Kashikojima Island

Kashikojima is the largest island in Ago Bay and the natural hub of the Shima peninsula, a small resort island connected to the mainland by bridge and reached directly by train as the very terminus of the Kintetsu Shima Line. For most travellers it is the gateway to the beauty of Ago Bay — the place where the pleasure boats depart, the bayside hotels cluster, and the maze of pearl rafts and green islands begins. In May 2016 the island briefly became one of the most watched places on earth when it hosted the G7 Ise-Shima Summit, its seclusion and scenery chosen to impress and to protect the visiting world leaders.

The island itself is compact and easily explored, its waterfront lined with hotels, ryokan, seafood restaurants and quays looking out over the bay. From the promenade you can watch fishing boats and pearl-farming craft come and go, and the calm water reflects the wooded islets and the ever-changing sky. Kashikojima's appeal is less about specific sights than about atmosphere: this is a place to slow down, to eat superbly, and to let the rhythm of the bay set the pace.

Seafood is a defining pleasure. The waters of Ago Bay yield spiny lobster (ise-ebi), oysters, abalone and fish of exceptional quality, much of it harvested by the region's traditional ama women divers, and the island's restaurants and inns serve it at its freshest. A meal of grilled lobster or oysters with a view over the bay is, for many, a highlight of the whole Ise-Shima journey.

From Kashikojima's quays depart the sightseeing cruises that are the best way to experience Ago Bay, including the distinctive Esperanza, a pleasure boat styled after a Spanish galleon, which threads among the islands and pearl rafts. A late-afternoon cruise timed for sunset is unforgettable, the water and sky glowing gold as the silhouettes of the islands slip past. Kayak tours and fishing trips also set out from the island for those wanting a more active way onto the water.

Because Kashikojima is the end of the line, it retains a peaceful, slightly remote feel, especially once the day-trippers have departed. Staying overnight at one of the bayside hotels transforms the experience: the bay at dawn, misted and mirror-still, and again at dusk, is at its most beautiful when few others are around to see it. The nearby Yokoyama Observatory, a short trip away on the mainland, offers the classic aerial panorama of the whole bay with Kashikojima at its centre.

Access could hardly be easier for such an out-of-the-way spot: Kintetsu limited express trains run directly to Kashikojima Station from Osaka, Kyoto, Nagoya and central Ise, delivering you within a three-minute walk of the waterfront. Whether as a base for exploring Ago Bay, a seafood destination, or simply a tranquil end-of-the-peninsula retreat, Kashikojima rewards those who make the journey to the tip of the Shima peninsula.