Water Sports
With no point in the country more than 150 kilometres from the coast, Japan is the perfect destination for water sports: from scuba diving and snorkelling to surfing and sea kayaking, the choice and variety rival any in the world.
Japan’s rugged coastlines, where warm and cold ocean currents collide, are renowned for their variety of aquatic life, and, thanks to the subtropical Kuroshio Current, home to the world’s northernmost coral reefs. Conditions are ideal for snorkelers and scuba divers alike.
In the deep south, Okinawa’s blue waters are both warm and clear. Lying just north of the Tropic of Cancer, the oceans surrounding the Okinawan Islands are home to over 400 species of coral, which, with the diversity of fish species, makes an ideal setting for snorkelling and scuba diving. Idyllic coral atolls dot the pristine seas. Off the westernmost of Japan’s islands, Yonagumi-jima, mysterious underwater standing stones, by some theories the ruins of an ancient civilisation, compliment the huge gathering of hammerhead sharks each winter to make a scuba diver’s paradise.
Okinawa’s sub-tropical location means the weather is warm all year, but typhoons over the summer months make these islands a better winter destination, and divers move north in the summer to explore the coasts from Kyushu to Hokkaido, and great dives off the Izu Peninsula are within easy reach of Tokyo.
Deep sea swells coming in off the Pacific make for spectacular surfing, and while the pros relish the huge waves that come just before and after typhoons, there are plenty of quieter coves more suited to the beginner. Near Tokyo the beaches along the Chiba and Shizuoka coasts are popular, and Koichi on Shikoku Island and Miyazaki on Kyushu are renowned for their world class breaks.
Japan’s convoluted coastlines are a fantastic destination for sea kayakers of all levels and abilities. From the white sands and green mangroves of Okinawa, to the rugged shorelines as far north as Hokkaido, Japan’s coast provides stunning views and countless coves to be explored by kayak.