DISTANCE: 45km (28 miles) from Toyko to Kamakura;
TOUR: 11.5km (7.25 miles)
TIME: A full day
START: Kita-Kamakura Station
END: Enoshima Station
POINTS TO NOTE: Either take a JR Yokosuka line train from Tokyo Station or a JR Shonan-Shinjuku line train from Shinjuku or Shibuya. Make sure the train is bound for Yokosuka or Kurihama, otherwise you will have to change at Ofuna. It’s worth investing in the Kamakura Enoshima Pass (www.jreast.co.jp/e/pass/kamakura_enoshima.html ; ¥700), a one-day discount ticket covering local JR trains from Ofuna and Enoshima stations, the jumping off points for trains from Tokyo, plus unlimited travel on the Enoden line (www.enoden.co.jp) and Shonan monorail connecting Enoshima with Ofuna.
Wedged between wooded hills and the sea, just one hour south by train from central Tokyo, Kamakura is saturated in history. With a proliferation of temples and shrines, the town served between 1192 and 1333 as the shogun’s capital. If you are only visiting for the day, it’s best to stick to a few carefully selected highlights and leave some time to enjoy the beaches and ocean vistas around neighbouring Enoshima.
At Kamakura Station there is a tourist information office (daily 9am–5pm) where the staff speak English. Free maps are available, and they can tell you where to rent a bike should you wish to pedal around the area.
The red-painted hall at the Tsurugaoka shrine
iStock
Kamakura
A cluster of temples just two minutes’ walk from Kita-Kamakura Station is the ideal place to begin. Surrounded by ancient cedars, Engaku-ji 1 [map] (daily Apr–Oct 8am–5pm, Nov–Mar 8am–4pm; charge), a major Zen temple founded in 1282 to honour soldiers killed during Kublai Khan’s failed invasion of the country, is the closest. Laid out according to Chinese Zen principles, the main buildings and numerous sub-temples evoke an austere beauty, softened by foliage, shrubbery and a pond. The Chinese-style Shari-den, one of the finest buildings here, is said to contain a tooth of the Buddha.
Tranquil Engaku-ji
JNTO
Tokei-ji
Continue southeast along the main road until you reach Tokei-ji 2 [map] (www.tokeiji.com; daily Mar–Oct 8.30am–5pm, Nov–Feb 8.30am–4pm; charge), a 13th-century Buddhist temple that originally served as a nunnery. Also known as the ‘Divorce Temple’, this was one of the few places where women could escape from abusive husbands. Until the mid-19th century, a man was only required to send his wife a letter as notice of divorce, a right that was not reciprocal. If a woman could reach Tokei-ji and remain there for three years, her husband would be summoned and obliged to sign papers annulling the marriage. Several of these documents are on display in the temple’s Treasure House. Stroll through the flower-filled gardens to the temple’s rear where, in a modest cemetery, lie the remains of the nuns.
Lighting the incense burner
JNTO
Kencho-ji
Follow the main Kamakura-kaido road across the railway tracks until you reach the grand entrance gate to Kencho-ji 3 [map] (daily 8.30am–4.30pm; charge). Founded in 1253, it is one of Japan’s oldest Zen training temples. A grove of ancient juniper trees almost conceals the main Butsu-den (Buddha Hall), a rather misleading term as the main image here is of the bodhisattva Jizo. Hojo, the abbot’s quarters, the last and finest wooden structure at Kencho-ji, is backed by an exquisite garden, designed by the priest Muso Kokushi. Remove your shoes and walk along a balcony of smooth, time-worn wood to reach the garden. On leaving, you will pass the vegetarian restaurant Hachi-no-ki, see 1, on the main road.
Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gu
Continue downhill towards the centre of Kamakura until you reach the rear entrance to the shrine Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gu 4 [map], marked by a series of red-painted torii (entrance gates). Since the 11th century this has been the guardian shrine for the Minamoto clan, founders of the Kamakura shogunate. Most of the buildings are reconstructions, but the red-painted halls, souvenir stalls and flow of visitors make it one of the city’s most colourful pilgrimage spots.
Within the shrine precincts you will also find the The Museum of Modern Art, Kamakura 5 [map] (www.moma.pref.kanagawa.jp/en; Tue–Sun 9.30am–5pm; charge), which has regular exhibitions of Japanese and foreign artists. The museum’s annex is back on the main road before Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gu.
Surveying the Great Buddha
Chris Stowers/Apa Publications
Cross the Drum Bridge and exit the shrine onto Wakamiya-oji 6 [map]. This boulevard, with its central reservation planted with cherry trees and azaleas, is a popular flower-viewing site in spring. Walk until you reach the mock torii gate at the end of the central reservation, and turn right to find Nakamura-an, see 2, one of Kamakura’s most famous noodle restaurants. From here it is less than a minute’s walk west to Kamakura Station.
Hase
To reach the next sight, you will need to use the Enoden line train which connects Kamakura and Enoshima. Board the train at Kamakura Station and alight three stops later at Hase. From here it’s just a few minutes’ walk north along the main street to the entrance of Kotoku-in 7 [map] (daily Apr–Sept 7am–6pm, Oct–Mar 7am–5.30pm; charge), which houses the Daibutsu – the Great Buddha. This 11m (35ft) image of Amida Nyorai, the Buddha who receives souls into the Western Paradise, is Japan’s second-largest bronze statue. Cast in 1252, it was originally housed in a wooden hall that suffered a series of catastrophes, culminating in a great tidal wave that swept the building away in 1495. These disasters were interpreted as a sign that the Buddha wished to remain outside, and the statue is now an oxidised, streaked green. For a small extra charge, you can climb inside this giant hollow bronze statue.
Return in the direction of Hase Station, turn right and enter the grounds of the 8th-century temple Hase-dera 8 [map] (www.hasedera.jp; daily Mar–Sept 8am–5pm, Oct–Feb 8am–4.30pm; charge). Walk past an ornamental pond and up a flight of steps to reach the main temple precincts, which have fine views of Kamakura Bay. The temple is renowned for its eleven-faced Kannon, made from a single camphor and covered in gold leaf. At 9.3m (30ft) high, it is Japan’s tallest wooden statue.
A view of Mount Fuji and Enoshima
JNTO
Enoshima
Board the Enoden train again and get off at Enoshima Station. It’s a 15-minute walk from here and across the 600m/yd causeway to the tiny sacred island of Enoshima9 [map], its hilly slopes plastered with an extraordinary collection of shrines, grottoes and souvenir shops. Local fishermen traditionally came to Enoshima to pray for a bountiful catch. Escalators take the faithful to higher reaches, but it’s not difficult to follow the old pilgrim routes as they wind up through this island of the gods.
Apart from its shrines and sacred caves, the island boasts a yachting harbour, a botanical garden (charge) containing more than 300 species of tropical plants, and several cafés with fine views of Mount Fuji.
If you would like to enjoy a meal or cocktail before leaving the seaside, though, a recommended spot to do so is the less touristy restaurant and bar Bills, see 3, steps away from Shichirigahama Station on the Enoden line, a few stops back towards Kamakura.
Place to Stay
If you wish to make this more than a day trip, one of the most atmospheric places to stay is Hotel New Kamakura (13-2 Onarimachi, Kamakura; tel: 0467-222 230; www.newkamakura.com), in a historic building offering both simple Western and Japanese-style rooms. It’s less than a minute’s walk north from the western side of Kamakura Station.
Food and drink
1 Hachi-no-ki
7 Yamanouchi, Kamakura; tel: 0467-23 3723; www.hachinoki.co.jp; Tue–Fri 11am–2pm, Sat–Sun 11am–3pm; ¥¥
Next to Kencho-ji, this is the main branch of a famous restaurant serving the delicate Buddhist vegetarian cuisine known as shojin ryori. If it’s full, there’s another branch closer to Kita-Kamakura Station.
2 Nakamura-an
1-7-6 Komachi, Kamakura; tel: 0467-253 500; www.nakamura-an.com; Fri–Wed 11.30am–6pm; ¥
There’s almost always a queue in this rustic soba restaurant, where the buckwheat noodles are handmade and cheap.
3 Bills
Weekend House Alley 2F, 1-1-1 Shichirigahama, Kamakura; tel: 0467-392 224; http://bills-jp.net/#shichirigahama; Tue–Sun 7am–9pm, Mon 7am–5pm; ¥¥
Sydney-based chef Bill Granger brings his famous scrambled eggs and laid-back brand of cuisine to this sunny, sophisticated spot overlooking Shichirigahama Beach.