Audio walking guides in Kamakura
Photo: Dirk Beyer · CC BY-SA 3.0
These are self-guided audio walks around Kamakura. You pick a route, put one earbud in, and the guide talks you through it stop by stop — what you are looking at, and why it is there. There is no group to keep up with and no meeting time. 10 walks covering The Great Buddha of Kamakura, Hase-dera, Old Kamakura, Kita-Kamakura, The Eastern Valleys, Enoshima, The First Shogun's Capital, The Western Hills and more, 304 minutes of narration in total.
Start your free guideA free account is needed before a guide plays. Hear a minute first if you would rather try it than sign up for it.
Every walk in Kamakura
The Great Buddha of Kamakura
Welcome to Kōtoku-in, home of the Great Buddha of Kamakura — one of the most famous silhouettes in Japan, and one of the most quietly moving places in…
Hase-dera: Temple of the Great Kannon
A quick orientation before you start, because this temple is arranged vertically and it is easy to miss half of it. There are essentially three levels: a pond…
Old Kamakura: Station to Shrine
Welcome to Kamakura — a small seaside town that was once, improbably, the capital of Japan. For about a century and a half from 1185, the real ruler…
Kita-Kamakura: The Zen Valley
Kita-Kamakura may be the loveliest railway stop in Japan: a low wooden station in a green valley, hydrangeas against the fence, temple roofs visible through the trees before…
The Eastern Valleys: Bamboo & the Oldest Temple
The Kamakura most visitors see — the Great Buddha, the beach, the great shrine — is the western and central town. This walk takes the eastern valleys instead,…
Enoshima: The Dragon and the Goddess
Enoshima is a small sacred island just off the coast southwest of Kamakura — a green hump of hill rising from the sea, joined to the mainland by…
The First Shogun's Capital
This walk is the political one, and it is worth saying so at the start. The other Kamakura guides in this app take you to bamboo groves, hydrangeas,…
The Western Hills: Money & Foxes
You have climbed a bit to get here, and that is the whole idea of this walk: to get up off the crowded flat streets and into the…
The Kamakura Shore
A word on the seasons here, because this beach has two completely different personalities. Through July and August it is a full Japanese summer beach, with temporary huts…
Nichiren's Kamakura
A note on where this walk actually goes, because it is spread out. The stops here are scattered across Kamakura and one of them is out along the…
Questions about walking Kamakura
What is the best self-guided walking tour in Kamakura?
It depends how long you have. The Great Buddha of Kamakura (34 minutes, 6 stops) starts at The Niōmon gate and is the one most people begin with. Hase-dera: Temple of the Great Kannon covers a different part of the city in about 34 minutes. All 10 walks in Kamakura are listed on this page with their length and starting point.
Do I need to book a walking tour in Kamakura?
No. Every wanderaudio walk is self-guided, so there is nothing to book and no departure time. You start whenever you arrive, and you can stop halfway and pick it up the next day.
How much do the Kamakura audio guides cost?
Your first guide is free. You make a free account before it plays, with an email address or a Google login, and no card. After that a single guide is $4.99, a 30-guide pass, spendable on any guides in any cities, is $29.99, and every guide in Japan is $59.99. It is a one-off payment, not a subscription.
Are these tours in English?
Yes, all 10 Kamakura walks are narrated in English. Other languages are not available yet.
Can I do these walks alone?
Yes — that is what they are built for. There is no group and no guide waiting for you, so walking alone works exactly the same as walking with someone. You choose the pace and the order.
What can I do in Kamakura if it rains?
2 of the Kamakura walks are indoor walkthroughs rather than street walks, so they work in rain and in the August heat. They are marked "indoors" in the list on this page. Check opening hours and admission separately — wanderaudio does not sell tickets.