Kamakura
Kamakura on Foot
Kamakura on foot, from the Zen temple beside the north station down to the sea — ending at the level crossing where the little Enoden train meets the bay.
4 stops · one day
The route
- 01
Kanagawa · Kita-Kamakura · From Tokyo Stn · ~60 min
Engaku-ji
Kamakura's second Great Zen Mountain — walk straight from the station exit to one of Japan's finest medieval bronze bells.
What to look for
- Sanmon (main gate, 1783) — the ceremonial entrance gate, the starting point for the path through the complex
- Butsuden (Buddha hall) — the main worship hall, rebuilt in 1964, enshrining a wooden Shaka Nyorai Buddha
- National Treasure bell (Ogane, 1301) — a 2.6-metre bronze bell on a forested hilltop above the compound; a teahouse beside it serves tea and sweets
- 02
Kanagawa · Kamakura · From Tokyo Stn · ~70 min
Hasedera
A 9.18-metre wooden Kannon, a hydrangea slope over Sagami Bay and a candle-lit cave — five minutes from the Kamakura Great Buddha and usually walked past.
What to look for
- The eleven-headed Kannon — 9.18 metres of carved camphor wood in the main hall, among the largest wooden Buddhist images in Japan; photography is not permitted
- The hydrangea path — a looping slope above the main hall, planted in mixed white, blue and pink, with Kamakura's roofs and Sagami Bay below
- Benten-kutsu cave — a low cave the temple ascribes to Kobo Daishi's retreat, walls carved with Benzaiten and sixteen attendants, lit only enough to move through
- 03
Kamakura west · Gokurakuji · From Shinagawa Stn · ~65 min · Better early
Goryo Shrine
Three real landmarks in one short walk, off the Great Buddha crowd, where the little Enoden train slides past a shrine gate.
What to look for
- Torii by the tracks — the shrine's entrance gate stands right at the Enoden crossing, where the train passes close by
- Chikaramochiya (founded 1690) — a 300-year-old sweets shop beside the shrine path, selling Gongoro chikaramochi rice cakes
- Goryo Shrine precincts — a small shrine dedicated to the Heian warrior Gongoro Kagemasa, one of Kamakura's Seven Lucky Gods
- 04
Kamakura · Koshigoe · From Shinjuku Stn · ~60 min
Kamakurakokomae Railway Crossing
The Slam Dunk crossing on the Enoden — a coastal train, a bay view, and a famous frame that still draws visitors from across Asia.
What to look for
- The Enoden crossing itself — the level crossing on Route 134 where trains pass with the bay view behind; the image made famous by Slam Dunk
- Sagami Bay panorama — the open sea view visible from the crossing; clearest on days without ocean haze
- Kamakurakokomae Station — a tiny single-platform Enoden station right beside the crossing, with the original 1902 line character still present