3,000 Miles +
Shuzenji Onsen is said to be the oldest hot spring in Izu, Shizuoka Prefecture. Legend has it that this hot spring started gushing out when Kobo-Daishi (774-835), aka Kukai, the founder of the Shingon sect of Buddhism, established Shuzen-ji Temple. The name Shuzenji comes from Shuzen-ji Temple, a temple with a long and distinguished history that includes the imprisonment of Minamoto no Yoriie (1182-1204), the second shogun (military leader) of the Kamakura Shogunate (1192-1333). The tranquil environment has attracted many great writers such as Natsume Soseki (1867-1916) and has led to a number of valuable literary works about Shuzenji by various writers.
The walking path through a bamboo grove along Katsura River from Tokko-no-yu includes tearooms and an old fire tower and, in the middle of the grove, a large round bamboo bench that is a perfect place to take a rest and feel the tranquility of the area.
This area has many spots to see the beautiful foliage in autumn including the maple tree grove in Shuzenji Nature Park, Takumi Village (craft center) in Shuzenji Niji no Sato Park, the grounds of Shuzen-ji Temple, and the walking path in the bamboo grove along the Katsura River.
***Shuzenji is just about 3 hours drive from Tokyo ah, so we normally combine Shuzenji + Tokyo
