The Great Buddha of Kamakura

 I recently went to see the Great Buddha of Kamakura located at Kamakura City, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. Actually, I had another reason for going to Kamakura, but I visited the Great Buddha while I was there.

Unfortunately, it was raining, but there were so many tourists, especially foreign tourists, that the sidewalk leading to the destination was packed with people. This might be a popular spot for foreign tourists.

I came here on a school trip in junior high school many decades ago, but this is my first time back since then.

There are several routes to the Great Buddha, but if you go by train, transfer to the Enoshima Electric Railway at JR Kamakura Station and get off at Hase Station. The journey takes about 5 minutes. From the station to the Great Buddha is about a 7-to-8-minute walk.

The inside of the Great Buddha is hollow, and you can go inside. You have to go down first before you can enter.　The small protrusions on the head of the Kamakura Great Buddha symbolically represent the Buddha's hair.

This is the inside of the Great Buddha. It was raining today, which was fortunate, but on sunny days the inside gets so hot that you can only stay inside for about a minute, not an exaggeration.

This is a view looking up at the head of the Great Buddha.

The black circular pattern on the inside corresponds to the protrusions on the head of the Great Buddha.

Besides the Great Buddha of Kamakura, there is another giant Buddha statue. This one is called the Ofuna Kannon, and it is located very close to JR Ofuna Station. You can see it from the station. 　It takes about 6 minutes to get from Kamakura Station to Ofuna Station on the JR Yokosuka Line.

Photos were taken on June 19th and 20th, 2026.