Shizuoka Night View

Shizuoka City is home to six of the fifty-three stations of the Tōkaidō road, the most of any city, town, or village in Japan, boasting the largest number of night views reminiscent of the Edo period from these post stations. The contrast of light and dark evokes the imagination and conveys the sentiment of a distant era, not to mention the abyssal depth of darkness that can be seen from places such as Satta Pass, which looks out over Kambara-juku and Yui-juku, and Kajiwarayama Park, which looks out over Okitsu-juku, Fuchu-juku, and Ejiri-juku.

The charms of the night straddle the east and west, expanding its presence in a variety of places. For example, in Shimizu Ward, night views overlook the harbor and the sea, including the Miho Masaki Beach and Nihondaira. In Aoi Ward, there are night views of Sunpu Castle Park and Aoba Symbol Road which are full of lights. In Suruga Ward, there are many night events created by the citizens such as Tenka Taihei no Takeakari and Nihondaira Zoo – Night Zoo. If you connect these major night scenic spots on a map, a “miraculous shape” like the Big Dipper will appear (a great discovery by this website’s editor-in-chief!).

You can enjoy an astonishing panorama from over 300 meters above sea level, including Nihondaira and Kajiwarayama Park. The night view from Satta Pass, Shimizu Funakoshi Tsutsumi Park, and other parks or hills with elevations below 100m will give you that visceral experience. Near the Sunpu Castle Park lights, you can feel the up-close impact… On top of being blessed with mountains, rivers, and the ocean, the variation of night views in Shizuoka created by the difference in elevation is a result of the unique topographical features of the city.

There is the night view of Suruga Bay from Nihondaira at dusk, with its lush greenery, and that the Satta Pass, where the road lighting creates a strong contrast of colors. In addition, the Aoba Oden Street and Aoba Yokocho are lit with red lanterns that invoke the appetite of people, and the S-Pulse Dream Plaza has its super-colored Ferris wheel and glossy LED lights on the water. The city’s nights are also filled with a variety of colors, such as cherry blossoms at night and autumn leaves in the spring, summer, and fall.