Best Surf Spots in Japan

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Best Surf Spots in Japan

Japan is an island country in East Asia with 6,852 islands. It is bordered by the Pacific Ocean to the east and the Sea of Japan to the west, with over 3,000 kilometers of coastline that stretches from the East China Sea to the Philippine Sea.

Surfing made its debut appearance in the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan. The International Surfing Association (ISA) decided that competition would take place in the ocean rather than an artificial wave pool. The competition is held at Shidashita Beach in the city of Chiba, just outside of Tokyo. Here are “10 Things You Should Know About Surfing in the Olympics” according to Surfline.

Japan has a long coastline with many surf spots and good surf conditions all year-round. Shikoku Island is considered the best surf region in Japan with great waves and a thriving surf community. Okinawa is a chain of islands in the south of Japan with beautiful beaches and the best weather in the country.

Chiba

Level: Intermediate – Advanced
Best Months: July – November

The best surf around Tokyo is in the Chiba prefecture, the surf mecca of Japan. The 2020 Summer Olympics surfing competitions was held at Shidashita Beach outside of Tokyo in Chiba. International World Surf League competitions have also been held here.

Ichinomiya is the best beach break in Chiba. This small seaside town is the host of the 2020 Summer Olympics surf competition. There are many surf shops in the area that offer surf lessons, rent surfboards, and sell surf gear.

The town of Onjuku south of Ichinomiya has a long sandy beach with waves perfect for longboards.

Katsuura is also called Malibu. Professional surf competitions have been held here and many professional surfers from Chiba surf this barreling reef break.

Kanagawa

Level: All Levels
Best Months: August – October

Shonan is the birthplace of surfing in Japan. American soldiers would surf here while off duty during the Vietnam War. They would share their surfboards with the locals and teach them how to surf standing up. Before this, they only surfed lying down on homemade wooden washing boards and bath tub covers. This friendship started the surf culture in Japan.

Kugenuma is the most popular surf spot in the Kanagawa and is perfect for beginners. It is also easy to get to from the Kugenuma-Kaigan railway station.

Hanamizugawa has beach breaks perfect beginners and a river mouth break with excellent waves for advanced surfers during rainy season.

Shonan has fun beach breaks perfect for beginners, but it can get crowded on the weekends and holidays.

Shikoku

Level: All Levels
Best Months: June – November

Shikoku island is considered the best surf region in Japan. The main surf area is in the Kochi district, with beach breaks, point breaks, and river mouth breaks for all levels of surfers.

Kaifu is one of the best waves in Japan and the best place to surf river mouth waves. When conditions are right, it has quality barrels at the river mouth and beach.

Ikumi is a popular surf spot with beach breaks perfect for beginners.

Shishikui is a fun beach break located in the Tokushima prefecture.

Ichiyumi Point is a left and right hand reef break and one of best surf spots to get barreled during typhoon season.

Niyodo is a quality left and right hand river mouth break on the west side of Cape Muroto.

Okinawa

Level: Intermediate – Advance
Best Months: June – September

Okinawa is a chain of islands in the south of Japan near Taiwan. It has tropical weather, like Bali, Indonesia. The main surf spots on Okinawa Island can get crowded, but most of the outer reef breaks and islands are still empty and unexplored.

Sunabe Seawall is a popular spot with many different left and right and reef breaks such as Bowls, Hotels, and Hawaiians.

Maeda is a secluded surf spot with left and right hand reef breaks. You have to walk down a set of cliffs to get to the surf.

Aha Point is a popular right hand beach break that is often crowded.

Suicide Cliffs is a consistent left and right hand reef break that gets crowded because it is close to the capital city of Naha.

Tengan is a right hand point break with the best waves during typhoon season.

Ikei has many left and right hand reef breaks that can be very good when the conditions are right.

Wakayama

Level: Intermediate – Advance
Best Months: June – September

Wakayama is a popular surf spot with surfers from Osaka. The waves are best in the summer during a decent swell. There are many uncrowded reef breaks in this area.

Isonoura is the closest surf spot to Osaka and the most popular wave in the area. It is a small but fun beach break that gets very crowded during summer.

Shingu is a river mouth break that gets a lot of swell. It can have excellent waves when the conditions are right.

Gobo is a reef and rock break with the excellent waves during typhoon season.

Miyazaki

Level: All Levels
Best Months: June – November

Miyazaki is located on Kyushu island in southern Japan. It is one of the top surf destinations in the country with long coastline that receives consistent swell from all directions.

The main surf spots in Miyazaki are in Nichinan in the south, Hyuga in the north, and Miyazaki City in the center. The best waves can be found in the region during typhoon season.

The International Surfing Association (ISA) held the 2019 World Surfing Games at Kisakihama Beach in Miyazaki.

The best surfers from around the world competed to qualify for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan.

Okuragahama is the most popular beach in Hyuga that has beach break with consistent waves. Many international surf competitions are held here, including the International Surfing Association (ISA) World Junior Surf Championships in 2017.

Hitotsuba in Miyazaki City has a lot of seawalls that create short barreling waves that are best for experienced surfers.

Kisakihama is a beach break and has consistent swell most of the year. It is the most popular beach in Miyazaki City and hosts many surf contests, including the International Surfing Association (ISA) World Surfing Games in 2019.

Aoshima is an exposed beach break with consistent surf. It’s another popular beach in Myazaki City because of the many surf schools, amenities, and shops in the area.

Aoshima is another popular beach in Myazaki City with a consistent beach break. There are many surf shops in the area that offer surf lessons, rent surfboards and sell surf gear.

Ibii in Nichinan a great spot for beginners with small waves that break consistently.

Uchiumi is a left hand reef break. There is also a right hand reef break on the other side of the channel, but it is best surfed during typhoon season.

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Best Surf Spots in Japan