Tahara Castle Gate

Tahara (田原) is a city in Aichi, Chubu.

Understand

Aichi's southernmost town, Tahara has absorbed the towns of Akabane and Atsumi to become a single city of about 66,000. The city now claims all of the Atsumi Peninsula, separating Mikawa Bay from the Pacific Ocean. It is also home to a Toyota factory reputed to be among the most sophisticated plants in the world. There is a Lexus plant here.

Tourist information site

The local tourist association has a multilingual guide site.

Get in

By ferry

Irago Crystal Port (伊良湖クリスタルポルト) is on Cape Irago at the tip of the peninsula.

• The Ise Bay Ferry runs from Toba, Mie. The ride takes 55 minutes and costs ¥1500 per person. Vehicles can also be transported for ¥4500 and up, depending on the length of your vehicle.
• The Meitetsu Ferry provides a connection from Koba Port, near Nagoya's Centrair Airport for ¥2240.

By train

Tahara can be reached from Toyohashi via the Atsumi line of the Toyohashi Railway (豊橋鉄道渥美線, Toyohashi Tetsudou Atsumi-sen) . It costs ¥510.

• 1 Mikawa Tahara Station (三河田原駅, Mikawa-Tahara-eki). (updated Aug 2019)

See

Irago Misaki Lighthouse

• 1 Hii Stone Gates (日出の石門, Hiinosekimon). Beautiful stone arches carved by the sea. 
• 2 Irago Misaki Lighthouse (伊良湖岬灯台, Irago-Misaki Toudai).  
• 3 Mount Zao Observatory (蔵王山展望台, Zaou-san Tenboudai) (take a bus for ¥100 from Mikatawahara station), ☏ +81 53-122-0426. 09:00-22:00. With an elevation of 250 m, this observatory offers a nice 360-degree panorama of the city and Mikawa Bay. Especially nice at night. 
• 4 Tahara Castle Ruins (田原城跡), Tahara-cho Hakou 11-1, ☏ +81 53-122-1720. 09:00-17:00. The castle was built around 1480; the grounds now house a small municipal museum.  

Do

• 1 Koijigahama Beach (恋路ヶ浜, Koijigahama). This sandy, arc-shaped beach near the lighthouse at the end of the peninsula is about 1 km long. Its name dubs it the "beach of romance". 
• Pacific Long Beach (表浜, Omotehama). Popular beach for fishing and surfing. 
• 2 Irago Nanohana Garden (伊良湖菜の花ガーデン). A garden of yellow rape blossom flowers. The garden is only open during the blooming season, which typically runs from January to March. (updated Apr 2024)

Eat

• Curry Ganesha (ガネーシャ). An Indian curry restaurant in the Akaishi K Mall. (updated Apr 2024)
• Lapin (ラ・パン). A restaurant with its own original hamburg steaks with different sauces to choose from to top them off. They also have daily pasta sets. (updated Apr 2024)

Sleep

View of Cape Irago from Irako View Hotel

• 1 Tamagawa (玉川). A hotel with onsen baths and both Japanese and Western-style rooms. It was rennovated in 2024 to incorporate more elements from Tahara and other parts of Aichi Prefecture into the architecture and design of the rooms. (updated Apr 2024)
• 2 Tsukino Nagisa Ryokan (伊良湖岬の旅館 月の渚). An oceanside ryokan with an open-air onsen. (updated Apr 2024)

Go next

• Toyohashi
• Toyokawa
• Toba - by boat
• Gamagori
• Okazaki
• Shinshiro
• Kosai
• Arai
• Hamamatsu