×

News

Peace Memorial Museum to stay open until 7:00 p.m. in October, November to accommodate as many students on school trips as possible

by Junji Akechi, Staff Writer

The Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, in the city’s centrally located Naka Ward, will stay open until 7:00 p.m., one hour later than the time it closes now, during October and November, the time of year when many schools travel on school trips. The museum has imposed a limit on admission numbers due to the coronavirus pandemic, but with the extended time, it aims to have as many young people as possible learn about the devastation caused by the atomic bombing.

The museum has set the maximum number of visitors to its permanent exhibits at 150 people per 30 minutes, with 130 of the visitor slots for people who make advance reservations such as students on school trips and other groups. By having the museum open one hour longer, the number of guests allowed to visit per day will reach up to 3,000 people.

About 4,600 groups of students on school trips visit the museum on average each year. About 1,500 student groups, comprising around 130,000 students, visit during the months of October and November. At present, the number of reservations scheduled for access to the facility is smaller than typical years. According to an official of the city’s A-bomb Experience Preservation Division, however, “There is a possibility that not all visitors can be accommodated if the entry limits and opening hours remain as they are. We have received requests from schools, so we’ll make arrangements to accept as many visitors as possible.”

The museum reopened in June after closing earlier for about three months because of the pandemic. In July, it began to accept groups of visitors including students on school trips and raised the maximum number of visitors per 30 minutes from 100 to 150 people.

(Originally published on September 16, 2020)

Archives