Himeshima

Little knownBarely documented in English. This is the kind of place the site exists for.

Researched and written by Hinato

Himeshimafox dancebon odoriislandkuruma prawn

Oita · Himeshima

33.7245°N, 131.6452°E

Oita has events year-round, but Himeshima is the one locals build a calendar around.

Himeshima is a small volcanic island off the tip of the Kunisaki peninsula, reached by a twenty-minute ferry, with a population in the low two thousands and a set of seven local wonders that the island takes seriously enough to signpost. Obsidian was quarried here in the Jomon period and traded across western Japan, and the island's cliffs and the shore at Kannondzaki are the reason it forms part of a geopark.

Its best known event is the bon dance held on 14 and 15 August, a nationally selected Intangible Folk Cultural Property descended from Kamakura-period nembutsu dancing. The dance everyone comes for is the kitsune odori, performed by village children in white fox make-up, and the ferry runs extra late sailings on those two nights. The island's other export is farmed kuruma prawn, celebrated at a festival on the ferry plaza in late October.

Event essentials

Time to allow

Half a day; full day including the bon dance in the evening

Timing

August 14–15 for the bon dance and fox dance | Late October for the kuruma prawn festival | May and October for migrating chestnut tiger butterflies

Hours

Ferries from Imi Port roughly 12 return sailings a day, 11 from December to March | Last sailing from Imi 7:45 PM, from Himeshima 7:15 PM

Closed: Open year-round; sailings suspended in severe weather

Cost to attend

Ferry ¥580 adults, ¥290 children each way | Free to walk the island

Getting there

Directions

Himeshima Village, Higashikunisaki District, reached by ferry from Imi Port on the Kunisaki peninsula. Crossing takes about 20 minutes; fares are ¥580 adults and ¥290 children each way, with 12 return sailings a day and 11 from December to March. Last sailing from Imi is 7:45 PM and from Himeshima 7:15 PM. The bon dance is held on 14 and 15 August with extra late ferries on those nights. The island is small enough to cover by rental bicycle.

Crowds & timing

**Check the last ferry before doing anything.** Under twelve sailings a day and an early finish. Missing the last boat means staying, and accommodation is limited to a handful of small inns. **The fox dance is the reason to come in August.** Children in white fox make-up, and it is genuinely a village dance rather than a performance staged for visitors. Extra late sailings run on 14 and 15 August specifically for it. **Rent a bicycle at the port.** The island is about 7 km end to end and flat enough along the coast road that a bike covers everything in a few hours. **The seven wonders are signposted and mostly odd.** A spring that never dries, a rock said to be the print of a deity, a beach that makes a sound. They are the island's own folklore rather than a tourist construction. **Kuruma prawn in late October.** The island's farmed prawn is the local industry and the festival on the ferry plaza is when it is cheapest and freshest. **Butterflies in May and October.** Himeshima is a documented stopover on the migration of the chestnut tiger butterfly, and hundreds gather on the flowering slopes at Mitakeyama.

View on Google Maps