised on the Nagara for more than 1,300 years and is recognised as a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage. Between May and October, guests board lacquered wooden boats moored along the Nagara riverbank in Gifu City and dine as the fishing vessels — their prows lit by swinging iron braziers called kagaribi — pass within metres in the dark water. The catered dinner boat offers a multi-course ayu meal prepared by the Gifu Ukai Boat Society's kitchen staff, with preparations including salt-grilled ayu, ayu sashimi when the catch permits, ayu tempura, and river vegetable accompaniments. The sweetfish, caught upstream on the same night or the previous evening, is served at peak freshness; charcoal-grilling concentrates the fish's distinctive bitterness near the bones while keeping the flesh moist. A more affordable plain boat ticket allows guests to bring their own bento and position themselves on the river to watch the fishing without the catered meal. The season runs from May 11 to October 15, with no service during the Obon holiday (August 11 to 13) or when the Nagara River level rises too high after heavy rain. Booking is essential and opens several weeks in advance for the catered dinner option; summer weekends and early September fill quickly. The Nagara riverbank location is accessible from Gifu Station by taxi or bus in approximately fifteen minutes.