In addition to high-techonology industries, Shizuoka is known for its woodcrafts and other traditional crafts using natural materials such as bamboo. There is a historical reason for the presence of so many traditional industries in Shizuoka. Many famous artisans-including carpenters, sculptors, craftsmen who made architectural fittings, and lacquerware makers-were brought here to help construct Sumpu Castle, which Tokugawa Ieyasu built 1as his place of retirement; the magnificent lacquered Kunozan Toshogu(the precursor of the Toshogu Shrine in Nikko); and the Sengen Shrine commissioned by the third shogun, Tokugawa Iemitsu, in 1634.
LOCATION AND ACCESS
Since Shizuoka is one of the major centers of travel and tourism, there are numerous railways and highways leading to it along the Pacific coastline and further down to the coastline of Izu Peninsula. This makes access to and the travel in Shizuoka very easy.
You can enjoy the rich nature of Shizuoka only one hour from major cities such as Tokyo and Nagoya.
ACCESS TO SHIZUOKA
Tokaido Shinkansen
Shinkansen runs through the heart of Shizuoka prefecture, stopping at Atami, Mishima, Shin-Fuji, Shizuoka, Kakegawa and Hamamatsu. That makes the access from Tokyo, Nagoya and Osaka very easy. There are two types of Shinkansen. "Hikari" trains only stop at some of stations mentioned above and "Kodama" trains stop at all six stations. It only takes 37 minutes from Tokyo to Atami by Hikari, and about 90 minutes from Tokyo to Shizuoka City by Kodama. Either from Tokyo metropolitan area or Osaka area, it will not take long to reach Shizuoka by either train.
Tomei Expressway
The Tomei Expressway, the main artery linking Japan's east and west, runs between Tokyo and Nagoya. Other expressways and major railways connect with Tomei so that the transportation network extends throughout Japan. There are 15 Tomei Expressway interchanges in Shizuoka. Getting to Shizuoka City from either Tokyo or Nagoya takes 2 hours via Tomei Expressway and 3 and a half-hours from Osaka.
