Numazu provides spectacular scenery: Mt. Fuji, pine trees and Suruga Bay

By Fumiko Endo / Japan News Staff Writer

10:42 JST, November 15, 2022

Numazu is a hub city of eastern Shizuoka Prefecture known for its famous port. From Tokyo on the Tokaido Shinkansen bullet train, you can get off at Mishima Station after about 50 minutes and transfer to a local train to Numazu, only one station away.

During the Edo period (1603-1867), Numazu was a major post town on the Tokaido Road connecting Nihombashi in current Tokyo with Kyoto.

There are many restaurants featuring local seafood gathered around Numazu Port, which is about a 15-minute bus ride or about 30 minutes on foot from the station. The city has prospered in the fishing industry as it faces Suruga Bay, which is about 2,500 meters deep at its deepest point and is said to be home to about 1,000 species of fish.

Near the restaurants, there is the Numazu Deep Sea Aquarium, which specializes in deep-sea creatures and displays samples of coelacanths. Besides watching various fish that are rarely displayed in other aquariums, you can buy cute stuffed animals of deep-sea creatures. In this area, you can enjoy shopping for fresh seafood and dried horse mackerel, a specialty of Numazu, or eating sushi and fried dishes using local seafood, and even some dishes with deep-sea fish.

Near the port area, Senbon Matsubara (One thousand pines forest) stretches along the beach facing Suruga Bay. When visiting the area at sunset on a sunny day, you can see the combination of Mt. Fuji and the sun setting over Suruga Bay, although the top of the mountain is sometimes covered by clouds.

In the relaxed mood on Senbon Beach, some people sit and talk, while others enjoy throwing small stones into the sea. The incessant sound of waves seems to cure people’s everyday tiredness. On a mid-November day, the sun went down after 4:30 pm. It is an inspiring experience to watch the moment it sets over the bay.

The port city with scenic beauty has been linked to some renowned literary figures. Novelist Kojiro Serizawa (1896-1993) was born in Numazu, where his memorial museum is located. Poet Bokusui Wakayama (1885-1928) spent his later years in the city, while novelist Yasushi Inoue (1907-91) graduated from the present-day equivalent of a high school in Numazu. In recent years, the city has become famous as the setting for the anime “LoveLive! Sunshine!!” Fans of the anime frequently visit the locations depicted in the story. Local buses decorated with the anime’s characters run through the city.