Chiba east · IchinomiyaNo.1297★★Open in map →
Tamasaki Shrine
The first-ranked shrine of old Kazusa Province, in the surf town of Ichinomiya on Chiba's Pacific coast. Its joined halls are lacquered black, and each September its festival carries the gods down to the beach.
- FromTokyo Station
- ~70 minJR limited express, direct
- Get off atKazusa-Ichinomiya Station (JR Sotobo Line)
- On foot
- Tamasaki Shrine
The sweet spot
This is a well-known regional shrine, not a hidden spot, and its September festival draws visitors from across the Kanto region. What is easy to miss is how closely it is tied to the sea. By shrine tradition its deity came ashore here from the ocean, and once a year the gods are carried back to the beach.
Where it is
50 more notes in Chiba · open the map →What to look for — in walking order
- Worship hallthe black-lacquered front hall, with a Takasago carving said to be the work of Hidari Jingoro
- Basho poem stonea stone carved with a Matsuo Basho verse, set among maki trees west of the main sanctuary
- Main sanctuarythe innermost of the joined halls, black-lacquered like the worship hall in front
- Inumaki grovea stand of inumaki, Chiba's prefectural tree; the eldest grows east of the main sanctuary
How to actually get there
- Tokyo Station → Kazusa-Ichinomiya Station (JR Limited Express Wakashio, about 60 min).
- Kazusa-Ichinomiya Station west exit → Tamasaki Shrine (walk about 8 min).
- Pray at the worship hall, then walk around the halls past the Basho poem stone and the inumaki grove.
- Before leaving, find the child-blessing ginkgo trees and touch them in order.
- JR Limited Express Wakashio to Kazusa-Ichinomiya
- From Tokyo Station, the Limited Express Wakashio runs via the Keiyo and Sotobo lines to Kazusa-Ichinomiya Station in about 60 minutes, with no change. All seats are reserved. The shrine is about 8 minutes on foot from the station.
- Back from Kazusa-Ichinomiya Station
- Walk back to the station. Kazusa-Ichinomiya is a starting point for JR rapid trains toward Tokyo, so you can ride back without a limited express ticket, though the trip takes longer. Wakashio trains are not frequent, so check the timetable first.
About the place
Tamasaki Shrine stands in the town of Ichinomiya, near the southern end of Kujukuri Beach. It enshrines Tamayorihime, mother of Emperor Jimmu, Japan's legendary first emperor, and people come to pray for marriage, children and safe childbirth. The worship hall, offering hall and main sanctuary are joined in the gongen-zukuri style and finished in black lacquer, which the shrine itself calls unusual. Its great annual rite is the Kazusa Junisha Matsuri. More than a thousand bare-chested men carry mikoshi along the shore to Tsurigasaki Beach, where a torii stands on the sand. That same beach later hosted the surfing events of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
How to enjoy it
The shrine is about 8 minutes on foot from Kazusa-Ichinomiya Station, so it fits easily into a day on the coast. Look for the ginkgo trees used in a prayer for children: touch the male tree, then the female, then the young one. The Kazusa Kagura dances are offered seven times a year, and on 13 September the festival procession leaves for the beach in the afternoon and comes back at night to circle the main hall.
Background & history
The shrine's founding date is unknown, because its buildings and records were lost to fire in wars of the Eiroku era in the 16th century. It already appears in the Engishiki, the Heian-period register of shrines, among the highest-ranked in the land, and it held the title of Ichinomiya, first shrine of Kazusa Province. The present halls date from 1687 and are a Chiba Prefecture Tangible Cultural Property. The Junisha festival is said to have begun in 807 and is a prefectural Intangible Folk Cultural Property.
Before you go
- Cash
- Kazusa-Ichinomiya Station accepts Suica-type IC cards, and its east gate is for IC cards only. Neither the shrine's own site nor the prefectural tourism site lists an admission fee for the grounds. Amulets are offered at the shrine's amulet office, and prayers can be requested.
- Before you go
- The festival on 13 September brings large crowds to the shrine and the shore. If you plan to continue to Tsurigasaki Beach, check the town's notices first: on 30 September 2026, the Ichinomiya Tourism Association reported the roads around the beach plaza closed by flooding.
- Another way
- JR rapid trains from Tokyo on the Sobu or Keiyo lines also run through to Kazusa-Ichinomiya with no change and no limited express charge. From Chiba Station, take the JR Sotobo Line.
- After you get off
- Leave Kazusa-Ichinomiya Station by the west exit, at the main station building. The shrine lies northwest of the station, about 8 minutes on foot.