PORT OF FUJI
The Shimizu water bus coming into Hinode pier

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Getting around · from the gangway

Getting around Shimizu: what to know

Shuttle, water bus, taxis and trains from Hinode Pier — real times, real fares, and the one fact about your berth that reshapes the whole day.

Photo: Tnk3a / CC BY-SA 3.0
First, check your berth. Most ships use Hinode Pier (walk straight out). On two-ship days one vessel may dock at Okitsu Pier — a container terminal where walking out is not permitted. At Okitsu you need the shuttle, a taxi, or a tour. This one fact reshapes your whole day.

On foot (Hinode Pier)

  • Verkehr Museum — about 8 min
  • Dream Plaza / Sushi Yokocho — about 10 min
  • Kashi-no-Ichi Fish Market — 20–25 min along the waterfront (it is next to JR Shimizu Station)
  • JR Shimizu Station — 25–35 min (or the free shuttle / a taxi, ~5 min)

Water Bus — the local secret

A small ferry crosses the harbor to Miho no Matsubara in ~25 minutes outbound, ~15 back (¥1,000 per leg) — faster than any road route, with bay views included. It suspends in rough weather, so photograph the return timetable when you board and keep a road fallback in mind.

Free shuttle

(Looking for a hop-on hop-off bus in Shimizu? There isn't one — that page explains what replaces it.)

A free shuttle usually links the pier and JR Shimizu Station on call days. Caveat from experience: it has not always started before mid-morning — don't build an early tight plan on it.

Taxi

  • Nihondaira Yume Terrace: 20–25 min, ~¥3,500 per car.
  • The golden rule: taxis do not wait or cruise at viewpoints. Book a round trip or agree a pickup time before you get out. Show your all-aboard time in writing.
  • Ride-share (Japan-style, taxi-operated) has run in Shimizu on call days since 2025.

Train

From JR Shimizu Station the Tokaido line reaches Shizuoka City in ~11 minutes (Sunpu Castle, Toro ruins area) and Fujinomiya (via Fuji) in ~50 minutes for the Fujisan World Heritage Centre — a good clear-day play for long calls only.

To Mt. Fuji

On a normal call you view Fuji rather than travel to it: the water bus to Miho for the classic bay view, or a taxi up Nihondaira for the panorama. The foothills — Fujinomiya's shrine and Shiraito Falls — need a long call and a car or tour. Odds and viewpoints: how to see Mt. Fuji from Shimizu.

What it all costs

Water bus to Miho ¥1,000 a leg · taxi to Nihondaira ~¥3,500 per car · ropeway and shrine ~¥1,950 a head. Every fare and entry price is collected on one page: what a day at Shimizu costs.

Money & connectivity

Free Wi-Fi at Dream Plaza, 12 minutes' walk — the terminal publishes none (load maps and the Fuji live camera before leaving). Cards fine at malls and restaurants; carry some cash for market stalls. The Seven Bank ATM at Dream Plaza (2F, 10:00–24:00) accepts international cards.

Part of the complete Shimizu cruise port guide.