Shizuoka travel: how should you split your time between Shizuoka city and Atami?
Stay near Shizuoka Station for views of Mount Fuji and Suruga Bay and ornate shrine architecture, or Atami Station for former villas, art and coast walks. With one or two nights, focus on one city; with three or four, you can move from Shizuoka to Atami to see both. Choose visiting order around museum closures, ropeway suspensions and your final-day departure.
Views and a shrine, or a villa and art museums?
Choose whether to combine Nihondaira’s views with Kunozan Toshogu Shrine, or visit Kiunkaku, art museums and the coast in Atami. Toshogu involves steps after the ropeway; MOA involves an escalator journey from the bus stop to the main building. Compare fees and closure dates for the paid buildings separately from outdoor views and walks.
Itineraries by trip length
Stay near Shizuoka Station for hilltop views and castle history exhibitions, or split Atami’s villa, art museums and coast across separate days. To visit both cities, set aside a day for the train journey and hotel change. Adjust your stops and their order for exhibition dates and the ropeway closure.
2 days / 1 night
Visit Kiunkaku’s buildings and garden in Atami, then add a coastal walk or Kinomiya Shrine. The walks involve slopes, so reduce sightseeing if you arrive late or leave the following morning.
3 days / 2 nights
Choose Shizuoka city for the art museum, Toshogu and Sunpu Castle Park, or Atami for Kiunkaku, MOA and Sun Beach. Stay two nights in one city and spread the visits across your days.
4 days / 3 nights
Compare an itinerary that visits Nihondaira and Toshogu before moving to Atami with one based entirely in Atami. Staying put lets you add Kinomiya Shrine without changing cities; changing hotels combines hilltop views with the coast.
5 days / 4 nights
Visit both Shizuoka and Atami, with an extra day for Kinomiya Shrine or Shizuoka City Museum of Art. The shrine option has one night in Shizuoka and three in Atami; the city museum option has two nights in each, so the hotel-change day differs.
Where to stay
Shizuoka City · 静岡市
Shizuoka Station suits meals and onward trains. Check that Nihondaira buses go all the way to the summit. Services leaving Higashi-Shizuoka Station differ; confirm your boarding stand.
Atami · 熱海
An Atami Station base suits arrival and onward trains. Walks to Kiunkaku, Kinomiya Shrine and the coast have slopes; check your hotel address and the uphill return. For large luggage, check your booked hotel's storage first. Prince Smart Inn Atami is about three minutes from the station and offers first-come lockers before check-in only, with no storage after check-out. These conditions do not apply to other hotels.
Prince Smart Inn Atami · プリンス スマート イン 熱海
Preparations to check separately
Choose opening dates alongside your final departure
Check Kiunkaku Wednesdays and MOA Thursday closures and exhibition changeovers first, with public-holiday exceptions. City art and Sunpu Monday closures have different holiday rules. For a final-morning departure, move visits to the coast, Kiunkaku or Sunpu earlier or omit them. Choose date-specific stops and returns for buses and trains.
Kiunkaku: admission and hoursMOA visitor guideCity art museum: station accessSunpu Castle Park: fees and access
Check large-luggage storage separately
Hotel storage can differ before check-in and after check-out. Prince Smart Inn Atami lists first-come lockers before check-in on your stay date, with no post-check-out storage. Check your hotel's conditions and separate storage locations and fees before hill walks or intercity travel. Storage costs are outside itinerary subtotals.
Transport, food and related guides
Japan transport guide
Use buses for Shizuoka Station–Nihondaira and trains when moving hotels to Atami. Check rail and bus methods separately.
Japan transport guide →Rail pass guide
Check Mt. Fuji-Shizuoka Area Tourist Pass Mini conventional-line coverage. Kodama, Nihondaira buses and ropeway and MOA buses in this itinerary are separate; compare regular-ticket costs.
Rail pass guide →Restaurant and booking information
Combine a tea break with Nihondaira sightseeing in Shizuoka. For Shimizu's fish market, plan a separate trip towards Shimizu Station. In Atami, choose a lunch area for fish dishes around your hotel's dinner inclusions. Check restaurant prices and opening days in individual booking pages. Check your visiting city and each shop's opening days, menu and booking conditions. Meals are outside itinerary subtotals.
Restaurant and booking information →Region name
Shizuoka Prefecture · 静岡県
Places to visit in Shizuoka city and Atami
Choose Shizuoka city for exhibitions and a park near the station, or Atami for a historic villa, art and the coast. On the day you change cities, allow separate time for the train journey and sightseeing.
North of Shizuoka Station: the city art museum
For an indoor exhibition after arriving by train, the city art museum is close to Shizuoka Station’s north exit. The official underground route takes about three minutes to Aoi Tower, where the museum is on Level 3. Admission varies by exhibition. JPY 1,600 is the adult same-day price for the Renoir exhibition running from 22 September to 15 November 2026.
City art museum: opening calendarShizuoka City Museum of Art: Renoir fees
Sunpu Castle Park and the station area
For displays about the castle’s history, walk about 15 minutes from the station to Sunpu Castle Park. Walking through the park and visiting the paid exhibitions inside Higashi Gate and Tatsumi Turret are separate activities. Admission closes at 4 pm, so a late arrival may mean choosing between the outdoor walk and the exhibitions.
Sunpu Castle Park: fees and accessSunpu Castle Park: viewing areas
Nihondaira views and Kunozan Toshogu Shrine
Choose Nihondaira Yume Terrace for the views, and add a ropeway trip to Kunozan Toshogu Shrine for its architecture. You still climb about 80 steps after leaving the ropeway. Terrace building admission has been charged since October 2026; the outdoor viewing corridor remains free. The shrine connection in these itineraries cannot be used during the planned ropeway closure from 1 to 21 December.
Nihondaira Yume Terrace: visiting guideShizutetsu Nihondaira Ropeway: visiting guideShizutetsu: December ropeway suspension
Below Atami Station: Kiunkaku and Sun Beach
Choose Kiunkaku and Sun Beach for a historic villa, garden and coastal walk. Each is listed as about 20 minutes on foot from Atami Station. Allow time for the uphill return and for boarding your train. The Sun Beach visit covers the sand and coastal walk; water park admission, equipment hire and parking are outside this walking itinerary.
Kiunkaku official tourism guide: roughly 20-minute station walkSun Beach seasonal use and station accessAtami City: Sun Beach, promenade and seasonal swimming facilities
Kinomiya Shrine and MOA Museum of Art in Atami
Choose Kinomiya Shrine for its large camphor tree and grounds, or MOA for art exhibitions. The shrine is officially about 18 minutes on foot from the station; MOA is a separate destination reached by bus from stand 8. After leaving the museum bus, allow another ten minutes on the escalators to reach the main building. Check closure dates and the return bus before your visit.
Official shrine access and worship hoursMOA visitor guideMOA: Art Street and escalator access
Finding your way from your hotel or station
Shizuoka Station and Atami Station are in different cities. Add waiting, transfers and walks from the bus stop to the bus journey itself, and select a return service for the same travel date. For walking directions, check both endpoints and adjust the route for your hotel address and local access signs. Map estimates do not include waiting or sightseeing.
| Route | How to travel | Official access or journey search |
|---|---|---|
| Shizuoka Station → city art museum | About three minutes via the north-exit underground passage to Aoi Tower; the museum is on Level 3 | A different venue from the prefectural art museum |
| Shizuoka Station → Sunpu Castle Park | Walk about 15 minutes to the park, then continue to the entrance of your chosen paid exhibition | Distinguish the park entrance from exhibition entrances |
| Shizuoka Station → Nihondaira → Shizuoka Station | Take a bus terminating at Nihondaira Ropeway, visit the viewpoints and ropeway, then return from the same terminus | Weekday return timetable. Use the relevant date’s timetable on weekends and public holidays. The return fare is excluded from the partial subtotal. |
| Atami Station → Kiunkaku or Sun Beach | About 20 minutes on foot to either place. Add walking time between them and time for your visits. | Kiunkaku’s official walking directions. Allow time for the uphill return to the station. |
| Atami Station → Kinomiya Shrine | Officially about 1.6 km, or 18 minutes on foot | If taking a bus, check the route and fare separately |
| Atami Station → MOA Museum of Art → Atami Station | MOA-bound bus from stand 8 → terminus → escalators to the main building → bus back to the station | Services marked M do not run on museum closure days. Check both outbound and return services. |
| Shizuoka Station → Atami Station | Tokaido Shinkansen Kodama. Buy tickets for your destination and seat type. | Distinguish conventional-line and Shinkansen fares and pass coverage |
Weekday return timetableCity art museum: opening calendarSunpu Castle Park: fees and accessKiunkaku official tourism guide: roughly 20-minute station walkSun Beach seasonal use and station accessOfficial shrine access and worship hoursMOA visitor guideJR Central: date-specific Kodama routes and fares
Food in Shizuoka city and Atami
Decide whether to eat on your return to the station or stay in the neighbourhood you are visiting. Menus and opening days vary by venue, and meals are separate from the itinerary costs.
Shizuoka city: oden and kurohanpen
Shizuoka oden is simmered in a dark broth made with beef tendon and strong soy sauce, then served with powdered stock and green laver. Kurohanpen is a fish cake made from ground mackerel, sardines and other fish. Aoba Oden Street and Aoba Yokocho are officially about 15 minutes on foot from Shizuoka Station; check each venue’s hours. They are in Shizuoka city, so allow a separate visit from your Atami sightseeing.
Atami: dried fish and onsen manju
In Atami, dried fish can be a meal or a souvenir option. Tourism material from Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism introduces dried fish from Atami and Ajiro. Onsen manju are steamed buns, so consider them as a snack alongside your meals. If your hotel booking includes dinner, choose a different lunch dish. Check the fish, preparation and price with the venue.
Partial costs and pass coverage
Options A and B visit different cities and use different transport. An option’s subtotal is specific to its route, even when both trips have the same length.
Return bus journey to Nihondaira
Select both the bus from Shizuoka Station to the summit and the bus back. The confirmed outbound fare is JPY 710; the return fare is additional. Only the outbound fare is included in the itinerary subtotal, which does not cover the full return journey.
Weekday outward timetableWeekday return timetableShizutetsu: segment fare search, outbound fare checked; return fare unconfirmed
Mt. Fuji–Shizuoka Area Tourist Pass Mini
The official coverage map includes the conventional Tokaido Line between Atami and Toyohashi, but excludes the Shinkansen. It cannot replace the Kodama fare in this itinerary; the Nihondaira and MOA buses and ropeway are also excluded. Check eligibility, your travel dates and the services you will use before comparing it with ordinary tickets. It is valid for three consecutive days, so one pass does not cover an entire five-day trip.
Ropeway closure: 1–21 December 2026
Nihondaira Ropeway is scheduled to close for equipment works. During this period, you cannot use the ropeway connection to Kunozan Toshogu Shrine in these itineraries. Even if you only want the terrace views, check the bus services and terrace opening dates separately.
Frequently asked questions
Do I move hotels to see both Shizuoka City and Atami?
One night in Shizuoka followed by two in Atami lets you explore both over four days. Five-day options split the nights between one in Shizuoka and three in Atami or two in each city. For a stay in one city without moving, choose two nights in Shizuoka or Atami. Take a Kodama stopping at Atami on transfer day and allow the Kiunkaku walk before last entry.
JR Central basic eastbound timetableJR Central: date-specific Kodama routes and faresKiunkaku: admission and hoursKiunkaku: access
Official sources and check dates
- Official hotel access ·
- Luggage storage FAQ ·
- Nihondaira Yume Terrace: visiting guide ·
- Shizutetsu Nihondaira Ropeway: visiting guide ·
- Shizutetsu: December ropeway suspension ·
- Kiunkaku: admission and hours ·
- Kiunkaku: access ·
- Official shrine access and worship hours ·
- Sun Beach seasonal use and station access ·
- Official English Atami port tourism guide ·
- Shizuoka City Museum of Art: Renoir fees ·
- City art museum: station access ·
- City art museum: opening calendar ·
- Sunpu Castle Park: fees and access ·
- Sunpu Castle Park: viewing areas ·
- Kiunkaku official tourism guide: roughly 20-minute station walk ·
- MOA visitor guide ·
- Weekday outward timetable ·
- Weekday return timetable ·
- JR Central basic eastbound timetable ·
- Official facility and transport guide ·
- JR Central: date-specific Kodama routes and fares ·
- MOA: Art Street and escalator access ·
- Shizutetsu: segment fare search, outbound fare checked; return fare unconfirmed ·
- JR Central and JR West: Mt. Fuji-Shizuoka Mini pass routes ·
- Shizuoka City: oden street, food and station walk ·
- Atami City: Sun Beach, promenade and seasonal swimming facilities ·