How to access to Atami, Ito, Kawazu, Shimoda and other places in Izu peninsula by train.

Izu kawazuChubu Area
Atami hot springs resort night view. It is one of major spor in Izu peninsula hot springs resort. (C) JNTO

Izu is one of the most popular hot springs resort in Kanto area. It is very accessible from Tokyo. You can enjoy even day trip if you like. There are several popular spots in Izu peninsula. I would like to share the information about the access to Izu with you in this post.

Gateway stations

This map shows you all trains to Izu peninsula. Click to enlarge. (C) JP Rail.com

Atami is a gateway station and one of major places in Izu hot springs resort. Most of other places are located between Atami and Izukyu-Shimoda. Shuzenji is located at other side of Izu peninsula. It is the oldest hot springs in Izu and much quieter than Atami, Ito and other places at east side.

Kawazu has been very popular in these days because of Kawazu Zakura. Kawazu Zakura is early bloom cherry tree. You can enjoy the cherry blossom in February. Kawazu is located between Shimoda and ito.

There are two private railway companies in Izu. Izu Kyuko Railway runs between Ito and Izukyu-Shimoda. Izu-Hakone Railway runs between Mishima and Shuzenji. There are direct express trains from Tokyo to these two companies’s lines. But if you use Japan Rail Pass, your pass do not cover these two railways completely. If you use JR East Pass or Kanto Area Pass, your pass cover only Izu Kyuko Railway. Izu-Hakone Railway is not covered by any rail passes. Atami is located at the border of JR East Pass and Kanto Area Pass. These passes do not cover train to the west of Atami. You can find extra charge for these two companies in the post below:

Access to Atami, Ito, Shimoda and other places between Atami and Shimoda

You have three choice, the limited express Odoriko, the limited express Super View Odoriko and the Shinkansen.

From Tokyo, Shinjuku, Yokohama

Super View Odoriko is serviced by newer car 251 series.
Super View Odoriko is operated by nicer fleet than Odoriko.

The best choice is Super View Odoriko. This train goes to Izukyu-Shimoda directly from both Tokyo and Shinjuku via Yokohama. Some of Odoriko goes to Izukyu-Shimoda directly as well. But the accommodation of Super View Odoriko is way better and newer than Odoriko. It has a bigger panoramic windows. And the higher floor offers you better view.

If you cannot get on Super View Odoriko, Odoriko is your second choice. It is okay and the interior is very common.

If you cannot get on either Super View Odoriko or Odoriko, you can take the Shinkansen. But the Shinkansen takes you to Atami only. If you want to go to other places, you have to change to a local train at Atami. In the daytime, most of local trains go through Izu Kyuko Railways. The transfer is not required at Ito station where is the border station of Japan Railway and Izu Kyuko Railway. When you take the Shinkansen, please make sure that the train stops at Atami. Any Nozomi that is the fastest train on the Tokaido Shinkansen does not stop at Atami. Very few of Hikari stop at Atami. The slowest train, Kodama stops at all Shinkansen stations. But actually even Kodama is faster than Odoriko. Travel time of Kodama is 50 mins to 1 hour. It takes more than 1 hour by Odoriko. So Kodama is not a bad choice.

As I mentioned above, you have to pay extra by Japan Rail Pass. JR East Pass and Tokyo Wide Pass cover Izu Kyuko Railway. But these two passes do not cover the Tokaido Shinkansen. You cannot take any of Nozomi, Hikari and Kodama.

From Osaka, Kyoto, Nagoya or any cities in west part of Japan

There is no direct trains. The easiest way to get there is the Tokaido Shinkansen. But as I mentioned above, Hikari that stop at Atami is very limited. Fortunately if you can catch Hikari that stops at Atami, that is perfect. If you cannot, try to find Hikari stop at Shizuoka or Mishima. Especially Hikari that stop at Shizuoka runs every one hour. Mostly you can transfer to Kodama in 10 to 15 minutes. I think this is the second best way to get Atami. If you still cannot find your way and you use Japan Rail Pass, go to Shin-Yokohama and catch Kodama to opposite way. This is a big detour but sometimes it is faster than transfer at Shizuoka.

Please see the link below to get more information about the Tokaido Shinkansen:

Access to Shuzenji

There are two choices, the limited express Odoriko or the Tokaido Shinkansen and a local train. Izu-Hakone Railway runs from Mishima to Shuzenji. Any JR deals do not cover this railway. You have to pay extra.

From Tokyo and Yokohama

Odoriko is serviced by 185 series.
Odoriko that go to Shuzenji is usually coupled with Odoriko going to Izukyu Shimoda.

The best choice is taking the limited express Odoriko. There are several trips to Shuzenji from Tokyo directly. There is no Super View Odoriko going to Shuzenji.

If you cannot catch the limited express Odoriko, take the Tokaido Shinkansen to Mishima and transfer to Izu-Hakone Railway. But it is same story as Atami. There is no Nozomi stopping at Mishima. Hikari is available but number of trains are very limited. Mostly Kodama is the best train.

From Osaka, Kyoto, Nagoya or any cities in west part of Japan

It is same scenario as going to Atami. You can take Shinkansen to Mishima and transfer to local train of Izu-Hakone Railway. But Hikari stopping at Mishima is very limited. Try to find Hikari which stops at Shizuoka and transfer to Kodama.

Comments

  1. Angel says:

    Hi. Thank you for creating all these guides. They are helpful.

    I just want to ask your guidance in using one of the lines. Just to clarify I got it right.
    I will be getting a JR East Pass (Nagano-Niigata) and I plan to go to Izu-Nagaoko Station from Tokyo Station. If I ride the Odoriko for this route, I will not pay any extra?

  2. Marife says:

    Hi Takeshi,

    I am planning on booking a Super View Odoriko train from Yokohama to Shimoda roundtrip. I am planning in advance because my dates of travel in Japan is on Obon Week. I am worrying that seats on trains might be all booked and also the lines in train stations might be long. It is my first time traveling in Japan on Obon week. What will be the experience be in train stations and in Yokohama and Shimoda? What website can I also used to buy my tickets in advance?

  3. Nuj says:

    Dear Takeshi

    Hi there. It’s Nuj.

    I plan to take Ltd.Exp. Super View Odoriko from Izu-Kogen directly to Shinjuku. If I reserve a seat online via eki.net, I can pick up a ticket at JR East office Shinagawa station, can’t I? FYI, I will not buy any rail pass for this trip as most of my time will be spent in Shizuoka area.

    Regards,
    Nuj

  4. TK says:

    Hi Takeshi,

    Thank you for your help, I have some questions regarding travel to Izu from Tokyo. As you suggested, I am planning to by Kanto Area Pass. I will go to Fuji, Nikko, and Izu using that pass.

    To get to Izu peninsula from Tokyo, does Kanto Area Pass cover the entire portion?
    Does superview Odoriko travel all the way from Shinjuku to Ito, and is this covered by Kanto Area Pass?

    If not, what is your best economical suggestion?

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