This is the first post on the blog for my new Youtube series "Best Surf Spots In Japan" episode 1: Shidashita Beach. In this post I will go into all the details about Shidashita surf spot such as the location, how to get there from Tokyo, trip duration, surf rental, the waves conditions, and the surfing experience. So without further ado, let's get into it!
How to get to Shidashita Beach?
So let's say you are in Tokyo, you checked the forecast and that's it, you found the perfect day to go to Shidashita Beach and surf the waves of Japan. You have 2 options:
Rent a car or take the train. For this time, I will tell you more about the car option as this is always the way I use to go there, but if you do not have a license to drive in Japan, taking the train is also possible. It should be about 2h30 from Tokyo station.
I personally love to drive in Japan. I was actually freaked out the first time I drove in Tokyo, but after getting used to it, it feels amazing. The express ways of Tokyo make you feel like you are casting for the new Fast and Furious movie, and as soon as you get into the country side, you are plunged into a chill, slow paced ride enjoying the scenery like in the Japanese animes.
Anyway, it is very easy to book a car in Japan. You cannot go wrong with companies like Nippon Rent A Car as they have a lot of different location in Tokyo. They have a website and an app where you can book different type of cars from standard size to 6-8 seaters. Usually it will range from about 6,000 JPY up to 20,000 JPY (40 to 130 USD) depending on the car size for one day rental. On top of this, you need to add the toll price to get to Chiba, which is about 4,000 to 5,000 JPY (25-35 USD) for one way. Lastly, you always need to give the car back with a full tank of gas, which usually amounts to about 4,000 JPY for the whole trip.
During my last trip to Shidashita, I rented a 6 seaters which gave us the space to put 2 surfboards in it.
Don't get me wrong, renting a car can quickly add up in terms of costs and it is definitely not the recommended way to go there if you are looking to save some money. Taking the train will only cost you around 3,000 JPY (20 USD) back and forth.
Alright, you made it to Shidashita, what's next?
Where to rent a surf board and a wetsuit?
If you do not have you own surfboard and wetsuit, you will be highly reliying on whether the surf spot has a surf rental shop nearby. Actually, a lot of surf spots in Japan do not have a surf rental nearby, so you will not have access to all the spots you may want to go, but don't worry about it, there are still many amazing spots with a rental shop in the area, and this is the case for Shidashita. You should definitely go to "Tany Surf".
This great surf shop is owned by a Japanese "Oji-Chan" (translate grandpa), who actually lived in the US in the past, so you can easily communicate with him in English. His shop is located right in front of Taito Beach, and you can take an easy 5 mn walk along the beach to find yourself on Shidashita. You will be able to rent a surfboard and a wetsuit for only 5,500 JPY (35 USD) for the whole day, which is quite a good deal. If you have less time than that, he can also rent you on a hourly basis, and as you can see on the picture above, if you have a car, you can park in front of his shop for 1,100 JPY (7 USD) the day.
This is it, you are ready to go surfing!
What is it like to surf in Shidashita?
Shidashita is a very popular spot for surfing in Chiba. It actually hosted the 2021 Tokyo Olympic Games so you can be sure that you will most likely have a great session there. The spot is a combination of favorable conditions including an offshore wind, a good swell period and swell direction, which usually make it a surfable spot all year round. Although please make sure to check the forecast before you go because waves can reach up to 6-7 meters on some days, and only professional or very advanced surfers will be able to handle this kind of conditions. But a lot of the times the spot can offer you waves as little as 0.6-0.9m, 0.9-1.4m and above, which makes it also perfect for beginners to intermediate surfers. Another feature that I truly love when surfing is that this spot is a beach break, so you do not have to worry about getting sliced up by sharp reefs underwater.
Lastly, let me talk about the localism, as this is always a sensitive topic in the surfing community, or should I say, an important factor to know because it can either ruin your surfing experience, or make it a great one! As for Shidashita, I have to say that my experience so far has been pretty good. Most of the locals have been quite friendly and smiling in the water. Only one time I got the deadly stare from a local after accidentally cutting the priority on a wave. Altough I waved at him to say sorry, it did not change anything and he still looked at me as if he wanted to kill me. But anyway, it only happened once and it was an accident. If you know basic surfing etiquettes in general, you won't feel any bad vibe from the locals. Also as a beginner I would recommend you to get away from the crowd so you will reduce the chances to get into the nerves of some grouchy locals. But overall not much localism in this spot so that is a very good one to plan on your next surf trip to Japan.
Thank you for reading this and I hope you enjoyed this post about Shidashita Beach, stay tuned for more to come soon. In the meantime, feel free to check out my youtube video on this spot if you want to see more about Shidashita:
Comments