Matsushima: one of Japan's three great views, by train and boat

The day, in order

1. Morning

   The Senseki line to the coast

   The train out runs through the northern suburbs and then along the flat coastal plain, and you are on the platform at Matsushima-kaigan about forty minutes after leaving Sendai. Walk toward the water rather than straight to the temple: the first view of the bay between the buildings is the one people remember.

   Read the city guide →
2. Late morning

   Zuiganji

   The great Zen temple of the region, and a national treasure: founded, the official account says, in the ninth century by the monk who also opened the mountain temple at Yamadera, and rebuilt as the Date family temple in the Edo period. The screen paintings and the kitchen building are the parts to slow down for.

3. Lunch

   Oysters and fish, by the water

   The bay farms oysters, and the season makes the local menu: grilled shellfish in winter, seafood bowls the rest of the year. Eat near the boat pier so that the afternoon starts where it needs to.

4. Afternoon

   The boat through the islands

   The bay holds more than 260 islands, most of them crowned with pines and undercut by the sea into caves and arches. The sightseeing boat is the standard way through them, and it earns its place: the islands only make sense from the water, and the route passes close enough to see the strata in the rock.

5. Late afternoon

   Godaido and the tea house Optional

   Godaido is the small hall on the headland, rebuilt on Masamune's orders in the early seventeenth century and the classic view back across the bay. Beside it, the Date family tea house serves matcha facing the water. Both are optional because the boat has already given you the bay.

Make it lighter

The Senseki line, Zuiganji and the boat through the islands, with the headland hall and the tea house left out. The shortest version of the day, and still the view that made the journey worth it.

The castle hill and the mausoleum → The morning market and the zelkova avenue → Read the Sendai city guide →

If the weather changes

The bay in rain is still the bay, and the temple precincts are covered for much of the walk, but the boat is suspended when the wind gets up. If it is, walk the headland and give the temple the extra hour.

Check before leaving

Check boat sailing times and whether services are running that day, check the temple's hours and the tea house's opening days, and check the oyster season if the shellfish are part of the plan.