AOMORI, Japan >> A tour to observe tuna fishing is set to start this month in Oma, Aomori prefecture, known for its “Oma tuna.”

A travel company in the town organized the tour, partly at the request of tourists. Fishermen will act as guides, utilizing tuna fishing as a tourist resource for the community.

Up to 100 fishing boats operate in fishing grounds about 5 kilometers off the Oma coast, aiming for bluefin tuna that come into the Tsugaru Strait to eat squid, as well as saury and other species of fish.

According to the tour organizer, participants will board a chartered fishing boat and wait in the fishing grounds. When a fisherman hooks a tuna, the chartered ship will approach his vessel, and the guide will explain in detail how the tuna are landed.

Tourists can enjoy the impressive sight of a fisherman wrestling with a 400-kilogram tuna, the organizer said.

The tour is scheduled for every Sunday from August to early October, in principle. It is limited to one group of up to 10 people per day. It costs 120,000 yen (about $1,085) per group and starts at 10 a.m. or 1 p.m. One sailing tour takes two to three hours. Reservations are needed at least three days before the tour.