This itinerary is part of a set of 8 itineraries that circle the Noto Peninsula of Ishikawa Prefecture, following the coastal roads as much as possible. You can choose to only follow this itinerary, or you can combine this itinerary with as many of the other "Noto Peninsula" itineraries, and/or "Festival" itineraries, as you like and have the time for.
This itinerary covers sites in and around Suzu City on the northeast and east coast of the Noto Peninsula. The sites are fairly spread out so it is best to drive between the sites.
It should take about one-day. Once you select it and save it, you can change/customize it. If you plan to continue on, you can add other Noto Peninsula itineraries starting from Suzu. Although we recommend beginning the string of Noto Peninsula itineraries from the Kanazawa Station (MapCode: 41 558 874*22), you can begin it from other nearby "gateways," e.g. the Komatsu Airport (MapCode: 120 529 748*33) or the Noto Satoyama Airport (MapCode: 283 475 067*52). All have several rental car outlets.
ACCOMMODATIONS: There are a variety of accommodation options in Suzu City and between Suzu and Anamizu where you can spend the night, if you wish. There are considerably less accommodation options between Suzu and Wajima with the outstanding exception of the beautiful Lamp no Yado Ryokan (MapCode: 913 056 436*47), an isolated, 15-room ryokan located right on the coast. One hotel located fairly centrally in Suzu is the Suzu Beach Hotel (MapCode: 329 684 436*60). Another hotel in a good location south of Suzu city is the Notojiso National Lodge (MapCode: 329 524 409*33), a national park lodge overlooking Mitsukejima Island. A beautiful and luxurious option even further along, closer to Anamizu, is the Hyakurakuso Hotel overlooking the Tsukumo Bay (MapCode: 329 193 788*85).
You can also easily reverse the itinerary, if you wish, just by following the MapCodes in the reverse order.
Selected as one of the hundred best beaches in Japan, the Hachigasaki Beach is one of the few beaches in the prefecture famous for its high degree of transparency as well as the white sands and greenery in its surroundings. This 100 m/328 ft long shoreline is an ideal shallow beach for visitors to truly enjoy the fantastic view of the Sea of Japan. Besides the main bath house, there are private beach houses, cabins, a park, and walking paths next to the beach. There are also various facilities such as the Suzu Beach Hotel, auto camping grounds, the Suzu Ware Museum, Hachigasaki Onsen Suzu-no-yu Hot spring, and tennis courts in the area for visitors to enjoy.
The Suzu Ware Museum is a museum highlighting Suzu ware (Suzu-yaki) pottery. Suzu ware originated from Sue ware brought from the Korean peninsula in the 5th century. It was adapted to Japanese conditions, and has been produced in the Noto Peninsula since then for both daily use pottery and even religious objects. The museum highlights the history of Suzu ware through the centuries.
Along two sides of the Suzu Ware Museum is 2017 Oku-Noto Art #33 (originally located along the beach at Mitsuke beach). The work is titled Drifting Landscape by Liu Jianghua from China. "Suzu-yaki (Suzu-style pottery), which began in the 11th century under the influence of the Eurasian Continent, was a representative of Japanese pottery in the Middle Ages. The artist laid porcelain from Jingdezhen, China's "Porcelain Capital" together with Suzu-yaki ceramic items along the beach close to Mitsuke-jima Island. Mitsuke-jima appears in the legend of Kobo Daishi, a monk who studied Buddhism in China. The pieces of porcelain, displayed as if they had been washed up on the seashore, included the items made by the artist in the shape of everyday objects, and invited viewers to reflect on Japan's relationship with mainland Asia as well as the globalization of today. After the festival, the artwork was relocated to the Suzu Ware Museum in the Tako-jima district to be a permanent installation." From the Suzu 2017 Oku-Noto Triennale Catalogue
Across the way from the museum is the Suzu Ware Shop featuring quality pottery from local artists.
The Suzu Ware Shop features the work of a variety of living Suzu Ware pottery artists at reasonable prices. It is located directly across for the Suzu Ware Museum.
The Diatomite Museum in Suzu provides an overview of the role diatomite has played in the Noto area. Since the 16th century, diatomite from this area of the Noto Peninsula was used in pottery making to provide a high heat resistance. This is particularly useful for "shichirin."
The "shichirin" is a lightweight, compact, and easy-to-move cooking stove. Charcoal is chiefly used for the fuel. Shichirin are said to be made in roughly the same way today as in the Edo period. Old shichirin are mainly ceramic and many can be found in old houses. Most modern shichirin are made by heating diatomaceous earth, but the raw materials are not uniform. Some shichirin are made with a double inside and outside ceramic structure. The shape is mainly cylindrical, square, or rectangular, and the size also varies. Many varieties of shichirin are made for different uses.
Shichirin actually means "seven rin" (the rin was a small coin used in the Edo period). It is said that the shichirin was an affordable way to cook a meal because the amount of charcoal needed for each lighting only cost seven rin.
The Takakurahiko Shrine is the site of the annual Takojima Kiriko Festival, held on September 10 & 11. There are 16 kiriko, or floats, representing various districts in the area. Each is carried by a large number of "carriers". See more information about the festival at: https://www.hot-ishikawa.jp/kiriko/en/kiriko/takojima.php.
Note that a little closer to the sea is the Kotoshironushi Shrine.
2017 Oku-Noto Art #14. There are two parts to this installation; it is worth the short walk from one part to the other.
"A twisting tunnel structure changes its colors on the former railway track interrupted by a road. Visitors who walk into the tunnel find a telescope at its end. When they look through it, they see abrightly colored signboard in the distance that conveys the message ''Something Else is Possible'. The artist suggests to look ahead to the regeneration and future of the region beyond the terminal station of the Noto Railway Line. During the Triennale period, many visitors walked towards the signboard along the track leading up to the abandoned Tako-jima station, as if traveling from the past to the present, and to the future of the region."
From the Suzu 2017 Oku-Noto Triennale Catalogue
Hours :
Open 24/7.
Address :
Na-98 Takojima-machi, Suzu, Ishikawa 927-1204
0.6
km / 0.3
miles
-
(2
minutes)
7.
53 Bus Station of Suzu by Aleksander Konstankinov #3 - 珠洲海道五十三次｜ アレクサンドル・コンスタンチーノフ
2017 Oku-Noto Art #37c (3 of 4); Bus stop on west side of road. One of four bus stops (called "stations" by the artist) re-envisioned by Mr. Konstankinov for the Oku-Noto Art Festival 2017.
"The artist chose four bus stops across the region which seemed to have been forgotten as they dissolved into the surrounding scenery, and transformed them into artworks. The artist associated "Suzu" with pearls and came up with an idea to wrap the bus stops with structures, as pearls are embraced by their shells. Being a mathematician, the artist set a different theme responding to the location of each of the four bus tops based upon a common basic horizontal and vertical structure. The self-built aluminum structures resonated with the surrounding landscape making each of them a new and unique bus stop."
2017 Oku-Noto Art #37d (4 of 4); Bus stop on west side of road. One of four bus stops (called "stations" by the artist) re-envisioned by Mr. Konstankinov for the Oku-Noto Art Festival 2017.
"The artist chose four bus stops across the region which seemed to have been forgotten as they dissolved into the surrounding scenery, and transformed them into artworks. The artist associated "Suzu" with pearls and came up with an idea to wrap the bus stops with structures, as pearls are embraced by their shells. Being a mathematician, the artist set a different theme responding to the location of each of the four bus tops based upon a common basic horizontal and vertical structure. The self-built aluminum structures resonated with the surrounding landscape making each of them a new and unique bus stop."
2017 Oku-Noto Art #18; in the former Iiduka Preschool. Ms. Hibino has presented her work as a costume artist through advertising, theatre plays, dance performances, ballets, films and TVs.
"The installation titled "Between Gravity and Zero-Gravity' and a series of dance performances were inspired by the emotional experience the artist had when diving into the sea of Suzu. In the room with natural light, the costumes for the dance performances were displayed, floating calmly like sea creatures. Visitors could try on some of them and enjoyed the feeling of floating in the sea. At weekends, dancers performed expressively on the seabed-like stage and much attracted the audience."
From the Suzu 2017 Oku-Noto Triennale Catalogue
Hours :
Open during the festival, but requires prearranged admittance at other times.
Address :
Ha-57 Shōin-machi Iizuka, Suzu, Ishikawa 927-1202
4.2
km / 2.6
miles
-
(7
minutes)
10.
Around quiet currents by Kanazawa College of Art Project Team, SUZUPRO - 金沢美術工芸大学アートプロジェクトチーム[スズプロ]｜静かな海流をめぐって
2017 Oku-Noto Art #22, artwork(s) featuring historical and social background to the development of the Japan sea and Suzu-city in an abandoned house in the Iida area.
"A mixed team of professors, researchers and students created artworks through series of fieldwork and workshops at the old house built in the Meiji period (1868-1912) and its courtyard. They included 'Oku-Noto Mandela': a large scale mural featuring cultural exchanges between Suzu and the continent, animals and plants, as well as stories told by local people; 'The Tree in the House' combined colossal 'objects' left in the old house to create a great tree; 'Diving into the House' was a noren (shop curtain) made of indigo-dyed threads taken from fishing nests inviting viewers to go through into a deeper space; and 'Garden of Rice' showed a landscape of rice production. Taking into account the histories and lives that were left behind on the site, the team created a space where visitors could experience its multi-layered cultures."
From the Suzu 2017 Oku-Noto Triennale Catalogue
Hours :
Open during the festival, but requires prearranged admittance at other times.
Address :
13-87 Iida-machi, Suzu, Ishikawa 927-1214
0.4
km / 0.2
miles
-
(1
minutes)
11.
Wakuwaku Square Public Footbath - わくわく広場 足湯
Courtesy of Walter L. Keats
Courtesy of Walter L. Keats
Courtesy of Walter L. Keats
Min/Max Time :
10 / 30
Minutes
MapCode :
329 646 862*36
Description :
The Wakuwaku Square Public Footbath is located across from the Suzu City City Hall building. It provides local residents and visitors a chance for soothing relaxation in the center of town.
Hours :
Open daily 24/7
Address :
16-21-1 Iidamachi, Suzu, Ishikawa 927-1214
0.3
km / 0.2
miles
-
(2
minutes)
12.
Kasuga Shrine - 春日神社社務所
Courtesy of Google Maps
Courtesy of Tourism & Exchange Div., Suzu Government
Courtesy of Tourism & Exchange Div., Suzu Government
Courtesy of Walter L. Keats
Courtesy of Google Maps
Min/Max Time :
5 / 20
Minutes
MapCode :
329 676 139*14
Phone :
076-882-7130
Description :
The Kasuga Shrine is the site of Iida Toroyama Festival held each year on July 20 & 21. It lies at the base of the Kasuga mountain near city hall. The ancient shrine is home to the enshrined dieties Okuninushi and Yagami. During the Koji era of the Heian Period (1142-1144), the Wakayama Villa was established, at which a villa shrine to Tu Di Gong was built and called "Wakayama Shrine." In the first year of the Kōchō era (1261), the shinto priest Kuzuhara Morihide Ise moved the diety from the old shrine its current location at Kasuga.
The cedars planted more than 700 years ago grow in abundance on the temple grounds.
To the right of the stone steps on the temple grounds is an engraved stone table with the Manyoshu Poem written by Ōtomo no Sakanoue no Iratsume (大伴坂上郎女), a famous female Japanese poet (c.700-750) during a visit to Noto. She has 79 poems in the Manyoshu, the oldest extant collection of Japanese waka (poetry in Classical Japanese), compiled sometime after AD 759 during the Nara period.
Courtesy of the Tourism & Exchange Division, Suzu Government
Address :
16-1-1 Iida-machi, Suzu, Ishikawa 927-1214
0.2
km / 0.1
miles
-
(1
minutes)
13.
Small lost article museum by Tatsuo Kawaguchi - 河口龍夫｜小さい忘れもの美術館
2017 Oku-Noto Art #27. Mr. Kawaguchi is one of the most established contemporary artists in Japan. Kawaguchi’s artworks reveal the relations between something visible and invisible.
"A forgotten railway, station and platform. What does it mean to forget something, and what does it mean to be forgotten? Posing these questions, the artist filled the former Iida station with 'lost articles' which are inseparable from a station. The silhouettes drawn on the waiting room wall and the objects placed at the office are the negative and positive of the lost articles. Walking through forgotten umbrellas standing towards the end of the platform, visitors reached a freight train. They left words for the future on its inner blackboard walls. The forgotten station was revived as "Small Lost Articles Museum."
From the Suzu 2017 Oku-Noto Triennale Catalogue
Hours :
Open during the festival, but requires prearranged admittance at other times.
Address :
Uedo-machi Kitagata, Suzu, Ishikawa 927-1215
0.7
km / 0.5
miles
-
(4
minutes)
14.
Cabaret in preparation at world’s end by EAT&ART TARO - さいはてのキャバレー
2017 Oku-Noto Art #28; in Sayi's Cabaret. NOTE: There are cabaret-type programs programs performed here in the evenings. This is a great place to see and experience some local culture. Check with your hotel concierge for current programs/hours. Depending on where you are spending the night you may want to come to this site after dinner.
"The cabaret originated in Paris at the end of the 19th century and served a places for ''social gathering for adults', where artists gathered together to enjoy dance and comedy, broadcasting culture. With a hope to bring about such a place in Suzu, the artist transformed a former waiting space of regular liners into a nostalgic cabaret (designed by Ryuji Fujimura). During the daytime, it served as cafe; after dark, alcohol and meals could be enjoyed. The dressing room was set up with costumes and make-up for hostesses and dancers, and several shows were presented during the festival. The space has been used as a rental hall since the end of the festival."
From the Suzu 2017 Oku-Noto Triennale Catalogue
Hours :
Check with hotel concierge for current programs/hours.
2017 Oku-Noto Art #30. Located at old Uedo Station. RMC is based in New Delhi, India. RMC creates and curates contemporary art, and makes books, teaches, and creates situations. NOTE: Best viewed in the evening when it is lit up so you may want to visit after dark, depending on where you are spending the night.
"By tracing the outlines of the doors, walls and the roof of the former Uedo station building, the artists constructed a frame structure in the same form as the original building and placed it at an angle on top of the disused building. During the day the frame structure was integrated into the surrounding scenery among trees, fields and mountains, whereas at night it glowed blue-white, as if released from gravity. Could it be the ghost of the station building, a cast-off skin, or an image of the future? The artwork questioned the existence of memories and non-material things which belonged to a place or an object."
From the Suzu 2017 Oku-Noto Triennale Catalogue
Hours :
Open 24/7, but best seen in the evening when it is lit up.
Address :
Ho, Uedo-machi Jisha, Suzu, Ishikawa 927-1216
3.5
km / 2.2
miles
-
(7
minutes)
16.
Mitsukejima Island - Parking Lot - 見附島
Courtesy of Walter L. Keats
Courtesy of Walter L. Keats
Courtesy of Walter L. Keats
Courtesy of Walter L. Keats
Courtesy of Walter L. Keats
Min/Max Time :
5 / 15
Minutes
MapCode :
329 524 317*33
Description :
Mitsuke-jima (見附島) is a tiny, uninhabited island in Suzu, Ishikawa. Because of its shape, it is also known as Gunkan-jima (軍艦島), or "battleship Island" (which is also the common name given to Hashima Island in Nagasaki Prefecture).
According to folklore, the island was given the name "Mitsuke-jima" by the Buddhist monk, scholar, and artist, Kūkai, who was the first to discover the island while travelling from Sado Island.
Mitsuke-jima is approximately 150 m/492 ft long, 50 m/164 ft wide, and rises 30 m/98 ft above sea level. It is composed of Neogene period diatomaceous earth, the raw materials commonly used for shichirin, a portable clay cooking stove which is a specialty product of Suzu. The top of the island is covered with Japanese black pine and Japanese knotweed. Mitsuke-jima is known as a scenic spot of the Noto Hantō Quasi-National Park, and attracts many tourists. It also features a "love bell" on shore and is lighted at night.
Hours :
Open daily 24/7
Address :
Ukai Horyumachi, Suzu, Ishikawa 927-1222
3.4
km / 2.1
miles
-
(6
minutes)
17.
Notoro Trolley & Old Koiji Station - のトロ
Courtesy of 淺田星太郎 from TripAdvisor
Courtesy of Walter L. Keats
Courtesy of Walter L. Keats
Courtesy of Walter L. Keats
Min/Max Time :
10 / 60
Minutes
MapCode :
329 433 267*17
Phone :
808-698-2559
Description :
The Notoro Trolley is a cute trolley train which follows Koiji Beach in Noto Town. The trolley revives a 300 m/984 ft abandoned stretch of track once used by the Noto Railway, traveling from the remodeled Koiji Station to Sogen Tunnel. The pedal-powered trolley seats up to 8 people. The trolley also uses the aid of an electric motor, ensuring riders can proceed at a relaxing pace while enjoying the surrounding scenery. A sake storehouse has been built into the Sogen Tunnel, making use of the fixed temperature it maintains naturally year round.
A telephone reservation is normally needed. Trolleys depart from the old Koiji Station to the tunnel entrance and back, taking about 15 mins.
Courtesy of JapanTravel.Navitime.com
Hours :
Open daily 09:00 - 16:00 during tourist season.
Address :
Koiji, Noto, Hosu, Ishikawa 927-0601
0.2
km / 0.1
miles
-
(0
minutes)
18.
Koiji Kaigan Beach & Romantic Park - 恋路海岸
Courtesy of Walter L. Keats
Courtesy of Walter L. Keats
Courtesy of Walter L. Keats
Courtesy of Walter L. Keats
Courtesy of Walter L. Keats
Min/Max Time :
15 / 30
Minutes
MapCode :
329 434 125*55
Description :
The Koiji Kaigan Beach & Romantic Park is considered a romantic site due to the tragic love story of a young couple that took place here. The Koiji Romantic Park is a little north of the beach itself and has its own parking area (MapCode: 329 434 212*66), viewing area, and signage. The beach parking is a little south of the park (MapCode: 329 434 125*55). The bronze statue of the couple, located in the beach area, was made by the sculptor Sada Tando, a large collection of whose works are on display on the 4th floor of the nearby Uchiura City Hall (MapCode: 329 374 051*55). During the summer months there is a beach house open with refreshments, or one can walk across the street to one of the small local restaurants.
The beach is also the site of the Koiji Fireworks Festival held annually on the 3rd Sunday in July, the day before the Marine day holiday.
Hours :
Open daily 24/7
Address :
8 Koiji, Noto, Hosu District, Ishikawa 927-0601
2.6
km / 1.6
miles
-
(6
minutes)
19.
Saka Tando Sculpture Museum
Courtesy of Walter L. Keats
Courtesy of Walter L. Keats
Courtesy of Walter L. Keats
Courtesy of Walter L. Keats
Courtesy of Walter L. Keats
Courtesy of Walter L. Keats
Courtesy of Walter L. Keats
Min/Max Time :
10 / 30
Minutes
MapCode :
329 374 021*82
Description :
The Saka Tando Sculpture Museum is located on the 4th floor of the Uchiura Town Hall. Saka Tando (1920-1998) was a Japanese sculptor who lived and worked mostly in Sapporo. His most famous work was "Dr. Clark on the Hill". He also sculpted the "Koiji Monogatari" statue displayed on Koiji's beach.
