Places to Visit on Enoshima Island

Enoshima (江の島) is a small island about 4 km in circumference in Kanagawa Prefecture . It is a place that you have to visit if you go to Kyoto or Osaka from Tokyo as it offers several beautiful attractions such as a shrine, a park, the observation tower, caves and more.

Something that for many is the jewel in the crown, on clear days you can see Mount Fuji and Sagami Bay. This is what has made Enoshima Island a very popular tourist area since the Edo period, where ukiyoe artists created their paintings and reproduced the beautiful scenery that the place still offers.

To get to Enoshima Island you can buy ordinary tickets/tickets or also the Enopass (the one we recommend) which is a ticket with which you can enter the main attractions (gardens, observation tower, caves) also includes the electric stairs, all this for about 1000 yen ($8 USD approx.) It includes some discounts in other areas such as the spa and the aquarium, some shops and restaurants.

The main street that leads to the shrine is full of souvenir shops and food from the area such as the shirasu stuffed croquettes that are Enoshima’s specialty or the ikayaki (grilled squid), or the odango (sweet dumplings) as well as the tako senbei , ice cream and the local beer. The way to most of the attractions is uphill so you can stop from time to time and see or buy something to eat, rest a bit and keep going up.

Enoshima Shrine is divided into three parts or mini-shrines located in different parts of the island, about 10 minutes apart. The main complex includes an octagonal building that houses one of Japan’s three most revered statues of Benten or Benzaiten who is the patron saint of Enoshima and is the goddess of all that flows : water, time, words, speech, eloquence, music and by extension, knowledge, wisdom and also wealth.

There is a 60-meter-high observation tower, the Sea Candle , which is built on the former residence of a British merchant named Samuel Cocking who bought part of the island around the 16th century. XIX and built a botanical garden for his delight. This is where you can get the best views of Mount Fuji from.

You can also visit the Iwaya Caves which are located in the cliffs along the southern coast of Enoshima. They are two caves a few meters deep and very easy to navigate. One cave contains some Buddhist statues and the other is dedicated to the legendary dragon that used to terrorize the area and which Benzaiten defeated.

And for couples and lovers there is also the Love Bell that is located on the top of the hill of Enoshima Island with beautiful views over the ocean. It is said that if a couple rings the bell, they will be together forever, then they must write their names on padlocks that they leave locked on the fence, similar to the ema (wooden tablets) left at shrines.

Enoshima Island is a nice tourist place where you can spend the day walking through traditional and historical and very natural areas of Japan . Stroll in the morning and eat on the island and in the afternoon sit by the sea to enjoy the great view of Mount Fuji with a beautiful sunset!

Enoshima is very easy to get to by train , including the super- fast Shinkansen or bullet train , making it a comfortable ride from Tokyo. And although it is possible to travel by plane, bus or boat, the train offers the best prices and convenience of all . For an even better price, we recommend traveling with the Japan Railways universal pass called JR PASS , which you can purchase on their website. This pass is purchased before traveling to Japan , arriving at the airport or at any train station , you can pick up your pass with proof of purchase .