Here is a link to a great travel article in the NY Times Sunday Travel Section about going to Shimoda, Izu. It makes me want to drop what I am doing right now and head for the ocean.

http://travel2.nytimes.com/2005/08/21/travel/21shimoda.html?n=Top%2FFeatures%2FTravel%2FDestinations%2FAsia%2FJapan

If you problem with the link, here is a summary of the author's recommendations:

GETTING AROUND

Most hotels run free shuttle buses from the station. Taxis can also be reserved for sightseeing; fixed fares are negotiable, but visitors can expect to pay at least $72 for an 80-minute tour.

WHERE TO STAY

Shimoda has hotels, resorts and inns to fit most budgets. The pricier ones are mostly on the bluffs above the town. Meals are typically included in the price.

The Shimoda View Hotel, 633 Kakizaki, Shimoda-shi, (81-558) 22-6600, viewhotel.co.jp, has 115 Western- and Japanese-style rooms in the main building, most with ocean views. Two outdoor hot springs overlook the beach, and a new spa has just opened. Meals served in the room are elaborate. Japanese rooms, double occupancy, start at $191 a person.

The Shimoda Tokyu Hotel, 5-12-1 Shimoda-shi, (81-558) 22-2411, tokyuhotels.co.jp/en is another large, full-service resort. It has 12 nonsmoking rooms, 16 rooms with high-speed Internet lines for $9.50 for a day's access, and a wireless hot spot in the lobby. Double rooms start at about $165 (single rooms at $147 and semidoubles at $168) a person off season, rising to about $250 between mid-July and mid-August.

Ernest House, 1893-1 Kisami, Shimoda-shi, (81-558) 22-5880, www.artfarm.co.jp, is a laid-back bed-and-breakfast on the bohemian side. With a nod to Hemingway, the lobby is really a living room turned into a lounge with books, guitars and sofas. Not far from Kisami Ohama, one of the best-known beaches in the area. Rooms start at about $75 in summer; children stay for half price. Breakfasts cost about $10.

WHERE TO EAT

Most restaurants serve locally caught fish.

Kiyu, 1-10-18, Shimoda-shi, (81-558) 22-8698, serves filling set lunches with ise ebi, or spiny lobster, from $53, and mackerel and shrimp starting at about $12.

Gorosaya, 1-5-25, Shimoda-shi, (81-558) 23-5638, serves more elaborate meals, including the Iso no Mai course that includes baked fish, shellfish and sashimi for $27.

Mimatsu, 2-12-8, Shimoda-shi, (81-558) 22-0495, is a top-notch sushi bar in the city center. A nigiri lunch costs $18, which may sound like a lot until you take your first bite of aji.

Isu Peninsula is one of my favourite places to visit in the summer. A few years ago, when my mother was visiting Japan, I was driven around to the sites by car, which enabled us to get to a lot of interesting place that were not serviced by trains or buses.

I wish I could remember the names of most of those places.

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Stephen Brown