AMA DIVING EXPERIENCE AND SEAFOOD BBQ - Have an Underwater Adventure with a Female Ama Diver and Feast on Fresh Seafood

The all-female Ama divers of Mie Prefecture are famous throughout Japan. Their traditional practice of free diving to collect shellfish and seaweed from the bountiful sea around Shima and Toba has continued for thousands of years. The Ama Diving Experience and Seafood BBQ package offers participants the opportunity to dive with an Ama and then eat a delicious seafood BBQ lunch prepared by another diver in a traditional Ama hut.

This unique experience is available April to October and the day starts at 8:30 AM at Wagu Fishing Port and lunch finishes around 12:30 PM at the Ama hut. The price is ¥20,000-26,000 per person depending on your group size and this includes transportation, diving equipment, lunch and an English-speaking guide.

Kimiyo Hayashi, an Ama diver who has been following the Ama traditions for most of her life, prepared the BBQ lunch for us. Kimiyo was a wonderful host and an expert at cooking the spectacular array of seafood on the day’s menu. There was squid, fish and many other kinds of seafood. It looked amazing and the morning dive had given me a huge appetite.

Caption: All of the seafood was incredibly fresh and delicious.

Caption: Kimiyo prepared all of the seafood expertly.

The atmosphere in the hut was casual and comfortable. Kimiyo told me she had lived in San Diego when she was young and she shared some stories about her experience as an Ama. Each dish was unbelievably good and my host prepared everything with expert skill.

Caption: The fresh squid was grilled to perfection.

One of the dishes on the menu was sazae (turbo cornutus in English), which is definitely one of the more interesting Japanese seafood delicacies. I had eaten sazae before and it wasn’t one of my favorite shellfish. Without a doubt, this serving of sazae was the most delicious and freshest I’ve ever tried.

Caption: The sazae (on the left) was the best I’ve ever eaten.

The open air huts are simple wooden structures and they are decorated with vintage Ama posters. As someone who didn’t get to eat fresh seafood until later in life, I felt blessed to have a chance to try all these amazing dishes in such a beautiful setting. Kimiyo’s gracious hospitality helped to make the experience one of the most amazing lunches of my life.

Caption: The atmosphere was relaxed and friendly in the Ama hut.

Once the meal was finished, I relaxed and enjoyed some hot tea. I thanked my host for her hospitality and BBQ skills. It had been an unbelievable experience to spend the day with some Ama divers. If you are looking for a one-of-a-kind activity that combines tradition, outdoor adventure and delicious seafood, I don’t think the Ama diving experience and seafood BBQ package can be beat.