Dogashima
堂ヶ島34°47′ N 138°46′ ECoast¥1,500, about CAD 13 or USD 9.50 (October 2026 rates)
Dogashima on Izu's west coast is a cluster of white tuff islands where a small boat noses into Tensodo, a sea cave with a hole in its roof, and it suits anyone with an hour to spare on the coast road; the walk-out tombolo to Sanshiro Island needs the right low tide, and from October to February it never shows in daylight.
Photo Batholith · Wikimedia Commons · Public domain and others, credited in the gallery
Tensodo is a sea cave cut into white tuff, with three entrances and a main passage about 147 metres long. Boats go in through the south entrance to the middle of the cave, where the roof has fallen away and a shaft of daylight drops onto the water. It became a natural monument in 1935, and the poets Tekkan and Akiko Yosano wrote tanka about it that same spring. The Dogashima walking path also passes the skylight, so you can look down into the cave from above.
Offshore lie the four islets of Sanshiro-jima, which look like three from some angles and take their name from that. At a low tide of 30 cm or less a bar of sand and stones joins the shore to Denbe-jima, the nearest of them, for about an hour either side of low water. Shizuoka lists this tombolo as a prefectural natural monument. Nishiizu's tourism office publishes the tide tables for 2026 and 2027, and you should check them before you go.
Worth knowing
- Use the free car parks at Dogashima Park and the town car park, because the spaces south of the traffic lights belong to the restaurants.
- Check the boat operator's status page after 9:30, since rough sea stops the cave boats.
Quick answers about Dogashimaよくある質問
How much is the Dogashima cave boat?
The Tensodo cave boat at Dogashima costs ¥1,500 for adults and ¥750 for children, and the trip takes about 20 minutes.
When can you walk to Sanshiro Island at Dogashima?
Only at low tides of about 30 cm or less, roughly an hour either side of low water. In daylight that happens on some days from March to September, and never from October to February.
What are the opening hours of Dogashima?
Dogashima keeps these hours: Mon–Sun 10:00–16:00.
When is the best time to visit Dogashima?
Dogashima: The tombolo to Sanshiro Island only shows in daylight from March to September, when the tide drops to 30 cm or lower; from October to February it stays under water during the day. Sunsets over Suruga Bay are the other draw on this west-facing coast.
Can you get to Dogashima by bike?
Dogashima lies on National Route 136 down the west coast of Izu. Free parking near the boat pier and the tombolo is limited to about 60 spaces across four car parks, so a bike saves the hunt for a space.
Within 12 km
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Within 12 km