This article was updated on 21 Sep 2021 to clarify the rail trip to the museum.
When visiting Japan, every itinerary will and should include museum visits. Each museum is unique, range in size from large to small, and each usually specializes in one of a wide variety of different subjects. The types of museums include: national (many located in Tokyo), prefectural, municipal, company, and private. These museums are well worth the time to visit given your particular interests and are located throughout the country from the largest cities to the smallest villages.
This article covers a 03 Nov 2019 visit to a company museum located in the city of Kitakyushu on Japan's southern-most main island of Kyushu. Company museums can be glorified places to advertise products, but most are informative about the industry or product the company specializes in. Many times, the museum is located adjacent to the company's production facility, so it is possible to take a factory tour and see the museum in one visit. In this instance, the museum is located on the grounds of company headquarters, next to a production facility, but tours are not given.
From the picture at the top of the article, you probably have guessed that this museum involves toilets and you would be partially correct. While toilets are a large well-known part of the products offered, the company is also known for its kitchen and bathroom fixtures. However these are not just any toilets, these toilets are manufactured by Toto. Toto is credited with being the first to develop and market washlets, probably Toto's most famous product today. Not only do modern washlets wash and dry toilet users, they also come with heated seats, automated flushing capabilities, play sounds to mask toilet noises, and automatically open and close lids. You will find these toilets throughout Japan, both in private and public bathrooms. Please read the rest of the article to find out more about this unique only in Japan museum and to see more photographs.
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| Tōtō Museum (TOTO ミュージアム) Entrance |
The Tōtō Museum (TOTO ミュージアム) in Kitakyushu was opened on the occasion of the company's 100th anniversary and showcases the evolution of the business and its products. The elegant two-story building stands on the grounds of the company headquarters, has a showroom on the first floor and the museum on the second floor [1]. The museum has exhibits for the evolution of Toto products: toilets, urinals, public toilets, bathrooms, faucets, and kitchens. The showroom is directed at Japanese domestic customers and if you have the time, you might be interested on seeing the latest on kitchen and bathroom furnishings offered by Toto. However the main reason for coming to Kitakyushu is to see the museum and to shop at the company store (no, the store does not sell toilets but various Toto tchotchkes are available for purchase).
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| Tōtō Museum (TOTO ミュージアム) Lobby for the Showroom (1st Floor) and Museum (2nd Floor) |
The museum leads visitors through the history of Toto, beginning with the first ceramic flush toilet seat developed in 1914 and the company's formal establishment in 1917 as a pioneer player in the ceramic sanitation industry at a time when most of Japan was still without a sewerage system [1]. Squat toilets from that era are still in use in Japan today, although there are fewer and fewer in number as they are replaced by the modern western-style toilets (many of them washlets manufactured by Toto).
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| Squat Toilet, circa 1891 |
So how is Toto's washlet different from a normal toilet? Differences already mentioned are: wash and dry toilet users, heated seats, automated flushing capabilities, playing sounds to mask toilet noises, and automatically opening and closing lids. The washing and drying of the user is the most famous feature of Toto's washlet product. Not only does it have a wash function, but also that of a bidet. All this is electronically controlled by an external panel mounted on the wall or next to the toilet seat. This means that the washlet requires electricity and a wall plug to power it. This goes against all electrical safety principals where mixing water and electricity is to be avoided. However, I know of no instances where using a Toto washlet resulted in injury to a user. One feature that can startle a user (like the first time it happened to me) is the automatic lid open and close feature. You walk into the room with the washlet and the lid automatically opens and then closes when you leave the room without you ever touching the toilet.
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| Toto Washlet Flush Toilet Mechanism, circa 1992 |
As with all pioneering developments, Toto's washlet toilet, which has been on sale since the 1980's, was not easy or straight forward. Toto's washlet toilet was the first toilet to wash and dry the user's bottom after use. Two of the challenges was determining the correct wash water temperature and its positioning given the diversity of people's bottoms. NHK, Japan's Public Broadcasting Network, chronicled the development in an episode of Japan's Top Inventions. The on-demand video for Electronic Bidet Toilets can be found here:
Please note that if the on-demand video is available for viewing, the first picture at the top of the web page, above the title, will have a Play icon. If there's no Play icon (i.e. it's only a picture), then the video is not available.
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| Video Viewing Area with Toilet Seating |
Japanese companies are usually affiliated in groups called keiretsu. Keiretsu is a Japanese term referring to a business network made up of different companies that have close relationships and sometimes take small equity stakes in each other, all the while remaining operationally independent [2]. Toto is affiliated with other ceramics manufacturing companies, known as the Morimura Group (森村組, Morimura-gumi), ranging from the semiconductor industry (e.g. ceramic substrates for integrated circuit chips), auto, aircraft, and insulation, to name a few products. However one affiliated company that manufactures ceramics, like Toto, manufactures ceramics for the home. The company is well known worldwide and even sells its products in the USA. The company actually was once a part of Toto when it first started in 1917 and was a business Toto entered in order to keep the company solvent when it was hard to sell ceramic toilets in a country without a sewage system. That company is Noritake, now based in Nagoya, known for its fine ceramic tableware (i.e. plates, cups, saucers, etc.). So the next time you eat using tableware from Noritake, remember that its origins stem from ceramic bathroom fixtures.
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| Toilet Water Usage Exhibit |
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| Specialty Toilet for Sumo Wrestlers (Extra-Wide and Extreme Load-Bearing) |
Finally after seeing all the exhibits, one needs to use the toilet (please note that the use of the word, toilet, is more common outside the USA, where the word, bathroom, is considered correct). Since this is the Tōtō Museum, one expects a spectacular toilet space and that expectation was met. The final set of pictures are from the Men's Toilet, which had the most recent and advanced bathroom and toilet fixtures Toto manufactures. Before you ask, I did not take pictures of the Women's Toilet, even though I was the only person in the area. I did not want to end my visit by being thrown out of the museum.
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| Tōtō Museum Men's Toilet Entrance |
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| Tōtō Museum Men's Toilet Entryway |
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| Tōtō Museum Men's Toilet Bathroom Fixtures |
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| Tōtō Museum Men's Toilet Auto-Flush (Before and After) Urinals |
Tōtō Museum (TOTO ミュージアム) Information and Access
Name:
- Tōtō Museum
- TOTO ミュージアム
Address:
- 2 Chome-1-1 Nakashima, Kokurakita Ward, Kitakyushu, Fukuoka 802-0076, Japan
- 〒802-0076 福岡県北九州市小倉北区中島２丁目１−1
Access:
- The Tōtō Museum is located in the city of Kitakyushu on Japan's southernmost main island of Kyushu. This cannot be done as a day trip from Tokyo, as the one-way trip would take over six hours by a combination of Shinkansen and monorail. However, if you're staying in Kyoto or Osaka, the one-way trip takes around three hours to reach Kitakyushu, so a day trip from this area is possible, but your time at the museum will be limited. The further south you stay, the more time you'll have at the museum.
- Staying in Fukuoka is also a good option if you want to stay on Kyushu Island, where it can take around 45 minutes to reach the museum.
- Note: Fukuoka's train station is called Hakata, not Fukuoka (Fukuoka Station is in another part of Japan).
- Japan Rail Pass (7-, 14-, 21-day):
- Valid for travel throughout Japan on Japan Rail (with some exceptions).
- Purchase outside of Japan.
- Must show passport and have a short-term (90 day) visitor's stamp to redeem at selected airports and rail stations. (This is changing)
- Once activated, must be used on consecutive days (i.e. cannot skip days).
- Website: https://japanrailpass.net/en/.
- Take the Shinkansen to Kokura Station:
- From Osaka:
- From Shin-Osaka Station via Sakura Shinkansen, the trip takes approximately 140 minutes and is fully covered by the JR Pass, otherwise the cost is:
- Unreserved: ¥13870
- Reserved: ¥14400
- Green Seat: ¥19270
- From Fukuoka:
- From Hakata Station via Sakura or Kodama Shinkansen, the trip takes less than 20 minutes and is fully covered by the JR Pass, otherwise the cost is:
- Unreserved: ¥2260
- Reserved: ¥3460
- Green Seat: ¥4230
- Transfer at Kokura Station for the Kitakyushu Monorail.
- Take the monorail and get off at Kawaraguchimihagino Station (4 mins, 3 stops, ¥210).
- The JR Pass is not valid for use on the Kitakyushu Monorail.
- Electronic Money IC cards from other regions of Japan (e.g. JR East Suica from Tokyo) can be used to pay the fare.
- Stops are announced in both Japanese and English.
- Walk 10 minutes from Kawaraguchimihagino Station to the museum.
- Prices are accurate as of the published date of this article and are subject to change.
Hours and Admission Fees:
- Hours are from 10:00-17:00 (last entry 16:30).
- The museum is closed Mondays, summer holidays, and year-end and New Year's holidays.
- Admission is free.
- Information is accurate as of the published date of this article and is subject to change.
Websites:
- The Japan Guide website is a good starting place for planning a trip to the museum:
- The official Toto Museum website:
- Plan your train trip using Hyperdia:
- Japan Rail Pass (7-, 14-, 21-day):
- The Kitakyushu Monorail English website:
Map:
References
[1] Japan Guide. "Toto Museum". Last updated: 11 Feb 2019. https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e4883.html.
[2] Investopedia. "Keiretsu". Last updated: 31 Jul 2019. https://www.investopedia.com/terms/k/keiretsu.asp.
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