Beaches
Coastal spots, snorkeling, and island escapes
22 spots
Nokonoshima Island
Nokonoshima, a teardrop-shaped island 10 minutes by ferry from Meinohama Port in western Fukuoka, is barely 3 km long an…
Keya Otehon Sea Cave
On the western tip of Itoshima Peninsula, the Genkai Sea has been cutting into basalt cliffs for millennia, producing a…
Imazu Bay Flamingo Sunset Café Row
Along the Imazu Bay coastline of Itoshima, a loose collection of surf cafés, beach bars, and open-air restaurants has em…
Fukuoka City Waterfront
The Momochi district, built on reclaimed land in the 1990s to host the 1989 Asia-Pacific Expo, contains an unexpectedly…
Uminonakamichi Seaside Park
Uminonakamichi National Seaside Park occupies the entirety of a 10km-long sand spit between Hakata Bay and the Genkai Se…
Niji-no-Matsubara
Niji-no-Matsubara is a 5km arc of coastline planted with approximately 1 million black pine trees — one of Japan's 'thre…
Karatsu Sea Cave Kayaking
The Matsuura coastline west of Karatsu is a 20km arc of basalt sea cliffs, small fishing harbors, and sea caves accessib…
Nijinomatsubara Seaside Cycling
The Niji-no-Matsubara pine grove fronts a 5km bicycle lane alongside the beach, rated by Cycling magazine as one of Japa…
Kujukushima (99 Islands)
Kujukushima ('99 islands,' though actually 208) is a scattering of forested islets across Omura Bay north of Sasebo — a…
Fukue Island Beaches
Fukue Island, the largest of the Goto Islands, has 20+ named beaches with water clarity and sand quality that rival Okin…
Aoshima Island
Aoshima is a small island (1.5km circumference) connected to the mainland by a walking bridge, famous for two features:…
Ibusuki Sand Bath
Ibusuki is famous for sunamushi onsen (砂むし温泉) — hot sand baths where attendants bury visitors up to the neck in naturall…
Amami Oshima
Amami Oshima is a large subtropical island 380km south of mainland Kagoshima, closer to Okinawa culturally and ecologica…
Iso Beach
Iso Beach (磯海水浴場) is a small city beach in Kagoshima's northern suburbs, offering the unique combination of urban swimmi…
Kabira Bay
Kabira Bay (川平湾) is Ishigaki Island's most iconic scenic spot — a shallow turquoise bay dotted with forested islets, whe…
Yonaha Maehama Beach
Yonaha Maehama Beach stretches 7 kilometers along Miyakojima's southwest coast — consistently ranked among Japan's top 3…
Blue Cave
The Blue Cave (青の洞窟, Ao no Dokutsu) is a partially submerged sea cave near Maeda Point where sunlight filtering through…
Sunayama Beach
Sunayama Beach (砂山ビーチ, 'Sand Mountain Beach') is a secluded cove accessed by climbing over a large sand dune (the 'mount…
Manta Ray Snorkeling
The cleaning station at Kabira sits in 8-12 meters of water above three coral bommies where cleaner wrasse (Labroides di…
Okinoshima Island
Okinoshima is a small island connected to the Tateyama coast by a 500-meter sandbar, creating a tide-dependent land brid…
Maebara Beach
Maebara Beach, along Kamogawa City's Pacific coastline, is one of Chiba's premier surf breaks — a 1.5km crescent of sand…
Jodogahama Beach
Jodogahama (浄土ヶ浜, 'Pure Land Beach') is one of Tohoku's most scenic coastal landscapes — a protected cove with pure whit…