tohoku38.37° N, 141.07° E
Matsushima
Matsushima is a bay on the coast of Miyagi, near Sendai, scattered with some 260 small islands of pale rock crowned with pine, and counted for centuries among the Three Views of Japan.
The islands of Matsushima Bay
- Region
- Tohoku
- Our journeys
- Created for you
Our tours stayA day on tourA Custom Tour of Japan
the place
Two hundred and sixty islands of pine, and the temples on the shore.
The sea has worn the islands into arches and pillars, each with its pines bent over the water. On the shore, Zuigan-ji, the Zen temple rebuilt by the lord Date Masamune in 1609, keeps its halls behind an avenue of cedar, and the small Godaido hall stands on its own islet, reached by short bridges. A red footbridge of some 250 metres leads out to Fukuurajima, an island garden of pines, and a boat carries you among the islands.
The poet Basho came here in 1689. We plan Matsushima as a Custom Tour of Japan, created around your party alone, with Sendai, Hiraizumi and the north. If you would rather travel independently, the Expert Japan Itinerary plans the days for you.
what we do here
Matsushima, as we show it
The islands
Pine-crowned rocks worn into arches, seen from a boat on the bay.
Zuigan-ji
The Zen temple of the Date lords, behind its avenue of cedar.
A red bridge between the islets, Matsushima Fukuurajima
The red footbridge across the water to an island of pines.
Oysters
The oysters of the bay, grilled by the water.
A pine-topped islet, Matsushima Bay
questions
Questions about Matsushima
How do you reach Matsushima?
By the Tohoku Shinkansen from Tokyo to Sendai, about an hour and a half, then about forty minutes by train or car.
Can Matsushima be combined with Hiraizumi?
Yes. Hiraizumi is about an hour and a half to the north, and the Custom Tour of Japan can join the two.
Can you plan a private journey to Matsushima?
Yes. The Custom Tour of Japan is created around your party alone, on your dates. If you would rather travel independently, the Expert Japan Itinerary plans the days for you.
Matsushima, created for you alone.
The Custom Tour of Japan is created around your party alone, on your dates, and Matsushima can be any part of it. If you would rather travel independently, the Expert Japan Itinerary plans every day for you.