The seawater adaptability of land-locked masu salmon Oncorhynchus masou masou via acclimation was examined for aquaculture purposes. The survival, blood chemistry, and histological changes of masu salmon (150 g) were measured after 7-, 15-, and 30-day acclimation periods. After a total of 60 days in seawater cultures that incorporated the various acclimation periods, survival was 83.5, 87.2, and 91.0% for the 7-, 15-, and 30-day periods, respectively; thus, survival increased with longer periods of acclimation. Feeding efficiencies were 32.1, 52.0, and 40.6% for the 7-, 15-, and 30-day periods, and specific growth rates were 0.14, 0.26, and 0.23%, respectively. Generally, masu salmon appeared to exhibit better growth performance after an acclimation period of 15 days. Cortisol concentrations [mean ${\pm}$ SD] for 7, 15, and 30 days of acclimation were $21.0{\pm}6.5$, $17.8{\pm}4.8$, and $21.2{\pm}5.4\;{\mu}g/dl$, with the lowest values occurring with 15 days of acclimation. Osmolarities were $359.2{\pm}26.1$, $350.4{\pm}29.2$, and $354.6{\pm}29.3$ mOsm/kg, and glucose concentrations were $60.7{\pm}20.7$, $72.9{\pm}17.3$, and $76.6{\pm}14.1$ mg/dl for the 7-, 15-, and 30-day acclimation periods, respectively (P < 0.05). The histological study revealed that both gills and both kidneys of the masu salmon exhibited middle- to end-stage and middle-stage lesions in the 7- and 15-day groups, respectively, whereas these organs only had early-stage lesions in the 30-day group in the final experiment. Therefore, the seawater acclimation of masu salmon should involve more than 30 days in seawater.