Kamakura itinerary for first-timers

Kita-Kamakura, one stop before Kamakura on the JR line, is where the great Zen monasteries sit in folds of wooded hills. Engaku-ji rises right beside the station, and a short walk south is Kencho-ji, founded in 1253 by the regent Hojo Tokiyori as one of Japan's first Zen training monasteries. Its massive wooden Sanmon gate, Buddha Hall and Hodo hall stand in a straight line up the valley, and behind them a long flight of mossy stone steps climbs to Hansobo, a mountain shrine guarded by statues of tengu, with a view over the town towards the sea.

• Engaku-ji
• Kencho-ji Sanmon gate
• Buddha Hall
• Hodo hall
• Hansobo and its tengu statues

The steps up to Hansobo are steep and take about 20 minutes; on a clear day Mount Fuji can be seen from the top.

Kamakura's most important shrine was founded by the first shogun, Minamoto no Yoritomo, and the whole town was laid out around it. A broad stone stairway leads up to the vermilion main hall, with views straight down the long approach of Wakamiya-oji towards the sea, and below it are the two ponds of the Genpei, one for each of the clans whose war brought the shogunate to power.

• Main hall
• Great stone stairway
• Genpei ponds
• Dankazura approach
• Wakamiya-oji

The raised Dankazura path down the middle of Wakamiya-oji, lined with cherry trees, is the nicest way to walk between the shrine and the station.

Komachi-dori is the lively lane that runs parallel to the shrine approach from Kamakura Station, packed with snack stalls, sweet shops, craft stores and small places to eat. It is the place to try Kamakura's local tastes, from whitebait on rice to sweets and roasted crackers, before catching the Enoden to Hase.

• Komachi-dori
• Street snacks
• Kamakura Station east exit
• Side lanes

The street is shoulder to shoulder at weekend lunchtimes; the side lanes off it are calmer.

The bronze Great Buddha of Kotoku-in, about 11 metres tall, was cast in the 13th century and has sat in the open air since the hall around it was swept away by storms and a tsunami in the 15th century. Seen from the courtyard, framed by the green hills of Hase, it is one of the most famous images of Japan, and visitors can step inside the hollow statue.

• Great Buddha
• Kotoku-in courtyard
• Inside the statue
• Hase main street

A few minutes from the Buddha, Hase-dera climbs a hillside in terraces of gardens, ponds and halls. Its main hall keeps a tall carved wooden statue of the eleven-headed Kannon, rows of small Jizo statues line the paths, and a small cave is carved with figures of the goddess Benzaiten. From the upper terrace there is a wide view over Yuigahama Bay, and in June the hillside path is lined with hydrangeas.

• Kannon Hall
• Jizo statues
• Benten cave
• Sea-view terrace
• Hydrangea path

Stay until late afternoon and walk ten minutes down to Yuigahama Beach to watch the light fade over the bay.

In the quiet eastern hills, the small Zen temple of Hokokuji is known for the grove of tall bamboo behind its main hall, where narrow paths wind between thousands of green stems and the light comes down soft and green. A tea pavilion inside the grove serves matcha, and the temple's raked gardens and caves for old tombs make it a calm start to the day.

• Bamboo grove
• Tea pavilion
• Main hall
• Temple gardens

Come at opening time; the grove is small and it is at its most peaceful before the tour groups arrive.

Yuigahama is Kamakura's town beach, a long curve of sand facing Sagami Bay, busy with swimmers in summer and with surfers, dog walkers and fishermen the rest of the year. Inland, the Onari-dori shopping street on the west side of the station is a calmer, more local counterpart to Komachi-dori, with bakeries, cafés and small shops.

• Yuigahama Beach
• Sagami Bay
• Onari-dori
• Enoden crossings

West of Hase the Enoden squeezes between the hills and the sea, running right along the shore past Shichirigahama. The railway crossing beside Kamakurakokomae Station, with the green train passing in front of the ocean, became famous from anime, and the platform itself looks straight out over the water towards Enoshima.

• Kamakurakokomae Station
• Enoden railway crossing
• Shichirigahama coast
• View of Enoshima

The crossing is a residential street; stay on the pavement and let local traffic pass when taking photos.

Enoshima is a small green island at the end of the Enoden line, just across the city boundary in Fujisawa and linked to the shore by a long bridge. Past its bronze torii, the steep Benzaiten Nakamise street climbs between souvenir shops and seafood stalls to Enoshima Shrine, whose three sanctuaries, Hetsumiya, Nakatsumiya and Okutsumiya, are spread across the island and joined by stairways.

• Enoshima bridge
• Benzaiten Nakamise Street
• Hetsumiya
• Nakatsumiya

Tako senbei, a giant cracker pressed from a whole octopus, is the island's classic snack.

At the top of the island, the Sea Candle lighthouse and observation tower looks out over Sagami Bay and, on clear days, Mount Fuji. Beyond it the path drops past Okutsumiya, the innermost sanctuary, to Chigogafuchi, a flat terrace of rock at the island's western tip where waves break on the shore and the sun sets over the sea, beside the Iwaya caves.

• Sea Candle
• Okutsumiya
• Chigogafuchi rock terrace
• Iwaya caves
• Fuji views

Clear winter afternoons give the best chance of seeing Mount Fuji behind the sunset from Chigogafuchi.