Izu-shotō Getting there & around

Getting there & away

Tōkai Kisen Ferry Company (03-5472-9999 in Japanese; www.tokaikisen.co.jp in Japanese) operates ferries between Tokyo and the Izu-shotō.

The inner group of islands (Ōshima, To-shima, Nii-jima, Shikine-jima and Kōzu-shima) is serviced by high-speed hydrofoils departing mornings from Tokyo (usually around 8am) and returning from the islands to Tokyo that same afternoon. Fares and travel times to/from Tokyo are as follows: Ōshima ¥7220, two hours; Nii-jima ¥9320, 3¼ hours; Shikine-jima ¥9320, 3¼ hours; and Kōzu-shima ¥10, 020, four hours.

The inner islands are also serviced by the large passenger ferry Camellia-maru, which departs around 11pm and arrives in the islands early the next morning (it stops at all the islands from north to south). It returns to Tokyo the same evening. Fares (2nd class) and travel times are as follows: Ōshima ¥4440, 6¼ hours; Nii-jima ¥5960, 8¾ hours; Shikine-jima ¥5960, 9¼ hours; and Kōzu-shima ¥6330, 10¼ hours. Some of these islands are also serviced by ferries from Izu-hantō.

The outer group of islands (Miyake-jima, Mikura-jima and Hachijō-jima) is serviced by the large passenger ferry Salvia-maru, departing daily around 10.30pm and arriving in the islands the following morning, returning to Tokyo late the same evening. The journey between Tokyo and Hachijō-jima takes 10 hours and costs ¥8360 in 2nd class.

Ferries sail to/from from Tokyo’s Takeshiba Pier, a 10-minute walk from the north exit of Hamamatsu-chō station.

ANA (0120-029-222; www.air-nippon.co.jp in Japanese) has flights between Tokyo’s Haneda airport and Ōshima (¥10, 500, 35 minutes) and Hachijō-jima (¥16, 500, 45 minutes). Shinchūō Kōkū (0422-31-4191; www.central-air.co.jp in Japanese) has flights between Chōfu airport (on the Keiō Line about 20 minutes from Shinjuku) and Ō-shima (¥6500, 35 minutes), Nii-jima (¥13, 700, 45 minutes) and Kōzu-shima (¥14, 900, 55 minutes).