A day trip to Dougashima from Atami: the tide, the sea cave and the sunset

Most people who come to Izu see its eastern coast: Atami, Ito, the cliffs at Jogasaki. The western coast is further, quieter and, to many who live here, more beautiful. Dougashima is its best-known stretch: white cliffs of volcanic tuff, pine-topped islets standing in jade water, sea caves you can take a boat into, and a sunset over the islands that the town of Nishiizu has built its name on. It is a long day from Atami, and worth every hour of it if you plan the day around two things you can't move: the tide and the sun.

Where it is, and how long it takes

Dougashima sits on the west coast of the Izu Peninsula, in the town of Nishiizu, facing Suruga Bay. From Atami it's a crossing of the whole peninsula. By car, plan on about two hours each way, over the hills by Shuzenji and down to the coast. By public transport it is possible but slow: a train to Shuzenji, then a long bus ride across the mountains. That's fine for an overnight trip, but tight for a day that ends with the sunset. Most people who do it in a day go by car, their own or with a licensed driver.

Start with the tide: walking to Sanshiro-jima

Just off the coast at Dougashima is a cluster of small islands called Sanshiro-jima. On days when the tide drops low enough, a bar of sand and stones rises out of the sea and joins the nearest island to the shore. Geographers call this a tombolo, and you can walk across it. It happens mostly from spring to early autumn and lasts only a few hours either side of low water, so the whole day turns on it. Check the tide table for the date you're going, and arrive an hour before low tide. Wear shoes you don't mind getting wet, and turn back in good time: the sea closes the path again quietly and quickly.

The sea cave open to the sky: Tensodo

Dougashima's cliffs are riddled with caves, cut by the waves into the soft tuff. The famous one is Tensodo, a sea cave whose roof has collapsed, so that light falls through a round opening into the green water below. It is designated a natural monument. You can look down into it from the path above, and when the sea is calm, small sightseeing boats run into the cave itself, through the arch and under the skylight. It's a short trip and not one to miss. The boats don't run in rough seas, and the operator decides on the day, so keep the cave boat flexible in your plan.

The cliff path and the viewpoints

Above the caves a path runs along the clifftop through the pines, with lookouts over the islets and down to the surf breaking white on the tuff. Go slowly here: the views change every few metres, and the light gets better as the afternoon goes on. Of all the places we take guests, this is the one where people stop talking.

Lunch on the west coast

The west coast eats from its own sea. Look for set lunches of the morning's catch: simmered kinmedai, horse mackerel, whatever the boats brought in. In Tago, a little to the south, families still salt and dry whole bonito and hang them in rice straw the old way. This is shiokatsuo, a New Year's tradition along this coast and found almost nowhere else in Japan. If you have time, the drive along the coast between Dougashima and Tago is among the best in Izu.

Then the sunset

Nishiizu has made the sunset its own. On a clear evening the sun goes down behind the islands off Dougashima and lights the water gold between them, and the pines on the cliffs turn to silhouettes. Find your spot twenty minutes before sunset and stay until the colour has gone. The drive home is in the dark, so don't leave it until you're tired.

A day, planned

Here's how a day can run, if the tide is low in the early afternoon:

• 08:30 Leave Atami.
• 10:30 Dougashima: the cliff path and the lookouts, then the cave boat if the sea is calm.
• 12:30 Lunch on the coast.
• 13:30 Walk out to Sanshiro-jima at low tide.
• 15:00 South to Tago for the shiokatsuo, or a slow coffee by the sea.
• 17:00 Back on the cliffs for the sunset (timings vary with the season).
• 19:30 Home to Atami.

Our guests do this as West Izu: the Dougashima coast, with the day timed by your host to the tide and the sun. You travel in your own car, or in a licensed hire car with a guide, arranged by us; the hire company bills you directly. Our fee is for the guiding, and the boat and meals you pay on the day. Add it to a stay and the stay is 10% less. If food is the point, the West Izu food day takes the same road with more stops at the table.