City Art Museum

Local flora, fauna, insects, and geology; the star attraction is a Naumann's Elephant, a giant prehistoric mammal from southern Japan.

Kurashiki native Sen'ichi Hoshino (1947-2018) was a long-time pitcher and manager for the Chunichi Dragons of Japanese pro baseball noted for his open hatred of the Yomiuri Giants; later led the Hanshin Tigers and Rakuten Golden Eagles. This museum collects some of his memorabilia and career highlights.

A collection of over 40,000 toys, although only 5,000 or so are generally on display. Most are show-pieces (and occasionally eerie ones at that), but there are some that kids can play with hands-on.

Yasuharu Oyama (1923-1992), also a Kurashiki native, was an eighteen time champion of shogi; upon his retirement, he was crowned the 15th Lifetime Meijin (Grand Master) of the game.

The first museum of Western art in Japan,it houses a deservedly renowned collection of classic European and American art, including major works by Picasso, Renoir, Monet, Matisse, and many others. There's another building for exhibitions by modern Japanese artists, which tend to be very good. Set aside some time to wander the grounds as well, with Rodin statues out front, a small sculpture garden out back, and neoclassical columns beatifically out of character with the rest of the area.

If you've had it with ordinary merchants, visit the home of this family of retired samurai who went into business in Kurashiki.