About This Guide

Beaches of Japan is an English guide to the 100 bathing beaches selected by Japan's Ministry of the Environment in 2006 — the complete official list, published in English for the first time as one collection.

What is on each beach page

The facts box gives the beach's town, prefecture and region, its official selection status and the ministry's five star ratings (beauty, cleanliness, calm, gentleness, richness). Below it you will find the beach's official profile from the ministry's selection pages, translated from the Japanese, and — for beaches that have one — the full text of their encyclopedia article. Beaches with no encyclopedia article carry the official profile only; nothing has been invented to fill the gap, and any beach whose photograph we could not source under a free licence is shown with an honest “no photograph” marker instead.

Sources and licences

The selection, star ratings, profiles and access notes come from the Ministry of the Environment's official “100 Best Bathing Beaches” pages. Encyclopedia articles come from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0, credited on each page; articles translated from the Japanese Wikipedia are machine translations, checked against the originals. Photographs come from Wikimedia Commons under the licences credited under each photo, and are hosted on this site. Official site of the selection: Ministry of the Environment — 100 Best Bathing Beaches (Japanese).

Please check before you travel

The selection was made in 2006. Swimming seasons, facilities and water conditions change; always confirm the current season and any notices with the beach's town or city before travelling.