On a beautiful weekend, in my head planned to go to the daffodil park Nada Kuroiwa in Awaji Island, Hyogo with a very beautiful strait, but then, in the process of changing to another bus route at Sumoto port, I was stuck here, because the bus driver to Nada Kuroiwa said that it was under construction and couldn't get here. So 2 hours by train and bus, more than 3000yen in transportation fees, and a beautiful Sunday morning became meaningless. 
But then in frustration, I started opening Google Map and searching around to see if there were any tourist attractions around here. And luckily, the place where I got stuck was Omaha Beach beautiful. The journey to explore this area started here, completely by chance and without any prior planning, something I have never done before every trip away.
This beach is one of the few bathable beaches near Osaka. And especially, very few people know about it, so there are not too many people here. You can swim, picnic, camp or walk along the beach very comfortably.
In addition to the Ohama coast, there is also an extremely beautiful castle ruin, located on a mountain right next to the coast - Sumoto Castle (洲本城跡). Come climb the mountain with me!
Torii gates can be seen anywhere in Japan. Everything is very ancient here.
After going to the beach, I still have to climb the mountain, tired of losing my breath...
... but believe me, the scenery here is well worth the effort you put in, and this is the result after completing the towering mountain.
Some information I found on the Sumoto city homepage about this castle:
Sumoto Castle is said to have been built in 1526 by Atagi, the leader of the Awaji Navy. Later, Yasuharu Wakisaka, who entered the castle in 1585, renovated it into a castle whose overall stone wall still stands today. In 1609, when Mr. Wakisaka moved to Iyo-Ozu, the castle was almost abandoned but still retained its original majesty.
The upper castle was designated a national historic site in 1999, and the lower castle was also designated a historical site by Sumoto City. And on April 6, 2017, was selected as one of the 100 most famous castles in Japan.
And the most special thing of today, the stairway to heaven 🙂
The result of more than 30 minutes of climbing is this:
An extremely beautiful scene, where one can see the entire city of Sumoto from here, starting from Ohama beach…
…arrived at Sumoto Port with the cruise ship…
…to see the entire city of Sumoto…
…to Osaka Bay in the distance can also be seen from here.
Really lucky to discover this place.
Take advantage of virtual check-in before returning to Osaka…
…end a memorable journey in Sumoto City.
I returned about 3-4 hours, in time to reach another extremely famous place on the way back to Osaka, which is the suspension bridge recorded in the Guinness Book of Records as the longest suspension bridge in the world - Akashi Bridge. Kaikyo.
This bridge connects the city of Kobe in Hyogo Prefecture and Iwaji Island with a length of about 4 km.
I was planning to catch the sunset at sea but today's sun is not very beautiful 🙁
There's no best photo today, because every photo is perfect 😀
Ending a Sunday with a full range of emotions, starting from boredom and disappointment at not being able to reach the pre-scheduled destination, then excitement at finding a new beach, a place that has never been visited before. appeared in any travel magazine before, and ended up being overwhelmed by the majestic scenery of Sumoto city, Ohama beach, and Osaka bay viewed from the ruins of Sumoto castle on high. And this is today's author, thanks for reading to the end of the article.
Address and how to go to places today:
- Omaha Beach: https://goo.gl/maps/edVE8zTZC24XXRwk7
From Osaka station, take Tokaido-Sanyo Line platform 5 to arrive Maiko Station. Then walk out of the station, turn left and take the escalator to the 5th floor to Kosoku Maiko bus station On the Akashi Kaikyo bridge, take the bus to arrive Sumoto Kosoku bus station.
- Sumoto Castle Ruins: https://goo.gl/maps/g4BeYFEsZLkHjf946
From the beach, follow the signs to climb the mountain to Sumoto Castle posted along the road, or follow the Google Map directions.
- Akashi Kaikyo Bridge: https://goo.gl/maps/a8Fpdyy5Cfu9SUEL9
From Osaka Station, take Tokaido-Sanyo Line platform 5 to Maiko Station. Then walk out of the station and turn right to the beach.
***************************************************************************************************************
Explore our useful services in Japan:
- Taking photos of individuals, couples, and families in Osaka, Kyoto, Nara: See more HERE
- Plan and schedule your trip to Japan: See more HERE
- eSim data, pocket wifi travel in Japan: See more HERE
***************************************************************************************************************
*** Please read the requirements carefully Copyright & Collaboration before copying or quoting blog content and images. Thank you.