＊This article is an English translation of the “熱海駅から伊豆山神社までのバスやタクシーでの行き方を解説” article.
On a certain day in January 2021, my spouse and I visited Izusan Shrine. Izusan Shrine is a special place for us as a married couple. This is because before we got married, we visited and worshipped there many times together.
Izusan Shrine is located just 8 minutes by bus from Atami Station, making it a close sightseeing spot in Atami. More than anything, it’s a place with a wonderful scenic view, so I really recommend visiting if you come to Atami.
Today, I will introduce the scenes from our couple’s trip to Izusan Shrine. At the end of the article, I’ll also introduce a recommended place to eat in Atami!
Izusan Shrine is located on the hillside of a mountain and has a great view!
Izusan Shrine, being situated on the hillside of a mountain, offers an incredible view. On a clear day, you can see Izu Oshima Island.
As Izusan Shrine seems to have many worshippers, it is well-maintained and an extremely beautiful shrine. Additionally, being surrounded by Atami’s great nature, it also has a mystical atmosphere.
Where is Izusan Shrine located?
Please see the map below. It’s a bit dark as it was taken in the shade, but Izusan Shrine is located in the direction of the Yugawara River behind the mountains at the back of Atami Station. It’s only 2.2 km away on Prefectural Route 103, but since it’s on a hillside road, it would feel like a hiking distance to walk there.
Therefore, to get to Izusan Shrine, you’ll need to take a bus or taxi from the train station. If you’re also visiting places like Atami Sun Beach, Kiunkaku, or Atami Plum Garden, those are in totally different directions, so it’s best to schedule Izusan Shrine at the start or end of your Atami trip. However, note that Izusan Shrine stops selling charms and such at 4:30 pm.
The MOA Museum of Art is in the same general direction as Izusan Shrine, but the roads split at some point, so for first-timers, it’s safer to go back to Atami Station first before heading to the MOA Museum.
For the latest information on Izusan Shrine, please check their official website below. They list schedules for festivals too, so I recommend checking it out before your visit.
How to get to Izusan Shrine? It’s about 8 minutes by bus from Atami Station, so quite close
Here is a photo of Atami Station. It was renovated a few years ago and looks very beautiful.
From Atami Station, it’s best to go by bus or taxi. On this day, I took a taxi there and a bus back when visiting Izusan Shrine with my spouse. There is a rotary for buses immediately to the left when exiting Atami Station, and there are plenty of signs as well.
The bus stop for Izusan Shrine is platform 4
Buses from Atami go to various places. You take the bus from the stop shown below on platform 4 for the “Shionodanchi Loop / Izusan Loop” line.
◆Bus Timetable
The information below is as of January 2021, so the latest details cannot be guaranteed. There are around 4 buses (3 at 12pm) between around 9am-3pm, so you don’t need to be too particular about the times. Generally, the buses run around 5, 15, 35, and 47 minutes past the hour. Please enlarge the image below to see the timetable.
The fare is 190 yen but cash only! Be sure to prepare the exact change in advance. They cannot break large bills like 10,000 yen, and electronic money like Suica cannot be used. 1,000 yen bills and 500 yen coins can be exchanged.
Get off at the “Izusan Jinja Mae” bus stop
After 8 minutes from Atami Station, you’ll arrive at the bus stop shown below in front of Izusan Shrine.
It’s a good idea to note the return bus times to Atami Station before visiting the shrine. There are 2-3 buses between 9am-5pm, generally around 7, 37, and 55 minutes past the hour. Depending on the time, there may only be the 7 and 37 minute buses, so be careful. Please enlarge the photo below for more details.
By taxi it takes around 5 minutes! The fare should be less than 1,000 yen
There is a taxi stand behind the foot bath in front of Atami Station. On this day, since our schedule included Izusan Shrine, lunch, Jugokutoge, and Fuu-a, we took a taxi.
The taxi driver will ask “Shall I take you all the way up to Izusan Shrine?”, but since we wanted to walk up the stairs and enjoy the scenery and atmosphere, we asked to be dropped off at the bottom (in front of the bus stop).
For elderly people or those with difficulty walking, it’s much easier to take the taxi up to the side of the shrine grounds. The stairs up to Izusan Shrine are quite steep!
View from the taxi – a continuous slope uphill
You can also see the ocean. Very beautiful.
Is this almost Izusan Shrine? There are surprisingly some shops too.
We made it! The fare was 960 yen, but the driver mentioned business has been tough during the pandemic with fewer customers, so we paid 1,000 yen and told him to keep the change, which made him happy!
If you ask to go all the way up near the shrine grounds, it may cost over 1,000 yen. But from the bus stop, it’s just a 3 minute walk up the stairs (though those 3 minutes are quite tough!)
There are also parking lots if you go by car!
I can’t drive, so I’m not too sure, but there seemed to be plenty of parking lots. They appear to be free of charge, but you’d better ask someone locally for the details.
Parking lot near the bus stop
Upper parking lot near the shrine grounds
The stairs up to Izusan Shrine are quite steep!
The stairs leading up to Izusan Shrine are long and steep. Today I introduced the route from the bus stop, but you can actually start climbing from much further down.
Midway up the stairs, there is a small “Musubu Myojin Shrine” enshrined. This is a deity that is believed to bind relationships.
My wife paid respects here.
However, there are landing areas where you can take breaks. As long as your legs are not an issue, an adult can reach the top in around 3 minutes without stopping. You can now see the torii gate of Izusan Shrine!
We have arrived at Izusan Shrine.
Worship at Izusan Shrine
We first purify ourselves before worship.
Perhaps due to COVID countermeasures or facility renovations, the hand-washing area looked different from before.
Time for worship. My wife and I have been annually visiting and worshipping at this Izusan Shrine even before we got married.
Fortune Slips, Charms, and Stamp Books at Izusan Shrine
The sales counter for charms and such at Izusan Shrine is open from 9am to 4:30pm.
It was early January on this day. I decided to draw a fortune slip. There were various types, and I chose the regular one for 100 yen.
I got a “Small Blessing”! Oh well, not bad!
There is a designated area to tie your fortune slip. That’s me in the photo below.
They also sell charms, stamp books and more.
The stamp book costs 1,500 yen while a stamp itself is 300 yen.
Here are the “ema” plaques.
And this is the offertory box where you submit used charms and such.
After worship, my wife and I always sit down at the spot shown below. This is known as the place where Yoritomo and Masako rested, so it’s considered a lucky spot.
We sat down here. My wife is shyly hiding her face.
They even have an area set up for Instagram photos. You can place your smartphone to take a self-timer photo!
When visiting Izusan Shrine, be sure to take in the panoramic view!
What I especially recommend is the view from within the grounds of Izusan Shrine. You can see Niijima and Izu Oshima islands, and it offers a really great panorama.
Izusan Shrine also has a Local History Museum
Although we didn’t visit, there is a Local History Museum here. If you have time after worshipping before your bus departs, you could check it out. The admission fee is 180 yen for adults.
It’s located behind the shrine to the left.
The Main Shrine is up higher on the mountain!
The actual main shrine of Izusan Shrine is not here, but rather several kilometers further up along a mountain trail. You pass through the white torii gate to the right of the memorial hall in the photo below and follow the mountain path.
Here is a map. You’ll pass by “Hakusan Shrine” on the way up to the main shrine. It becomes a bit of a mountain hike, not an easy distance, taking adults 30-40 minutes one-way. A round trip would likely take over 1.5 hours including breaks.
We didn’t go on this day, but I have visited the main shrine twice before in the past. Below are photos from my previous visit to the main shrine a few years ago.
◆The Main Shrine
It really is like mountain hiking. You won’t reach the main shrine unless you climb up a mountain trail like the one shown below.
I imagine hardly any of the visitors to Izusan Shrine make the trip up to the main shrine, as it is quite the journey to get there.
Vending Machines and a Place to Rest!
Now, back to the grounds of Izusan Shrine itself.
There are chairs and vending machines within the grounds, so you can take a break after the tough climb up the stairs.
In the pond are vividly colored koi fish. This pond is called the “Ryujin-ike (Dragon God Pond)”.
It seems they recently started selling special food just for the koi for 100 yen.
Be sure not to feed them anything other than this designated koi food.
There are also restrooms!
We didn’t use them on this day, but restrooms are available on the grounds.
Let’s take the bus back to Atami Station!
We’ve finished worshipping, so we’ll head back by bus. As mentioned earlier, there are 2-3 buses per hour.
Here’s the timetable.
If you have some extra time, there’s a tea house right in front of the bus stop, so you could get a warm coffee or something?
The scenery with the ocean view looks nice too!
The bus has arrived! Since we checked the schedule in advance, we didn’t have to wait long. Don’t forget to take a numbered ticket, as it’s cash only. The fare is 190 yen, so it’s good to have some coins ready.
The view from the bus on the way back is quite nice too.
After an 8 minute ride, we arrived at Atami Station.
There aren’t many places to eat around Izusan Shrine, so it’s better to have a meal around Atami Station. However, being a tourist area, there are mostly just standard sashimi set meals. But as someone who used to live in Atami, I know a hidden gem lunch spot to recommend.
Lunch at Atami Station
Right in front of Atami Station, there’s an amazing hole-in-the-wall restaurant that serves incredibly delicious fried horse mackerel! The photo below shows a building in front of the station. This superb fried horse mackerel restaurant is on the 2nd floor.
If you go up the escalator to the 2nd floor…
You’ll find the restaurant called “Chippu”.
Their fried horse mackerel is so tender and delicious! The portion is quite large too, so you may want to ask for a smaller rice portion. I was starving so I ate it all up!
Here’s a close-up – doesn’t it look incredible? The fried horse mackerel set is 1,000 yen.
In Closing
Today I introduced Izusan Shrine. Since it’s conveniently accessible by bus from Atami, a famous shrine, and offers great views, I really recommend visiting if you come to Atami. Thank you for reading to the end.
On this day, we also visited the famous Jugokutoge sightseeing spot in Atami, which I’ll cover in the article below:
Fully Enjoying Jukkoku-toge with My Spouse! The Best Spot for Viewing Mt. Fuji!
