At a recent exhibit at the Yokohama Minato Museum, visitors could step into the golden age of passenger ship luxury by visiting a special exhibit entitled the “Luxury Passenger Ship Interior Exhibit.”

The exhibit focused on passenger ships of the 1920s and 1930s. Known as “moving hotels,” these luxurious cruise ships are now only a distant memory.

Chichibu Maru’s 1st Class Dining Room

The Hikawa Maru, for example, which is permanently on display at Yokohama Harbor’s Yamashita Park, was built at the Yokohama Dock Yard and went into service in 1930.

Like many of these period cruise ships the Hikawa Maru was legendary for its cuisine and beautiful art deco interiors. Former passengers included Charlie Chaplin and Kano Jigoro (the founder of Judo).

The Hikawa Maru was converted into a hospital ship during WWII, and went into further action in the North Pacific as a cruise ship in the post war period, before being retired and put on display in Yokohama.

Photographs of the Hikawa Maru’s interior were featured at the Yokohama Minato Museum at Minato Mirai along with photos of its sister ships, the Hie Maru and Heian Maru.

The sailing ship Nippon Maru at the museum in Minato Mirai, Yokohama

About 300 photographs and paintings were on display at the "Luxury Liner, Interior Painting Exhibition." The exhibit was sponsored by Th e Nippon Foundation.

An exhibit outside the museum’s building featured the newly restored sailing ship, Nippon Maru, and inside the museum are permanent exhibits about the history and life of the Port of Yokohama.

Many photographs and paintings at the center of the museum exhibit were provided by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, which originally designed and built the luxury cruise ships Heian Maru, Hikawa Maru, and Hie Maru. The exhibit photos show the different stages in the building process and interior designs.

The interior design and paintings of Japan’s current top cruise liner the Asuka II are also exhibited at the museum, including photos of the interior construction processes. Visitors could thus compare the evolution of the design of ships from various ages.

Yokohama Minato Museum assistant director Mr Masakatsu Sawa

The Yokohama Minato Museum can be reached by a short walk from Yokohama’s Sakuragicho Station or Minato Mirai Station.

(Original article in Japanese and photos by Katsunori Ishii. Translated by David Tharp)