Having grown up a quick drive from southern California’s miles and miles of prime coastline, I’ll admit Japanese beaches can sometimes be a little underwhelming. Among other problems, they’re crowded with day trippers during midsummer, and infested with jellyfish as the season winds down.
One great thing about beaches in Japan, though, are the umi no ie, temporary restaurants/lounges built right on the sand and only operated during July and August. Due to their temporary nature (the buildings are completely disassembled come September), umi no ie used to be pretty bare-bones. In recent years, though, the ones at Japan’s more popular beaches have been attracting some well-known corporate sponsors and collaborative partners, such as Israeli bath and beauty product manufacturer Sabon, which is set to open its first umi no ie next week.
While the city of Kamakura is most famous for its amazing Great Buddha statue and beautiful temples, it also has one of the nicer Tokyo beaches, called Yuigahama.
Over the last few summers, Yuigahama has been attracting visitors who come to dine at its enclave of umi no ie serving authentic Thai cuisine. On July 1, the Kamakura coast is getting another unique establishment with the opening of the Sabon Beach House.
Like most umi no ie, the Sabon Beach house serves food and drinks, the former made with locally-sourced ingredients and the latter including Israeli spirits.
It also offers day-use lockers and showers for the standard umi no ie price of 1,500 yen (US $14.70). What’s not so ordinary, though, is that the showers and changing rooms are stocked with an assortment of Sabon’s high-quality bath goods.
In keeping with Sabon’s mission of helping people look and feel good, the Beach House will also be holding a series of weekend events, such as yoga lessons on the beach on the mornings of July 27 and August 10, plus a sunset jog on August 2.
If any of that sounds appealing, make your way down to Yuigahama, and sooner rather than later. Along with the rest of the umi no ie, the Sabon Beach House closes for the year on August 31.
Umi no ie information
Sabon Beach House / サボン ビーチ ハウス
Address: Kanagawa-ken, Kamakura-shi, Yuigahama
神奈川県鎌倉市由比ヶ浜
Open 6 a.m.-10 p.m. (kitchen from 10 a.m. weekdays, 8 a.m. weekends)
Website
Sources: WWD Japan, Sabon Beach House
Top image: WWD Japan
Insert images: Vagabond’s Surfer Site, Sabon Beach House