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Voykit pocket guide · Japan
Shizuoka
静岡
Give Shizuoka one night as a Shinkansen stop between Tokyo and Nagoya: tea fields, Kunōzan Tōshō-gū and Fuji views, not a full city break.
Shizuoka is the capital of its prefecture and a Tokaido Shinkansen stop, about an hour from Tokyo and 50 minutes from Nagoya. The old city centre around Shizuoka Station holds Sunpu Castle and Sengen Shrine; the coast at Shimizu holds Miho no Matsubara and the Nihondaira hill with Fuji views. Most travellers use it for one night or a half-day between bigger cities, and the food — tea, wasabi, eel, tuna — is the real reason to stop.
- Country
- Japan
- Local name
- 静岡
- Best months
- Mar–May, Oct–Nov
- Avoid
- Jul–Aug (hot and humid), Golden Week
- Stay
- 1 night
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- JPY
- Money
- Cities are increasingly cashless; temples, small restaurants and some lodging taxes still want cash.
- Daily spend
- Budget ¥7,000–11,000 excl. bed · Mid ¥11,000–18,000 excl. bed · High ¥18,000+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- Data-only eSIMs are the easy route: buy before you fly; voice SIMs need a residence card.
- Emergency
- Police 110 · Fire and ambulance 119
- Plugs
- Types A, B · 100 V · 50 Hz east (Tokyo), 60 Hz west (Osaka) · Most sockets are two flat pins without earth; European and UK plugs need an adapter. Phone and laptop chargers handle 100 V.
- Tipping
- Restaurants and bars: No tip; staff will chase you to return money left on the table.; Taxis: No tip; pay the meter.; Ryokan: Optional: ¥1,000–3,000 in an envelope for the room attendant; never loose cash.; Private guide: Not expected; a small gift or a thank-you meal is more usual.; Hotel porter: No tip.
- Water
- Safe from the tap everywhere; stations and parks have fountains.
- Toilets
- Free, clean public toilets in stations, parks and konbini; paper goes in the toilet. Rural and old stations may have squat toilets.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Coffee or tea in a café | ¥400–700 |
| Noodle soup (soba or ramen) | ¥800–1,300 |
| Eel on rice (unagi) at a specialist | ¥2,500–5,000 |
| Beer: draught in an izakaya / can at a konbini | ¥500–750 / ¥250–350 |
| Shizutetsu bus or train ride | ¥150–350 |
| Sunpu Castle and garden entry | ¥200 |
| Toro Museum entry | ¥300 |
| Tokaido Hiroshige Museum entry | ¥520 |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- FSZ · Mt. Fuji Shizuoka Airport
- In Makinohara, about 1 h by bus to Shizuoka Station, ¥1,000; no rail link to the terminal.
- HND · Haneda
- About 2 h to Shizuoka on the fastest train services.
- NGO · Chubu Centrair
- About 2 h to Shizuoka on the fastest train services.
Typical fares
- Shinkansen Tokyo → Shizuoka, Hikari reserved
- about ¥6,350, about 1 h
- Shinkansen Nagoya → Shizuoka, Hikari reserved
- about ¥6,350, about 50 min
- Shinkansen Kyoto → Shizuoka, Hikari reserved
- about ¥10,240, about 1 h 30 min
- Mt. Fuji Shizuoka Airport → Shizuoka Station, bus
- ¥1,000, about 1 h
- Shin-Shizuoka → Shin-Shimizu, Shizutetsu line
- about ¥350, about 25 min
Get around
Shizutetsu buses cover the city and the Shizutetsu train line links Shin-Shizuoka (in the Cenova mall) with Shin-Shimizu; neither is integrated with JR, so buy separate tickets. Nihondaira is about 35 min by bus from Shizuoka Station. Taxis are the easy fallback for the coast.
See and do
Known for
- Green tea fields
- Mount Fuji views from Nihondaira and Miho no Matsubara
- Kunōzan Tōshō-gū, Tokugawa Ieyasu's burial place
- Sunpu Castle and Sengen Shrine
- Eel, tuna and wasabi
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Numazu | JR Tokaido line from Shizuoka, about 45–60 min | About 1 h |
| Kakegawa | Shinkansen or JR Tokaido line, 20–30 min | About 40 min |
| Fujinomiya | JR Tokaido line to Fuji, then the Minobu line | 1.5–2 h |
| Hamamatsu | Shinkansen about 30 min, or JR about 1 h 30 min | About 45 min |
| Gotemba | JR Tokaido line to Numazu, then the Gotemba line | About 1.5 h |
| Iwata | JR Tokaido line, about 1 h | About 1 h 15 min |
Sleep
- Shizuoka Station north exit
- Business hotels within a 5–10 min walk; best for one night with bags and early trains.
- Downtown Aoi Ward (Gofukucho)
- Shopping, bars and the art museum; 10–15 min walk or a short taxi from the station.
- Shimizu (port area)
- Separate centre near the port, Miho no Matsubara and the Shizutetsu line; quieter, fewer hotels.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Excuse me / Sorry | すみませんsumimasen |
| Thank you | ありがとうございますarigatō gozaimasu |
| This one, please | これをくださいkore o kudasai |
| How much is it? | いくらですか？ikura desu ka |
| Can I pay by card? | カードで払えますか？kādo de haraemasu ka |
| Where is the toilet? | トイレはどこですか？toire wa doko desu ka |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: A small bow; a handshake if the other person offers; avoid: Hugs, back slaps, loud greetings
- Names: Family name plus -san; avoid: First names unless invited; adding -san to your own name
- Paying: Put money in the tray at the register; avoid: Tipping, or leaving loose cash for staff
- Trains: Queue at the floor marks, phone on silent, ask before reclining on the Shinkansen; avoid: Phone calls, eating on crowded commuter trains, blocking doors with bags
- Escalators: Stand on the side locals use — left in Tokyo, right in Osaka; stations now ask people to stand still on both; avoid: Stopping at the top or bottom
- Shoes: Off at the step-up entrance; toilet slippers only inside the toilet; avoid: Stepping on tatami in shoes or slippers
- Shrines: Rinse hands at the basin; bow twice, clap twice, bow once; avoid: Walking down the centre of the approach, which is for the deity
- Gifts: Offer and receive with both hands; bring a small omiyage for hosts; avoid: Sets of four; cash outside an envelope
Scams and watch-outs
- Hikari Shinkansen stops at Shizuoka about once an hour; Nozomi trains pass through without stopping.
- The Shizutetsu line and JR are separate systems: a JR Pass does not cover Shizutetsu.
- Fuji is often hidden by cloud or haze even on warm days: go early and check the forecast before paying for a view hotel.
- Nihondaira has no convenience stores; buy what you need downtown first.
A calm, low-crime city; the real risks are summer heat, the long walk between the station and the coast sights, and cloud that hides Fuji after you have paid for a view room.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Shizuoka yet. Suggested stay: 1 night. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Green tea fields
- Mount Fuji views from Nihondaira and Miho no Matsubara
- Kunōzan Tōshō-gū, Tokugawa Ieyasu's burial place
- Sunpu Castle and Sengen Shrine
- Eel, tuna and wasabi
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Shizuoka City official site: www.city.shizuoka.lg.jp/
- Visit Shizuoka (prefectural tourism): www.visit-shizuoka.com/
- Shizuoka City Toro Museum: www.shizuoka-toromuseum.jp/
- Wikivoyage: Shizuoka, revision 5236417 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=5236417
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
Shizuoka静岡
ここまでお願いします
To this address, please
My hotel (write the name and address in the local script)
No embassies in Shizuoka; most countries keep embassies in Tokyo and consulates in Osaka or Nagoya.
Carry some cash: smaller tea shops, shrines and buses may not take cards.
Voykit · checked 2026-09
Printed from Voykit (/shizuoka). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.