It's been a while since I came back to Enoshima, and it's because of a friend who is here in Japan disturbing our peace visiting us and touring the city. The plan for Sunday was to visit Kamakura, which I'll probably talk in another post, and Enoshima during sunset til night. If you haven't seen the sunset from the bridge in Enoshima, you should definitely try to visit it!
Anyways, we're here at Enoshima not because of the shrines, the exhibit nor the cave. Our main purpose here is to enjoy the illumination at Enoshima - particularly at Enoshima Sea Candle area. Dubbed as one of the biggest and impressive illumination events in Japan, the Shonan no Hoseki illumination (湘南の宝石) is scattered all over this small island of Kanagawa. The light up event started from November 23 last year and will end on February 28 of this year, just perfect for winter. This illumination seems to be done annually, but I just heard about it this winter. Where have I been all these years? 😅
The main spot of the illumination is of course the Enoshima Sea Candle. It's this building on top of the island that looks like a candle. The floor on top is an observatory deck, which have views of Mt. Fuji, Kanagawa and Tokyo area. You can even view the Atami and Izu from here.
It was night time when we arrived at the observatory deck, so it was hard to view the faraway places. It could become crowded too. We didn't even wait for the elevator going down because of the long queue so we took the spiral stairs going down. I was prepared in case I get dizzy but luckily I was in good spirits. My leggings underneath wasn't though, every step and it would also step down. 😅
Before the light up started, we were already there inside. This area is actually a paid area, but we got ourselves a set ticket which includes the Enoshima Escar, the access to the Sea Candle area and the observatory deck. Enoshima Escar is the escalator going up, divided into 3 escalators. We didn't wanna use the stairs because it would be such a struggle.
I remembered there was an area on the 2nd floor of the Sea Candle where you could sit down and enjoy the view and so I brought my companions there. I was surprised though that the outdoor sofa were not fully arranged, most of it were just kept on the sides. Even the cushions were in one place. We setup our place and I got myself a cold drink from the small open bar in that area and the waiting started.
It was nice to chill here, with my pineapple juice in one hand, and the sunset view of Mt. Fuji and the sea, except that it was too windy and too cold for a winter day. We weren't that prepared for this super chilly time. But still, we endured the cold til I heard a countdown.
And the Sea Candle was beautifully lit up!
Actually, everything in that area were lit up together with the Sea Candle. It's giving dreamy vibes!
The whole area was so pretty in different colored lights. It was such a magical night, and yeah, we noticed there were a lot of couples here enjoying the romantic ambiance. I really think illuminations are great as date spots. But there were also families enjoying the light up. I was with my friends and we're also enjoying ourselves.
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There's this kind of dome pathway that was so brightly lit in bluish violet-ish and in the middle of the walkway were 3 golden chandeliers. From the event website, it says this area spans 70 meters!
While we were looking for the exit, we were also getting lost in the small forest. This area is called the Hoseki Forest maybe because the lights here looked like jewels.
We even found a miniature of the Enoshima Sea Candle!
Near the entrance was a chandelier called Shonan Chandelier. It's like a great display of lights and crystals.
We really enjoyed this area at the top of Enoshima island. It was such a beauty! Glad I came with friends here but maybe next time, I should bring my partner so we won't be left behind by other couples? 😅
Going down from the top back to the main entrance of the island, we were also greeted by wonderful lights. This time, I was so focused on just going down so I didn't take a lot of photos anymore. 😂 And yes, going down there's no more Escar.
Would I recommend this to my friends? Of course! I hope you could come and enjoy this grand illumination in Enoshima. If you're early, maybe you could also visit the cave, which is also part of the illumination. We didn't had time to go though. The main spot of the illumination - the Sea Candle area, starts at around 5pm or 5:30pm. Next month would be the last month you'll enjoy the illumination so take your time to visit! i truly enjoyed it and I'm sure you too!
Thanks for reading!
See you around! じゃあ、またね！
With love,
All photos are taken using my phone unless stated otherwise.