Today was always going to be a highlight of our time in Japan — the day we finally got to ride the famous Shinkansen, better known around the world as the Bullet Train.
Our journey began with a pleasant walk past the impressive Yokohama Stadium before continuing on to Kannai Station.
From there we caught a short local train ride to Shin-Yokohama Station, the city’s dedicated Shinkansen hub. As we’ve found time and again in Japan, everyone we encountered — from passengers to railway staff — was incredibly friendly and helpful, making the whole experience effortless.
Tickets in hand, we stepped out onto the platform. Within moments a non-stop Shinkansen blasted through the station at astonishing speed. It happened so quickly that we simply looked at each other in disbelief — a blur of white and silver gone in seconds.
About fifteen minutes later our own train glided into the platform, precisely on time of course. We boarded and settled into our seats, which felt a bit like airline seats — only with far more legroom and comfort. Soon we were on our way, the train accelerating rapidly yet so smoothly you could barely feel the speed.
A pleasant fifteen-minute downhill walk soon brought us to the shoreline. On one side stretched a wide sweep of golden sand at Atami Sun Beach, while on the other sat a small marina gently bobbing in the sunshine. We strolled along the promenade, stopping often to admire the beautiful plum blossom trees that were in full bloom.
Continuing along the waterfront, we eventually reached the Atami Ropeway. The cable car cabins may have seen better days, but they still did the job perfectly, whisking us up the hillside in just a few minutes.
At the top the views were magnificent — sweeping across the town and far out over the sparkling sea. We walked up to Atami Castle hoping for something historic, but unfortunately it turned out to be a bit of a tourist trap and didn’t quite live up to the setting.
After soaking up the scenery we descended again on the ropeway and caught a local bus back into town. By now we were starting to feel peckish, and by happy accident we stumbled upon CIRCLE Atami, where we enjoyed a surprisingly excellent Indian lunch.
Before long it was time to return. We boarded the Shinkansen once more for the lightning-fast journey back to Yokohama — bringing to a close a thrilling day that had easily exceeded all our expectations. Riding Japan’s legendary bullet train had been everything we hoped it would be, and the little seaside town of Atami turned out to be the perfect destination for the adventure.
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