LengthsHalf day · Full day · Two days
GroupPrivate, up to 6 guests
LanguageEnglish (Japanese on request)
Meeting pointAtami Station (JR), just outside the ticket gates.
Overview

A hot-spring town with long memories

Atami Station opens straight onto two shopping streets, Nakamise and Heiwa-dori, where some shops have been trading for 60 to 70 years. Dried fish, sushi and onsen manju are the things to look for.

Fifteen minutes away by bus, Kinomiya Shrine has a camphor tree more than 2,100 years old, 24 metres around the trunk. Local lore says one lap of it adds a year to your life.

Kiunkaku was built as a private villa in 1919 and became an inn in 1947. Dazai Osamu and Tanizaki Jun'ichiro both stayed there, and today you can walk through the rooms and the garden.

Highlights

  • Walk a lap of a camphor tree more than 2,100 years old
  • Tour Kiunkaku, a 1919 villa where well-known writers stayed
  • Watch the Oyu geyser, which now erupts about every five minutes
  • Pick out dried fish on the shopping streets by the station
  • Visit the MOA Museum of Art, whose collection includes National Treasures (full day)
Routes

Pick the length that suits your day

Half day (3 to 4 hours)

Up to the shrine by bus, then down through the villa to the sea.

  1. Kinomiya Shrineabout 15 minutes by bus, for a lap of the giant camphor tree.
  2. Kiunkakuthe 1919 villa, about 10 minutes by bus from the station.
  3. Omiya no Matsu and Sun Beacha walk down to the water.
  4. Station shopping streetsdried fish and Atami pudding before you head off.

Full day (7 to 8 hours)

Art in the morning, the shrine and villa after lunch, the beach at dusk.

  1. MOA Museum of Artabout 7 minutes by bus from the station, with around two hours inside.
  2. Luncha dried-fish set meal near the station.
  3. Kinomiya Shrine and Kiunkakuby bus, as on the half day.
  4. Oyu Geyser, Omiya no Matsu and Sun Beachthe beach is lit up from sunset to 10 pm.

The Sun Beach lighting was designed by Motoko Ishii, and it was the first beach in Japan to be lit up this way.

Two days

Atami on its own doesn't fill two days, so I pair it with Hakone.

  1. Day 1the Atami full day.
  2. Day 2the JR Tokaido Line to Odawara, then the Hakone Tozan Railway to Hakone-Yumoto for the Hakone full day.
Photos

Atami through my lens

Details

Before you book

Included

  • Sho as your private guide for the length you book, in English (or Japanese, if you prefer)
  • A route planned for your group before the day
  • Food stops checked ahead for any allergies you tell me about

Not included

  • Bus and train fares
  • MOA Museum of Art (2,000 yen) and Kiunkaku (610 yen)
  • Food and drinks

Good to know

  • I use the bus for the stops up the hill, the shrine and the art museum, so most of our walking is on the way down to the sea.
  • Kiunkaku closes on Wednesdays and the MOA Museum on Thursdays (both open on public holidays), so I plan around them.
  • Rain plan: the MOA Museum and Kiunkaku keep us indoors for most of the day.
  • Onsen manju fillings differ from shop to shop, so I check before we buy.
  • I look after the day itself. Train tickets, hotels and any entry tickets you want to book ahead are yours to arrange. I'll tell you exactly where and when to meet me.
  • We get around by train, bus and on foot, the same way people here do. I don't drive guests, and I'll show you how the ticket machines work as we go.
Your guide

I'm Sho, and I'll be your guide

Sho, your guide

In January 2011, in my last year of junior high, I left Japan for Brisbane. I stayed until I'd finished university in March 2020. That's nine years of Australian school, uni and part-time jobs.

I speak English and Japanese without any trouble, and I don't get shy around people from other cultures. What I care about most on the day is simple: that you're having a good time.

I'm based in Yokohama. I've been photographing planes since 2009. Since moving back to Japan in 2020, photography has taken me to airports and towns all over the country. Every area I guide is somewhere I've been myself.

I have a serious kiwi fruit allergy (anaphylaxis) and react to some fruit in the rose family. So I check our food stops with the restaurants before the day. If there's anything you can't eat, tell me when you first get in touch.

  • Nine years in Brisbane, from junior high to the end of university
  • Comfortable in English and Japanese
  • Has been to every area on this site
  • Checks food stops ahead of the day
Pricing

Quotes in six currencies

Free quote

Quotes are provided in USD, CAD, AUD, NZD, GBP or EUR, so you can skip the hassle of currency conversion. Other currencies are quoted in USD. Each quote covers your whole group of up to six people. When you send an enquiry, please include your preferred dates and the kinds of experiences you'd like.

FAQ

Questions people ask

Does a lap of the camphor tree really add a year?

That's the local story. There's a second one: walk around it while keeping a wish to yourself, and it'll come true.

Is the geyser natural?

Not any more. It stopped erupting on its own in 1923, was kept as a city cultural property from 1962, and now erupts artificially about every five minutes.

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Planning a stop in Atami

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More places I can take you

AsakusaShibuyaShinjukuYokohamaKamakura, Shonan & EnoshimaHakoneMt Fuji areaShimodaOsakaKyotoKanazawaFukuoka, Dazaifu & YufuinHaneda AirportKansai's three airportsSapporo

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