Japan
Hachijojima
Subtropical volcanoes and black sand surf three hundred kilometres south of Tokyo by air.
Three hundred kilometres south of Tokyo, the Pacific turns subtropical and two volcanoes rise from it wearing jungle. Hachijōjima is technically Tokyo — the same prefecture, a different planet. Black-sand beaches break Pacific swell, tree ferns line the volcanic trails, and the night sky is dark enough to see the Milky Way from a city that shares its postal code with Shinjuku.
Hachijōjima is a volcanic island in the Izu chain, accessible by a fifty-five-minute flight from Haneda or an overnight ferry from Tokyo's Takeshiba Pier. The island is formed by two volcanoes: Hachijō-Fuji in the northwest and the older, more eroded Mitsune-yama in the southeast. Sokodo Beach, with its dramatic black volcanic sand and strong Pacific surf, draws surfers year-round. The island's subtropical climate supports tree ferns, hibiscus, and bird-of-paradise plants rarely seen on the Japanese mainland. Hachijōjima produces kusa-mochi flavoured with ashitaba, a medicinal herb unique to the Izu Islands, and the island's shōchū distillery uses locally grown sweet potatoes and volcanic spring water.
Friends
Surfing black-sand breaks, hiking volcanic ridges, and drinking island shōchū under the Milky Way — Hachijōjima gives a friend group an adventure that feels impossibly far from the Tokyo they left that morning.
Solo
The overnight ferry, the volcanic trails, and the black-sand surf create a solo trip that oscillates between physical effort and subtropical stillness. The island's isolation is the point.
- A volcanic island where two calderas meet, accessible by a 55-minute flight from Tokyo or an overnight ferry.
- Hachijō silk, dyed golden-yellow with island-grown kihachijō grass, has been woven here for 800 years.
- Scuba sites circle the island with visibility exceeding 40 metres and loggerhead turtles at every dive point.
- The island's geothermal onsen range from cliffside ocean-view pools to jungle-fringed forest baths.
Ashitaba herb tempura — the island's medicinal plant, bitter and invigorating.
Kusaya fermented fish — an acquired assault on the senses, revered by islanders.
Ninety Mile Beach
New Zealand
Called Ninety Mile Beach but only fifty-five — still vast enough to land aircraft on.
Conceição do Mato Dentro
Brazil
A waterfall nearly three hundred metres tall plunging down the Serra do Espinhaço escarpment into cloud.
Newquay
England
Atlantic swells smash into seven beaches where England learned to surf.
Gansbaai
South Africa
White sharks circle the cage while Cape fur seals bark from Dyer Island's rocky ledge.
Iriomote
Japan
Subtropical jungle covering 90% of an island where the wildcat skulks and no road crosses.
Shirakami-Sanchi
Japan
Eight thousand years of virgin beech forest untouched by axes or roads.
Daisetsuzan
Japan
Japan's first autumn colour igniting an alpine plateau where bears and pikas roam unchallenged.
Aso Caldera
Japan
A volcano still breathing inside one of the world's largest inhabited calderas.