Japan's Historic Tokaido Trail: 5-Day Hiking Add-On

Your journey begins at Odawara, just a short 30-minute ride from Tokyo, where you meet your local guide and step onto a trail with five centuries of history beneath your feet. Hakone Hachiri, recently recognised as a Japan Heritage Area, is one of the best preserved sections of the old Tokaido, the foot highway that once linked Edo with the imperial capitals of Kyoto and Osaka. Climb through the forest on Mt Hakone, an active volcano, and pause at Amazake Chaya, a teahouse run by the same family for thirteen generations, much as it has served weary travellers for hundreds of years. Walk beneath Cedar Avenue, where trees planted four centuries ago still line the path, and take in views of Mt Fuji from the Yamanaka Castle ruins.

Continue through Mishima City, with its own literary claim to fame as a setting in James Clavell's Shōgun, before ending the day in the historic hot spring town of Shuzenji that grew around its 1,200-year-old temple and has welcomed travellers for centuries.  (L,D)

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From Shuzenji, taxi to Showa no Mori, the starting point for today's hike along the Old Shimoda Foot Highway, which runs down the spine of the Izu Peninsula, a UNESCO Global Geopark shaped by ancient volcanic activity.  This trail once carried Townsend Harris, the first foreign diplomat to live in Japan, on his journeys between the Shimoda consulate and Edo to negotiate the country's earliest trade agreements with the West. It also inspired a beloved Japanese love story, Dancing Girl of Izu, which was retold in five film adaptations throughout the twentieth century. Walk through dense forest tracing two rivers around Amagi Range, Izu's highest point, before arriving at Kawazu Seven Falls, where a rushing river has carved a series of waterfalls from the volcanic rock. It's a fitting final stretch to a day steeped in history and legend, ending with an overnight stay near the coast. (B,L,D)

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The morning is given over to Shimoda's own place in history. Walk Perry Road, tracing the steps of US Commodore Perry as he made landfall here in the nineteenth century to negotiate the opening of Japan to the outside world, and explore the town's picturesque harbour, where that first contact between Japan and America still shapes the atmosphere today.

In the afternoon, a local bus carries you south to walk a stretch of coastline where the Pacific Ocean has spent centuries carving sea caves into the peninsula's volcanic rock. This easy, scenic stretch winds through quiet coastal resort villages, the kind of places that make you wonder about staying just a little longer. The day ends at Yumigahama Beach, a peaceful spot to rest before the trail continues north the next day. (B,L,D)

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A local bus and train carry you north up the scenic east coast of Izu Peninsula to the start of today's hike along the Jogasaki Coastal Trail, a cliff-top walk over ancient lava flows that once poured into the Pacific before cooling into the rugged coastline you see today.  This is a chance to properly appreciate the volcanic and tectonic forces that shaped the Izu Peninsula, with sweeping views across Sagami Bay and the sound of Pacific breakers rolling in below. Stop for a relaxed picnic lunch on the trail before continuing north along the coast to Atami, a quaint seaside hot spring town that has drawn visitors for its restorative waters for generations. It's a fitting place to unwind after a day spent among such striking scenery, and a good introduction to the onsen culture that runs deep through this part of Japan. (B,L,D)

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On your final day, a short walk and local bus from your ryokan in Atami take you up to the starting point for a climb up one of the small volcanoes that dot Izu Peninsula. Steady climbing brings you to the 800-metre summit of Mt Kurotake, where clear weather rewards you with views across to Mt Fuji itself. Complete a loop around a small pond at altitude, a peaceful spot to take stock of the trail behind you, before retracing your steps back down to Atami station, where the tour concludes.

From here, the historic Tokaido line that once carried travellers between Edo and the ancient capitals can just as easily carry you onward, whether back to Tokyo or further west toward Shizuoka, Kyoto and Osaka. (B)