Meet on platform 1, JR Shinjuku Station at 8:30AM (exact meeting place on the platform will be posted later)
Depart: Shinjuku 8:44AM (JR Shōnan-Shinjuku Line)
Arrive: Kamakura 9:41AM
This is a mid/long-distance commuter train with no reserved seats and does not originate in Shinjuku but it goes directly to Kamakura in just 57 minutes.
If anyone is interested green cars (First Class) are available on this train for a supplement of 780 yen if paid before boarding the train or 1,040 yen if paid on the train.
Here is a brief video showing a green car on Shōnan-Shinjuku Line.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ugiB763-8u4
From Kamakura Station we will walk along Dankazura and Komachi-dori shopping street to visit
Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine.
Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine
Komachi Dori
Komachi Dori
After visiting the shrine we will walk back to Kamakura Station and board the Enoden train to Hase (5 minutes away).
Enoden or Enoshima Electric Railway is a streetcar-like train which links the cities of Kamakura and Fujisawa. It was completed in 1907 and meanders through residential areas and along the coast taking 34 minutes to travel just 10 km (6.2 miles). A good runner can cover the distance in less time! The nearest equivalent I can think of is Tram 28 in Lisbon, though Enoden has a ‘twin’ railway in Taiwan. A used one-day pass of Enoden can be exchanged free of charge with a one-day pass on
Pingxi Railway, a 12.9 km long branch line on the outskirts of Taipei. Very useful if you happen to be visiting Taipei and Kamakura/Enoshima.
Enoden retro train
Enoden route map
From the station we will walk to
Hase Dera Temple (entrance fee 300 yen). Here are some
photos of flowers in the temple garden taken on 20 April 2013. I suggest a lunch/snack in
Kaikoan vegetarian restaurant in the temple garden and after lunch we will walk to the
Great Buddha (Daibutsu) (entrance fee 200 yen). After visiting the Great Buddha we will walk back to Hase Station to board the Enoden line train again.
If it’s a nice day we could get off at Inamuragasaki for a short stroll to the beach and a view of Enoshima and Mt Fuji. I suggest getting off at Koshigoe which is one stop before Enoshima and which has become my favourite Enoden station. We can walk along the beach and watch surfers who dominate the area until they are replaced by sunbathers and swimmers later in the season. If we are lucky we may be able to see Mt Fuji from the causeway linking Enoshima with the mainland.
Enoden Koshigoe station
Mt Fuji from causeway linking Enoshima with the mainland (December 2013)
Enoshima is compact and does not require guided tours as there are excellent guides such as this one in
Japan Guide or
Wiki Voyage. One thing on my To Do list is to visit one of the many seafood restaurants which line the seafront and the street leading up to the Shinto shrine for some fresh (raw) whitebait sushi or donburi.
Torii gate and street leading up to Enoshima Shrine
'Sea Candle' lighthouse and observation deck
Raw whitebait and raw shrimp sushi
Walks in Kamakura and Hase are relatively short but expect to walk a few miles in Enoshima. There are escalators (Escar) which take you up to the top of the island for 350 yen but you will have to walk down.
There are several ways to get back to Tokyo/Shinjuku. Enoden to Fujisawa and catch the JR Tokaido Line (to Shinagawa, Shimbashi, Tokyo) or JR Shonan Shinjuku Line (to Shibuya, Shinjuku), Odakyu Line from Enoshima via Fujisawa to Shinjuku, or
Shonan Monorail to Ofuna and JR Tokaido or Shonan Shinjuku Lines.
If anyone is stopping in Yokohama on the way back for a pub crawl take the JR Tokaido or Shonan Shinjuku Line.
Estimated fares:
Shinjuku - Kamakura (JR) 920 yen
Enoden one day pass 600 yen
Fujisawa - Shinjuku (JR) 970 yen or (Odakyu) 590 yen
ESTIMATED TOTAL FARE: 2,110~2,490 yen
Entrance fees:
Hase Dera Temple 300 yen
Great Buddha (Daibutsu) 200 yen + 20 yen for statue interior
Enoshima Escar (escalator) 300 yen
Iwaya Caves 500 yen
Boat to the caves 400 yen
Samuel Cocking Garden 200 yen, garden and Sea Candle observation tower 500 yen
ESTIMATED TOTAL ENTRANCE FEES: 3,000 yen