The Cat Island

Ah we finally made it! Ever since we moved to Japan, we always wanted to visit the Cat Island. FYI - there are a number of cat islands all over Japan but Tashirojima (Japanese: 田代島) is probably the most well known cat island in Japan.

The cat population outnumbers the human population on this island, more than 100 cats on the island and less than 100 people, making cats the island's dominant species. 

Nice!

There are a few different ways to getting up to the cat island:

1. The fastest but the most expensive: Take the bullet-train from Tokyo to Sendai.

2. You can rent a car and drive up. It's about 5 hours drive from Tokyo.

We ended up driving up to Ishinomaki and took the ferry to the island. 

3. Take the long distance bus: This would be the cheapest. If your are a group of four or more, renting a car might be cheaper.

Catch the 23:25pm train from Shinjuku station all the way to Ishinomaki (arriving at 6:10am) make your way to the port by either local bus or taxi. Take the 9am ferry to Tashirojima (the cat island). As of Sep 2016, the cheapest bus we could find was roughly 6,700 yen per person one way by Sakura Kanko's Kirakira-gou. If you don't mind changing at Sendai station, there are a lot more options.

Ferry to the Cat Island!! 

Please note: There are only three ferries in a day. From Ishinomaki port, ferry leaves at 9am, 12 (noon), 15:30pm. Return ferries are at 7:40am, 14:12pm and 15:33pm. Cost 2460 yen return (again as of Sep 2016).

Our Accommodation on the island

Lunch!