Japan Guide
Around Tokyo
Izu Hantō
Formed by Mount Fuji's ancient lava flows, Izu Hantō protrudes like an arrowhead into the ocean west of Tokyo, a mountainous spine whose tortured coastline features some superb scenery and a couple of decent beaches. It takes at least two days to make a complete circuit of this region, taking in some intriguing historical sights and stopping at a few of the peninsula's estimated 2300 hot springs.
Direct train services from Tokyo run down Izu's more developed east coast, passing through Atami, with its stylish art museum, to the harbour town of Shimoda, a good base for exploring southern Izu, including the Rendaiji hot spring and the striking coastal scenery around Irō-zaki at its most southerly tip.
Over on west Izu, Dōgashima is another famous beauty spot, with a crop of picturesque islands set in clear, tropical-blue water. Most of this coast still belongs to traditional fishing communities and the central uplands are also sparsely populated, with only a few roads cutting through the maple and beech forests to give sweeping views over the peninsula and north to Fuji. The only settlement of any size in central Izu is Shuzenji, whose nearby onsen resort has long been associated with novelists such as Kawabata and Natsume Sōseki.