By Unthinkable1
Since arriving in Japan four years ago, I have avoided travelling to Izu. This is mainly due its reputation as being overly crowded and touristy. After a recent day trip there however, I found this bad reputation to be completely unfounded.
We made our way to Ito, 120 km South of Tokyo on the East coast of the Izu peninsula, leaving Shinjuku station at 9am and arrived in Ito at 11:30am. The route down afforded us lovely views of Sagami Bay on one side and forested hills on the other.
Upon arriving at Ito station we joined the excited crowds en route to the tourist information centre where we asked about local sea food restaurants, foot onsens and Mt.Omuro. For lunch we found a family-run restaurant where we ate fresh sashimi and tempura. After eating our fill, we got on a bus bound for Mt.Omuro, a dormant volcano 581 metres above sea level. En route we passed Ippeki lake, which was remincent of Chuzenji lake in Nikko, and took in views of the Amagi mountains in the distance.
45 minutes later we arrived at the base of the stunning Mt.Omuro. It is a unique site, largely resembling a huge mound of grass and, for a small fee (500 Yen), you can take a chair lift to the top.
By now the weather had turned a little grey so we weren't expecting a view, but the ride up was exhilarating all the same. From the top on a clear day, you can see the Izu Seven Islands, Hakone, Mt.Fuji and the Amagi mountain range! All we got to see however were a few people and a lot of clouds! We had a little walk around the crater (300 metres in diameter) then made our way back down.
Our next stop was Izu Kogen station where we were told there was a free foot onsen (ashiyu). This area is a very popular region for the Japanese to set up a second home and we passed many luxurious European style houses built alongside a plethora of art galleries and museums. I have the distinct impression that Izu Kogen doesn't really want to be in Japan. As a result, it looks and feels a lot like Okinawa or even Hawaii.
We arrived at Izu Kogen station and found the foot onsen to be in safe hands/feet: Children, parents, young couples and old ladies all sat dangling their feet in the therapeutic, scorching water. We joined them for 30 minutes or so, before taking our soothed and hot feet to our next destination: Jogasaki Coast, a 20 minute bus ride from the station.
By the time we reached the coast, the sky had cleared and we had wonderful views of the jagged coastline. We went for a little walk through the woods along the beautiful 9km long coastline hiking course before making our way back to the bus in time to catch our train back to Shinjuku.
In the short time we had, we'd gone up a dormant volcano; tasted fresh fish; soothed our aching feet in an onsen; walked through woods; and admired the sea views at Jogasaki Coast. All in all, it was a fantastic day, and Izu sure Izu a nice place to visit!
Tips:
- Get an Izu Free Pass from Odakyu information centre in Shinjuku station. For 4,300 Yen you get a return ticket to Ito (Romance car to Odawara, then local train to Ito) and unlimited use of buses around the Ito area. There is information in this site about other available tickets if you're considering a longer trip to the Izu area.
- Often, in peak seasons (Golden Week/Obon), there are heavy traffic jams so it can be quicker getting local trains between Ito and Izu Kogen: We waited quite a while for a bus which never came so we just paid the extra fare and took the train. But for most of the day, the buses were on time and we saved quite a lot of money with our Free Pass.
