Tokyo’s Secret Okinawa? Discovering Niijima Island (Japan Ep. 6)

Tokyo’s Secret Okinawa? Discovering Niijima Island (Japan Ep. 6)

Have you ever heard of the beautiful 
Niijima Island? It’s a hidden paradise that even many Japanese have never heard of. Though it’s technically part of Tokyo. The small island offers unique activities like 
the volcanic sand spa, night onsen by the sea, special food scene, or the secluded surf beaches 
without anyone else around. If you are searching for a true island adventure in Japan,
you might not need to go as far as Okinawa. First, where is Niijima? It’s part of the Izu Islands, floating only 160 kilometer away from Tokyo. Getting here is part of the adventure. Either you can take an overnight ferry, or take a short flight from the tiniest airport ever from the biggest city in the world. Ready for a tiny plane? The airport felt like a bus station and
the plane was not bigger than a bus. This aisle or window seat? Both! We flew above a few other islands, but Niijima’s 
beauty stood out already from the plane. From the airport, a free shuttle bus took us to a 
tiny little street where in a tiny little house, we had a tiny Airbnb room. On Niijima 
forget about taxis or Uber. The best way to get around the island is by renting a 
rusty old bicycle. It works perfect. [Music] We immediately cycled to the best beach for sunset 
right next to the open air onsen. [Music] The Yunohama Onsen is very special. First, it looks like a Greek archeological site. It’s open for 24 hours a day. It offers fantastic scenery and very uniquely in Japan, it is mixed gender. So we could enjoy it together with Kika under the night stars 
and with the sound of the crashing waves. It’s dinner time and the last open 
restaurant had a very interesting menu. So some horse meat sashimi. Not what we expected in Niijima. It smells really bad that fish, but it doesn’t 
taste very good at all as well. [Music] Very good. It’s amazing. I love it. Early morning we headed to the Habushiura 
beach which is famous for two things. It’s 7 kilometer long sand beach and 
for competition surfing. We were not lucky with the second as there were  no waves. No surfing today though. But the beach was empty and absolutely beautiful to hang out. [Music] As it’s a long beach without surveillance, you need to watch out for the 
currents. They are quite powerful. [Music] When we were leaving the beach, we learned an 
unfortunate news and we faced the dilemma. We had a return flight for the following day, but a 
typhoon was approaching the island overnight. It felt risky to take our tiny plane with typhoon 
conditions, jeopardizing our next and last stop on our trip. We made a tough decision to 
change our flight to the last one today, allowing us time to still visit the coolest sites. We’re coming with the bicycle to the airport. Never done that before. We only had to agree at the airport verbally to change our flight.
No paperwork. Done deal. [Music] Next, we headed to the more protected beaches on the west for an 
easy swim in the crystal clear waters. It’s said on a clear day, you can even 
see Mount Fuji from here. [Music] Before leaving, we tried one last 
experience that Niijima is known for, the sand spa or sunabaru. As a kid, could you imagine any better job? 
Playing in the sand and burying people? someone who is doing it professionally. The heat builds up slowly, but it’s intense. You like it? Yes. A butterfly. The short trip to NiIjima felt 
like a holiday in our holiday. If you’re looking for a real beach 
experience and you are short on time, I don’t think there is anything 
better you can find close to Tokyo. Now we are shifting gears and flying to Tokyo. For the next days, we will discover this mega city, participating in a sumo fight, go to the biggest tuna auction in the world, eat cheap or expensive, and enjoy the night life. [Music] Subscribe for our next episode or other traveler stories. Your support means a lot for us. Thank you for watching and see you soon. [Music]

🌊 Is Niijima the *real* hidden paradise near Tokyo? We left mainland Japan behind to explore one of the Izu Islands—and what we found blew us away.

From stunning turquoise beaches to volcanic cliffs, epic surf, and a wild island vibe, Niijima feels like Japan’s answer to Okinawa… but with zero crowds.

In this episode, we take a short flight from Tokyo, discover remote beaches, bike through quiet villages, try local island food, get buried in volcanic sand, and soak in an oceanside onsen under the stars.

👇 WATCH NEXT:
🇯🇵 Our full Japan travel series here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL1Zx7d0wugHKTsr2BQrl9evhnUmZoLSkQ

💬 COMMENT BELOW:
Have you ever heard of Niijima? Would you go instead of Okinawa?

📍LOCATION: Niijima Island, Tokyo Prefecture, Japan
🚢 ACCESS: Overnight ferry or flight from Tokyo

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