🗺️ Rotary Bridge

The waterway between Miyazu Bay and Aso Sea, which spans one of Japan's Three Scenic Views, "Amanohashidate," features a rotating bridge that connects Amanohashidate and Chionji Monjudo. When large vessels such as sightseeing boats and cargo ships pass through, the bridge rotates 90 degrees to clear the passage, making it quite a rare type of bridge. Its official name is "Kotenbashi." By the way, there is another bridge called "Otenbashi" in the direction of Amanohashidate, but it does not rotate. The rotating bridge was completed in the 12th year of the Taisho era (1923). At that time, it was manually rotated by human power, but as the number of large vessels increased, the frequency of rotation also rose significantly. Therefore, in the 35th year of the Showa era (1960), it was converted to the current electric rotating system. The scene of it rotating once takes about five minutes and is filled with elegant charm, making it a favorite photo spot for tourists. In addition to rotating when sightseeing boats and other vessels pass on weekdays, it also rotates once at 11:00, 12:00, 13:00, 14:00, and 15:00 on Sundays, even if there are no vessels passing. On days when large ships pass (irregularly), it may rotate up to 50 times in one day. It is recommended to take a sightseeing boat near Amanohashidate to view the rotating bridge. However, if you take a speedboat, you can pass directly under the bridge due to sufficient height, so the bridge will not rotate.

The bridge connecting Amanohashidate with the mainland. When sightseeing boats and other vessels pass through, it rotates 90 degrees. The slow rotation is very suitable for filming.