🍵 East Izu Ōshima Yama Guide | Matcha Pudding Mountain 🍮

We were super excited about Ōshima Yama during this trip to Izu! Fortunately, our visit (June 7th) was before the cable car maintenance and it was a bright, sunny day. 🚕 Transportation and Luggage Storage We departed at 9 AM from Shinagawa Station in Tokyo on the Odoriko train to Izu Plateau Station, where there are coin lockers for luggage storage (800 yen). It's best to prepare some 100-yen coins; if you don't have change, use the machine next to the lockers marked to get change. Luggage can also be stored at Ōshima Yama, but if you're taking the bus from Izu Plateau Station, dragging luggage around is a bit inconvenient. From Izu Plateau Station to Ōshima Yama, you can take a bus or a taxi; the bus ride takes about 20 minutes, while a taxi takes about 10 minutes. Visitors cannot hike up the mountain; the cable car is the only option. Walk inside from the entrance in P2 to find where to buy tickets and queue for the cable car. The adult fare is 1000 yen. As you approach the top, a machine will take your photo. Remember to strike a pose; you can get the photo at the summit for 1200 yen, see . There is a shop selling souvenirs and food , and next to it, there is a resting area. Popular items are shown in P7. We bought red bean and miso-flavored Mitabi dango 🍡. The miso flavor paired with dango felt a bit odd, while the red bean flavor was sweet and delicious with red bean paste applied to the back of the dango . The ice cream was just regular milk flavor, nothing special. The Ōshima Yama souvenirs come in golden yellow for autumn, caramel color after the annual February burning of the mountain, and green. We bought the green Ōshima Yama souvenir, which is especially cute like a matcha pudding . We also got the summer-limited light blue goshuin and two fridge magnets. After buying the goshuin, you need to write the date and stamp it at the small desk next to it. You can also get a free stamp of the Ōshima Yama cable car here. The hiking trail at the summit is about 1000 meters long and takes about 30 minutes to walk around. We walked and enjoyed the scenery, taking our time for almost an hour. The path was full of greenery, with views of mountains, the sea, and islands . If you're lucky, you can see Mount Fuji, but unfortunately, we didn't see it. At the volcanic crater at the summit, you can experience traditional archery 🏹, which costs 2500 yen per person. In summary, I highly recommend visiting Ōshima Yama in Izu. We were worried about the weather, so we even reserved time in our subsequent Southern Izu itinerary to come again if needed. 🕘 Opening Hours: March to September 9:00-17:00, last cable car at the summit station is 17:15; October to February 9:00-16:00, last cable car at the summit is 16:15. PS: Every February, on the second Sunday, Ōshima Yama holds a mountain burning event to announce the arrival of spring in Izu. Visitors can buy torches to participate in the burning, which is quite an experience. #RomanticLifeDocumenter #ŌshimaYama #Izu #IzuTravel #IzuJourney #JapanTravel #TokyoDayTrip #IzuPeninsula