Atami Sun Beach

Atami Sun Beach is in the city of Atami (熱海市) in the eastern end of Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan on the northern end of Izu Peninsula. The beach sits below steep slopes of a partially submerged volcanic caldera on the edge of Sagami Bay. Its name literally means "hot ocean", a reference to the town's famous onsen hot springs.

Atami Sun Beach is located within the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park and is warmed by the Kuroshio Current offshore. It is known for its moderate martime climate with hot, humid summers, and short winters.

Atami has been a resort town centered on its hot springs since the 8th century. It is also site of an open water swim organized by the Japan International Open Water Swimming Association.

History

In the Kamakura period, Minamoto Yoritomo and Hojo Masako were noted visitors. During the Edo period, all of Izu Province was tenryō territory under direct control of the Tokugawa shogunate.

The epicenter of the Great Kantō earthquake in 1923 was deep beneath Izu Ōshima Island in Sagami Bay, close to Atami, which suffered from considerable damage, as did other municipalities throughout the surrounding Kantō region. The tsunami wave height reached 35 feet at Atami, swamping the town and drowning three hundred people.