After checking out of the hotel, I didn't really want to leave Atami without visiting some of the famous spots so I dragged my boyfriend and we took a taxi to the Atami Ropeway.
We're going to Atami Castle (which will be the last part of this birthday blog series, sorry it took some time to finish them all 😁) and there are 2 ways to get there. One is to take the bus which goes around the different tourist spots in Atami and even passes by our hotel but we didn't take this one because we want to have a bit of freedom in our time. The alternative was to take the cable car and walk to the castle. Although I have a fear of heights, the cable car seems more fun so here we are, in the taxi.
Atami Ropeway is located just outside the big, famous, and expensive-looking hotel in Atami, the Atami Korakuen Hotel. It's around the fishing docks area so there were a lot of boats here. We decided to explore the area later after we return from the top.
After paying 700 yen (or 4.94 USD) for the round trip fare, my partner wanted to take his time so he went smoking nearby. This is my cue to tour a little bit of the premises and take pictures. 😄
Before going up to the 2nd floor where boarding the cable car is, we explored a rundown amusement center on the first floor. My partner was so amazed because the machines were so old yet they all still work. The amusement center isn't that big, just a normal room so they didn't have a lot of stuff that I often see in amusement centers in the city. But we were amazed at how old these things were. We even thought of playing a game.
It was past noontime when we went to the 2nd floor to board the cable car. There were 2 cars that would fit probably around 10 people. I heard the interval is around 10 minutes but I didn't really think that way because we didn't have to wait long. Probably because there was a queue, not that long of a queue though, which is kinda surprising because I thought they would have lots of customers during the weekend that the line would reach the streets.
Because we saw the old but working amusement center before riding this, we were not surprised that the gondola was a bit retro too.
During the entire ride, you will be able to see the beauty of Atami. This was what I liked about the ride. The only problem I had was I didn't have much space in the window area. And I've mentioned I have a fear of heights so I was holding my phone in one hand, the other was holding strongly onto the railings. 😅
It's a Sunday and I thought the port will be busy but maybe they're busy at other times.
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There was a little trivia playing on the speakers during the ride. Did you know that the Atami Ropeway is Japan's shortest ropeway? The ropeway is only 273 meters and the entire trip was only for 3 minutes! We reached 八幡山 (Mt. Hachiman) in a jiffy!
When we got off the cable car, we were welcomed by あいじょう岬展望台 (Aijo Cape Observatory). From its name, it's a lover's place indeed. There were a lot of couples when we arrived, having desserts in the cafe overlooking Atami.
There was a small shrine for lovers to pray. We didn't pray there though, it's in the way of the people lining up for the cable car back to the port.
Lots of charms were hung in the railings of the observatory. Looking at them, I remembered scenes from romantic dramas (jdrama and kdarama) having a similar setting.
I wanted to eat in the cafe but their menu seems limited. We got discount coupons for ice cream here but because I prefer eating a full lunch than desserts, we didn't use the coupon.
Instead, I just enjoyed the view from the observatory. Atami is very beautiful from below and now, up in the sky, it's more beautiful! I'm used to seas in my hometown so seeing the sea really made me so happy.
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According to my partner, the Hotel New Akao is a luxury hotel but right now, it's closed for renovation but will reopen soon. It's also a hotel from the old era.
It was a sunny day, and my birthday so I felt a bit emotional looking back on all the things that happened to me while I was in the observatory. I felt blessed but at the same time, I think there's something missing in my life. The noontime heat didn't bother me in my reflections. I had this little time for myself because my partner went off somewhere.
I had to cut off my reflection time because we still needed to go to the castle. We took the stairs at the back, went up and found ourselves in the entrance of an adult museum of the old era. We thought we were lost but it's actually the correct path.
The adult museum is a bit intriguing. I mean it's retro style and probably this museum is the closest thing to p*rn in their era. I wanted to go in but going up to the castle must be the first. I'll talk about the castle in another blog, which is the last of this series.
After our time in the Atami Castle, I tried convincing my partner to visit the adult museum, 熱海秘宝館 (Atami Hihoukan) but he wasn't up for it so okay, probably next time. So we just went back right away, aboard the cable car.
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It's already around 2 or 3 PM so we're hungry so when we were back at land, we tried to look for restaurants nearby. The port has a few restaurants, mostly run by locals. I wanted to of course try them but my partner was so picky so we agreed we would just be eating at a restaurant in Atami Shopping District.
We took the taxi going back to the hotel to get our things, then took the taxi again to the station. We didn't want to carry our luggage in that deathly stairs again. 😁 The fare was actually reasonable, especially since there were 2 of us so we can pay half each time. I tried opening my Uber app but found nothing in Atami.
It was fun riding and walking around the Atami Ropeway premises. I got to enjoy the view from above. And I had a little time to myself to reflect on my life. Birthdays are supposed to be fun, right? Well, I had fun riding the gondola and looking at Atami from above!
Anyways, make sure to take the Atami Ropeway when you come to Atami! You won't regret it!
Thanks for reading!
See you around! じゃあ、またね！
With love,
All photos are taken using my phone unless stated otherwise.