Kon’nichiwa!
In the simplest terms, you can think about the top things in Kamakura being around 2 train stations: Kamakura Station and Hase Station.
So you can think of your Kamakura itinerary as being split into 2. One part is walking from Kamakura Station and another part is walking from Hase Station.
If you’re doing a day trip from Tokyo, you’ll start and end at Kamakura Station. So it really doesn’t matter much which train station you start with, as these 2 train stations are 5 minutes away from one another. If you will be going to Enoshima afterwards, then Hase Station is slightly closer to Enoshima, so maybe you want to end your day there.
That said, for this one day Kamakura itinerary, we are starting with Hase Station, because that’s where you’ll find the most iconic Kamakura landmark… the Great Buddha!
The 3 most important Kamakura attractions are the Great Buddha, Hase-dera Temple, and Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine, and that’s what the focus of this day trip to Kamakura will be. If you want to be relatively quick with Kamakura to make time to also go to Ensohima or Yokohama, be sure to see these 3 things, and you can feel good about having experienced Kamakura.
With more time, you’ll want to also consider going to the Hokokuji Temple bamboo forest tea house and/or the Sasuke Inari Shrine red torii shrine gate tunnel. Both of these are a little bit more out of the way, so they require a little bit more of a time commitment. (And by out of the way I mean, they just aren’t like a 15 minute walk from a train station like the main 3 attractions are. They are not that far, so with one day in Kamakura you can still comfortably add them to your day.)
Kamakura is also a coastal town, so you can start or end your day at the ocean. I saw funny-looking blue jellyfish washed up on the beach!
Below I’ll give you an outline for what a day trip to Kamakura can look like!
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Tokyo to Kamakura
Depending on where you’re coming from, the best train to get to Kamakura from Tokyo may be the Shonan-Shinjuku Line (from Shinjuku Station) or the Yokosuka Line (from Tokyo Station)… or both.
Kamakura Station is the gateway to Kamakura, so that will be your first stop in Kamakura. From there, you can immediately transfer over to the Enoden Line to take the train to Hase Station… or you can exit the train station and start walking from Kamakura Station!
To get from Tokyo Station to Kamakura Station is right around 1 hour.
To get from Shinjuku Station to Kamakura Station, there is a direct train that is just under 1 hour. But if you want to get to Kamakura earlier in the morning, you might find that the best train route is one that makes a transfer. I think google maps is the easiest way to figure out the best route for you.
The cost of taking the train from Tokyo to Kamakura is around 950 yen (US$7).
You can use your IC card (like suica card or pasmo card) to get from Tokyo to Kamakura. Otherwise, you can buy individual tickets when you arrive at the train station.
👆 You have several options to get from Shinjuku Station in Tokyo to Kamakura. While train transfers aren’t really a big deal, look for the route that’s a direct train to Kamakura! For example, if you’re coming from Shinjuku, you will get on the Shonan-Shinjuku Line. Compare the train routes. (Make the starting point to your hotel, and also change the departure time to give you a better idea.)
Day trip tours from Tokyo you must consider!
Kamakura day trip from Tokyo
👉 Bus tour to Kamakura and Enoshima: See the Kamakura highlights of Great Buddha, Hasedera Temple, and Tsurugaoka Hachimangu shrine, and then you’ll have 2 hours in Enoshima on your own. The meeting point is in Shinjuku.
Hakone day trip from Tokyo
👉 Day trip to Hakone Ropeway, Owakudani volcano valley, and Lake Ashi (with possible Mount Fuji views!)
Read the reviews on getyourguide or viator.
Where to stay in Kamakura
The Kamakura Hotel (that’s the name of it) is located minutes walking from Kamakura Station on the west exit side. It’s a simple room, and it comes with a light Japanese-style breakfast. Do the Hase Station things on the afternoon of your arrival to Kamakura, then do the Kamakura Station things in the morning the next day! (And go for a sunrise walk on the beach before that!) Kamakura is to the south of Tokyo, so you can make a detour between Tokyo and Kyoto.
Read the hotel reviews on booking.com and expedia.
Start: Kamakura Station
Kamakura Station is the main gateway to Kamakura, so if you’re coming from outside of the Kamakura (like from Tokyo), this this is where you’ll arrive in Kamakura.
Kamakura Station to Hase Station
Kamakura Station to Hase station train: 5 minutes (200 yen)
Note: HASE is pronounced more like ha-say
We are going to first start off with the iconic Kamakura sights that you can see walking from Hase Station.
When you arrive at Kamakura Station, transfer over to the Enoden train line so you can take the 5 minute train ride to Hase Station. You can pay for the train ticket by swiping your IC card (same one that you use for local trains in Tokyo), or you can buy an individual train ticket at the ticket machine when you arrive.
Alternatively, you can walk to the first destination from Kamakura Station. If you don’t mind a big walking day, you can skip the trains between Kamakura Station and Hase Station and walk everywhere.
The Enoden train also goes to Enoshima, and you can also make it Kamakura and Enoshima in one day… if you don’t mind a full day of walking!
Kotoku-in Temple (Great Buddha)
Walking from Hase Station to Great Buddha: 10 minutes
Walking from Kamakura Station to Great Buddha: 30 minutes
Kotoku-in Temple entry fee: 300 yen
Walk inside Great Buddha: 50 yen (after paying entry fee)
How much time: 15 minutes or less just to look
The Great Buddha (Daibutsu) is the iconic landmark of Kamakura. It’s located at Kotoku-in Temple. In order to see it, you need to pay the entry fee for the temple. Once you’re through the official entry, then you’ll very soon see the Great Buddha right in front of you. You can walk right up to it, and for another fee, you can even walk inside of it.
The Kotoku-in Temple is really just about seeing the Great Buddha. There isn’t much to do walking around other than this.
Kotoku-in Temple opens at 8am, and it closes at 5pm or 5:30pm depending on the season. The last entry to walk inside the Great Buddha is at 4:20pm.
Confirm current information, including opening hours and entry fee.
👆 The Great Buddha of Kamakura, the most recognizable landmark of Kamakura. It can be quite a quick visit to see it.
👆 As you walk to the Great Buddha, you will pass through the gate with the red nio guardian statues.
Hase-dera Temple
Walking from Great Buddha to Hase-dera: 5 minutes
Walking from Hase Station to Hase-dera: 5 minutes
Hase-dera Temple entry fee: 400 yen
How much time: At least 1 hour
Hase-dera Temple is just a 5 minute walk from the Great Buddha, so this is the next thing to do. It’s easy to spend an hour walking around Hase-dera Temple. There are a lot of historical and cultural things to see, including different Buddha statues, jizo statues, Japanese-style gardens, and temple buildings. You can even walk inside a cave that has a red torii shrine gate at the entrance, and there’s also a short path lined with bamboo trees.
Hase-dera Temple opens at 8am, and it closes at 5pm or 5:30pm depending on the season.
Confirm current information, including opening hours and entry fees.
👆 Hase-dera temple gate.
👆 There are a lot of cute things to see at Hase-dera Temple, like these stone jizo statues.
👆 There are different Buddha statues, including laughing Buddhas! 😄
Kamakura walking tours (Meet in Kamakura)
It’s very possible to walk around Kamakura on your own. But Kamakura is also a city full of history, so walking around with a guide will give you a better appreciation of what you’re seeing. Kamakura is a former samurai capital of Japan, and is said to have even once been one of the most populated cities in the world (#4 around year 1250). Here are guided walking tours in Kamakura to consider:
Half-day Kamakura walking tour with Japanese sweets (4 hours) – This includes the most well-known spots in Kamakura: Great Buddha, Hasedera Temple, Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine, and Komachi-dori Street
Kamakura Historical walking tour (5 hours) – See the popular highlights like the Great Buddha and Hasedera Temple, and also go to less commonly visited places like Jochiji Temple, Zeniarai Benten Ugafuku Shrine, and Sasuke Inari Shrine. This includes hiking in Kamakura!
Hase Station to Kamakura Station
Now head back to Kamakura Station to start part 2. The things to do walking from Kamakura Station.
👆 Kamakura Station!
Komachi Street + Dankazura Avenue
Now we’re going to start walking from Kamakura Station towards Kamakura’s other iconic sight, which is Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine.
You can walk along Komachi Street to get there. This is a main tourist street in Kamakura. You can find food and snack options here, along with shops for souvenirs.
You can do a Kamakura walking tour that includes Komachi Street.
Immediately upon exiting out of the Kamakura Station east exit, you see a big red torii shrine gate. That’s Komachi Street (aka Komachi-dori), so you can start walking that way.
Along the way, look for an intersection that allows you to turn right and leads to Dankazura Avenue. This is a pedestrian-only path, and this also leads to the shrine.
Walking down Komachi Street all the way will lead you straight to the shrine, but walking down Dankazura Avenue will give you a more dramatic welcome to the shrine! Dankazura leads straight to a big red torii shrine gate ahead of you! Here is a map of a sample walking route.
If you don’t really care about walking down Komachi Street to look for food and souvenirs, then you can head straight for Dankazura Avenue, which is a 5 minute walk from Kamakura Station (map). Otherwise, just start walking up Komachi Street to see what it’s like, and then turn right at some point to get onto Dankazura Avenue!
The shops on Komachi Street generally are open from around 10am to 6pm, give or take. So if you do Kamakura Station area walking first thing in the morning, you might just be walking on what feels like a mostly empty street.
👆 You will see a big red torii shrine gate upon exiting Kamakura Station east exit. This is Komachi Street. It’s next to McDonald’s. Yes, there’s a McDonald’s in Kamakura.
👆 At some point, get yourself on Dankazura Avenue so you can have the dramatic welcome to the shrine with a big red torii gate!
Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine
Walking from Kamakura Station to Tsurugaoka Hachimangu: 15 minutes
How much time: be quick and walk around for 30 minutes, take your time and walk around for 1-2 hours
Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine is the famous shrine of Kamakura.
You can do a Kamakura walking tour that includes Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine, as well as a photo shoot at the shrine.
Coming from the pedestrian path of Dankazura Avenue, you can just keep walking straight, and then from there you can walk around looking at things that catch your eye. If you just do a walk around the main shrine buildings, you can comfortably do that in 30 minutes. You can also walk more around the grounds for a longer walk.
The shrine grounds are an open area, so it’s free to walk around. There is a small museum at the top of the stairs for 200 yen that can be a super short walk-through.
👆 Walking to the main area of Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine.
👆 Be ready to climb the stairs to the top!
Hokoku-ji Temple (bamboo forest tea house)
Tsurugaoka Hachimangu to Hokokuji Temple bus (10 minutes) or walk (20 minutes)
Kamakura Station to Hokokuji Temple bus (15 minutes) or walk (35 minutes)
Bamboo forest entry fee: 400 yen
Matcha tea cost: 600 yen
How much time: At least 30 minutes
Next, you can walk to Hokoku-ji Temple. The reason to go to Hokokuji Temple is to go to the bamboo forest tea house. You can drink traditional matcha tea served with a Japanese sweet, as you sit with a view of bamboo trees in front of you!
The temple opens at 9am, and you’ll want to be mindful of the closing time if you’re saving this for last. The matcha part of it closes at 3:30pm. So depending on your timing, you might want to go to the bamboo forest tea house first, and then end your day by walking around Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine.
See current information, including entry fee, matcha cost, and hours.
For another short peaceful walk, a 5-minute walk from Hokoku-ji Temple is a small Japanese garden at Ichijo Ekan Sanso (reviews).
It’s a 30 minute walk back to Kamakura Station from Hokoku-ji Temple, or if you’ve had enough walking, take the bus which will take 10 minutes (map).
👆You can walk a path lined with bamboo trees at Hokoku-ji Temple!
👆 You can drink traditional matcha tea in Kamakura with views of a bamboo forest!
Kamakura Station
Back at Kamakura Station, you can head back to Tokyo! Or if you shorten your time in Kamakura, you can make time for Enoshima or Yokohama!
My itinerary with Kamakura
I took 2 days to go from Tokyo to Kyoto, and had an overnight stop in Kamakura.
After staying a few nights in Tokyo at the Grand Prince Hotel Shin Takanawa near Shinagawa Station, this is what I did on the way to Kyoto Station.
Day 1: I went to Kamakura and did the Hase Station things in the afternoon upon arrival, and then stayed overnight at Kamakura Hotel, which was a walk of a few minutes from Kamakura Station.
Day 2: I did a sunrise walk to the coast, and then did the Kamakura Station things in the morning. Then, I went to Enoshima Station, and then walked to Enoshima Island and the caves there. After that, I went to Odawara Station to walk to Odawara Castle! Then, back to the train station to go to Kyoto by shinkansen! I used the coin lockers at the train station for luggage storage in Kamakura, Enoshima, and Odawara.