Last Updated: Apr 29, 2024

THE Kamakura Area Guide

All You Could Ever Want to Know

Donny Kimball
15 min readJan 24, 2020

--

The extremely important Tsurugaoka Hachimangu in Kamakura
This story was originally published on donnykimball.com and has been syndicated here on Medium.

Oh boy… I can already tell that this is going to be a long one, even by my standards. You see, I have been trying for some time now to finally finish this lengthy exposition on why Kamakura needs to be included on your travel itineraries. While collecting reams of research over the years, I continually stumble upon more and more compelling evidence in favor of this former Japanese capital. Contrary to what many may think, Kamakura beckons with myriad adventures and unique experiences. While the seaside town may erroneously hold the reputation for sporting only enough content for a mere day trip, nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, no other location in Japan besides Kamakura has called me back time and time again.

Rather than beat around the bush, allow me to begin this article with a rather bold statement on why you absolutely must visit Kamakura. While not everyone agrees, I’m personally of the mind that Kamakura can tick all the same boxes that Kyoto does (albeit to varying degrees). Looking to be awestruck by the wonder of an endless array of vermilion torii gates? Kamakura can offer that. Want to experience the serene grounds of an ancient Buddhist temple? Kamakura has you covered there as well. Hell, there’s even a great bamboo grove…

--

--

Donny Kimball

I'm a travel writer and freelance digital marketer who blogs about the sides of Japan that you can't find in the mainstream media. https://donnykimball.com/