# Michi-no-Eki Marine Dream Nou

> A Route 8 station next to Nou fishing port, known for Kaniya Yokocho, a row of stalls boiling and selling red snow crab landed at the port. Skip January and February, when the crab season is closed.

- Prefecture: Niigata
- Type: Michi no eki
- Address: Itoigawa, Niigata, Japan
- Opening hours: Mon–Sun 09:00–17:00
- Closed: The whole station closed on January 1 in the 2025-2026 season. Kaniya Yokocho takes a summer break every year from August 27 to September 9.
- Hours note: Crab stalls generally open 9:00 to 17:00, but only one opens in January and February. Shops can sell out early.
- Parking and toilets: free, open 24 hours
- Official site: https://niigata-kankou.or.jp/spot/detail_7004.html

Kaniya Yokocho is the reason people drive here. A row of crab shops, many run directly by fishing families, boils red snow crab from Nou port, and each one has its own idea about salt and cooking time. Walk the row, compare, and buy a whole crab to crack open in Kani Kani Kan, the eating hall next door.

Red snow crab costs less than the better-known zuwai crab, and it is messier to eat. The fresh fish center sells the rest of the catch, with large rock oysters in summer and seafood grilled on the spot. Restaurants and a souvenir shop fill out the main building, and a seaside park and a small marine museum sit beside it.

January and February are the closed season for Nou's red snow crab, and only one stall stays open. The rest of the year the shops generally run 9:00 to 17:00. Nou IC on the Hokuriku Expressway is about seven minutes away. Go early in the day if you want the full choice of crab.

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Source: Michi-no-Eki Marine Dream Nou — Japan Voyage