Wildlife swimming in Ogasawara Islands

The Ogasawara Islands sit a thousand kilometres south of Tokyo and have no airport. The only way there is a ferry that leaves the capital roughly once a week, takes a full twenty-four hours, and by its very timetable dictates the trip: you are on the islands for about six days at minimum, whether you like it or not. That inaccessibility is the whole character of the place.

What you reach is a subtropical archipelago that has never been joined to any continent — the 'Galápagos of the Orient', with species found nowhere else on earth. Humpback whales calve in the surrounding waters through winter, and pods of dolphins let you slip in and swim alongside them from a small boat.

Ferry sailings are infrequent and sell out, and the schedule sets the length of your stay. Parts of the islands require permits and accredited guides under the UNESCO management rules — so plan around the boat first, and fit everything else around it.

Ferry sailings are infrequent and sell out; the schedule dictates the trip length. Parts of the islands require permits and accredited guides under the UNESCO management rules.