Earlier this year, I traveled to the city of Atami, located in the eastern corner of the Shizuoka Prefecture. Atami translates to “hot ocean” and is known for its famous hot springs. In fact, millions of tourists come to the city each year to relax in the healing waters.

Atami is a 45-minute bullet train ride from JR Tokyo Station. To save money, I opted to take a slow train on the JR Tokaido Main Line, which took about an hour and 40 minutes. The fare for the slow train costs 1,980 yen while the bullet train costs 3,740 yen. Why not take the time to enjoy the scenery, and then buy some souvenirs for my coworkers with what I saved on the fare?

Kinomiya Shrine

I changed from the JR Tokaido Main Line to the JR Ito Line so I could visit the Kinomiya Shrine. It was just one station and five minutes away from Atami. Since it was the beginning of January, there were many people visiting as it is a custom in Japan to worship at a shrine the first several days of the new year. I marveled at the 2,000-year-old camphor tree that stands 26 meters tall and is designated as a National Nature Treasure. It is said that those who circle the tree’s trunk will be granted another year of life.

Hatsushima Island

I shook off my tiredness by soaking in the hot spring at my hotel. After that, I was ready to visit my next destination: Hatsushima Island, a small tourist island with a circumference of only 4 kilometers and a population of about 200 people.

It took only about half an hour by high-speed boat to get to the island from Atami Port. Walking counterclockwise for half an hour on the island led me to the gorgeous hotel Xiv Hatsushima Club. Soon after, I found the Hatsushima Lighthouse, which was built in 1959 and is 16 meters high. About 20 minutes later, I came to Asian Garden R-Asia, a resort facility which has gardens filled with different types of subtropical plants, a café restaurant, photo spots, and more.

What attracted me were the hammocks, which were located beside each parasol in the gardens. I decided to try one and I felt weightless. I wanted to take a nap, but I left the facility in order to catch my boat back to Atami Harbor.

Izusan Shrine

On my final day, I visited the Izusan Shrine. Leading up to the shrine is 837 stone steps, which is a pretty tough climb. Most people take a bus from JR Atami Station for about 7 minutes to the nearest bus stop and climb up about 180 steps. I walked from the hotel for about 20 minutes, and got to the middle of the approach, and started to climb up about 600 steps. It was January and chilly, but as I climbed, I got sweaty and had to remove my jacket. The higher I climbed, the more beautiful the Atami scenery became.

When visiting a shrine, many people draw a fortune slip. Most of the shrines have a fortune slip hanger, but the hanger at the Izusan Shrine is heart shaped. In Japan, a heart shape is called inome, which means an eye of a white-whiskered boar. It is said that inome is an effective talisman to protect one against evil and bring good luck. The scenery from the top was magnificent. Since I visited two shrines two days in a row, I hoped that the year would be a good one for me.

Atami is not too far from any of the U.S. bases on the Kanto Plain, and most of the sightseeing spots are easily accessible from JR Atami Station by bus. Though I could visit only three of the tourist spots, the city has more attractive spots such as MOA Museum of Art, Atami Sun Beach, Atami Trick Art Museum and Atami Castle. Atami is a good place for those who live on the Kanto Plain to enjoy hot springs and many popular tourist destinations without driving or paying many transportation fees.

Naval Air Facility Atsugi

Camp Zama

Yokosuka Naval Base

Yokota Air Base

Camp Fuji

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