Before you begin your tour you will need to get here. Please arrive at Shuzenji Onsen at your own pace. We  recommend taking the JR Odoriko train direct from Tokyo Station. This needs to be booked in advance, (available 1 month in advance in person or online JR East’s website) but if that doesn’t work, you can always travel on other trains. After arriving at Shuzenji Station, a quick bus or tazi will take you to the historical Shuzenji Onsen. We recommend arriving early so you have time to look around and even enjoy a short hike in the mountains surrounding Shuzenji Onsen with great views of Mount Fuji on a clear day. Your first night will be at a gorgeous historical ryokan, with natural hot springs and kaiseki cuisine for dinner and breakfast. Your welcome pack will be waiting for you when you check. It will include our guidebook to hiking in Izu, your itinerary, and more.

Accommodation: For this night and the next you will stay in a stunning and traditional onsen ryokan with two meals on the first night, and breakfast only the next.

Day 1 is a real barnstormer of a view with a nice mountain hike attached. Mount Daruma (982m) is known to have the best views of Mount Fuji from anywhere in the Izu Peninsula, Mount Daruma (982m) is iconic. The mountain walk happens along the ridgeline of the mountain with only kumasasa (miniature  bamboo) around you so the views are constant and absolutely stunning on a clear day. The mountain is an extinct volcano from up to 1 million years ago. You will get there and back to Shunzenji Onsen using local buses. If the weather is rough and there are sure to be no views of Mount Fuji, you can change your plans on the day and use our guidebook to visit Hike 1 of the Odoriko Trail instead. This is the advantage of coming with us. Our guidebook gives you that kind of flexibility. Just use the buses to access this hike 11.3

Accommodation: Stay another night in the same ryokan. This time with breakfast only and without dinner to give your stomach a little rest.

Day 2 starts with a taxi ride to the west of the Izu Peninsula. You’ll drop your bags at your inn, a ryokan in the Dogashima Onsen region, and then begin the hike. First you’ll walk down to Futo Coast and enjoy a stunning walk on the Tomyogasaki Cape. The hike can end there after 4.3km if you like, or you can walk a further 6.3km around Mount Imayama to finally get to Arari and finish the walk. Wherever you finish the walk, you will need to catch a bus back to your hotel. The good news is that you can decide how far to walk and when to call it a day.

Accommodation: Tonight you will stay in a coastside traditional onsen ryokan in the Dogashima area. Expect 2 meals of delicious seafood and onsens overlooking Suruga Bay and Mount Fuji.

Day 3 begins with a slower start. Enjoy a morning walk around Dogashima Park and, if the boats are running and you feel like it, you could take a cruise to see Tensodo Sea Cave. At 10am a taxi will pick you up and take you to Iwachi to start a 6km hike on the Sanpo Trail, a historical trail used by locals for everyday life before modern roads were built. This is roughly a 2-3 hour walk with incredible coastal views through quiet villages. On a clear day Mount Fuji sits over the top of the cliffline. But even without that, your view is quite breathtaking. Today is one to be done at a leisurely pace. Take your time on the hike. You may arrive at the goal of Kumomi Onsen with time to spare. In that case you can enjoy the famous view from Kumomi Beach, and, those with power left in their legs, can climb Mount Eboshi. But you have been warned, this is a STEEP mountain to climb. But the pay off is worth every step when you get to the view point at the top!

Accommodation: Tonight you will stay in a small family run minshuku in Kumomi Onsen. This is your really rural night in Izu. The inns here tend to catch their own fish, have natural onsen baths, and the town is so tightly packed together, walking through it is like a magnificent maze.

Check out of your family run minshuku and jump in a taxi to Shimoda, at the very south of the Izu Peninsula. Once there, enjoy a half day walk around the town, taking in the views and the stories of Shimoda, home to the first US consulate in Japan in 1856, drawing in the end of the Edo period. Visit the museum of the black ships and relax on Perry Road. In the afternoon you can decide on what to do, you could go to the beach, unwind in a cafe, or take on another walk.

Accommodation: At the end of the day, you will stay in a nearby traditional ryokan or minshuku in Kawazu or Shimoda. If the inn is central enough to restaurants, we will book you an inn without dinner to give your stomachs a break.

Day 5 takes you hiking on the iconic Odoriko Trail. Named after Yasunari Kawabata’s short novel and timeless masterpiece, “The Dancing Girl of Izu”, or “Izu no Odoriko” in Japanese, this historical trail is truly out of this world. In the morning you’ll catch a bus from Kawazu Station to take you to the trailhead. This will take roughly 40 minutes. You will then hike from Nikaidaru Bus Stop, through wasabi farms and stunning forests, past the unbelievably stunning Kawazu Nanadaru (Kawazu 7 Waterfalls), and finally into the historical onsen village of Yugano Onsen where Kawabata himself stayed and wrote about in his novel. Following that you will catch a local bus to your accommodation.

Accommodation: Tonight you will stay in a ryokan or minshuku in the Kawazu area with 2 meals to celebrate your last night of the trip. If bookings work the nights of Day 4 and 5 may be at the same place to give you a break from packing up each and every day.

Day 6 is a trip to the Jogasaki Coast to see the stunning volcanically created clifflines. In the morning, catch the train northwards from the south of the Izu Peninsula, to the eastern coastline. You will store your luggage at the train station before taking on the hike. The Jogasaki Coastline walk is one with views created roughly just 4,000 years ago, during the eruption and subsequent creation of nearby Mount Omuro. The 12km walk is rugged and deep. The hike takes you between Izu-Kogen Station and Jogasaki-Kaigan Station. After the walk, you will travel by train back to pick up your bags, before departing to your next destination or staying nearby. Trains are fairly frequent and you can be in Yokohama Station or Tokyo Station within about  2-3 hours of finishing, or you could choose to stay nearby. Atami Station is very accessible in about 45 minutes and is a great way to finish your Izu adventure. We leave this part up to you to keep it flexible for you.

Accommodation: Not included.

Difficulty: 2/5

Season: September 15 - July 15 (doable year round aside from summer)