Kurobe Dam

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Facts & Figures

Kurobe Dam is with a height of 186 meters the tallest and with a width of 492 meters the largest arch dam in Japan. This engineering masterpiece is a popular tourist destination along the Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route with 1 Mio. visitors/year. On a daily basis from late June till mid October is it possible to see the discharge of water in a huge blast with over 10 tons per second. Since 2004 I have traveled nearly every year to Japan. The rail pass made my life easier to discover all those amazing places in my favorite country.
 Get Your Pass Now and Save! > The capacity of the water reservoir, created by the Kurobe dam, is around 200 million cubic meters. The dam can produce nearly 1 billion kilowatt hours per year.

History

The construction of the Kurobe Dam started in 1956. 10 Mio. people were involved during the 7 years construction phase in the mountains of Toyama. 171 people lost their lives till the project was finished in 1963. The owner of the hydropower plant is Kansai Electric Power Company.

Sightseeing spots

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Observation deck - located at the east side of the dam, offers a great view over the area and the water spectacle

Kurobe Lake - explore this artificial lake by boat (30min) from June till beginning of November

Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route - one of the most popular mountain sightseeing routes for tourists to enjoy the panorama

Kurobe Gorge - beautiful gorge and easily accessible by Kurobe Gorge Railway

Festival & Events (dates can change without notice)

June - October

Discharge of water
The water will be released several times a day accompanied by many onlookers.