Of Ito's two dozen museums, the most well known, and one of the oldest, is the Ikeda Museum of 20th Century Art, 614 Totari (tel. 0557/45-2211; bus stop: Ikeda Nijuseki Bijutsukan). Though small, it boasts an impressive collection by both Western and Japanese artists, including Warhol, Salvador Dalí, Picasso, Renoir, Roy Lichtenstein, Edvard Munch, Emil Nolde, Willem de Kooning, Miró, Kokoshka, Matisse, and Chagall as well as Kimura Issho, Tatsuoki Nambata, and Junzo Watanabe. Plan on spending about 40 minutes here. Open Thursday to Tuesday 10am to 5pm; admission is ¥900 ($8.55) for adults, ¥700 ($6.65) for high-school students, and ¥500 ($4.75) for elementary and junior-high students.
Another personal favorite is the Izu Glass & Craft Museum, 11-300 Omurokogen (tel. 0557/51-7222; bus stop: Risokyo), with its exquisite collection of Art Nouveau and Art Deco glass art, including figurines, perfume bottles, jewelry, vases, and lamps by such artists as Galle, Lalique, Erté, and Daum. Although at first thought it seems strange to find such a collection here, the use of dragonflies, water lilies, orchids, and other motifs show decided Japanese influence. You'll want to spend at least an hour here. Open 9am to 5pm daily; admission is ¥850 ($8.10) for adults and ¥450 ($4.30) for children.
Other art and decorative-art museums include the Izu Lake Ippeki Museum with works by Jean-Pierre Cassigneaul (tel. 0557/45-5500), the Izu Kogen Ceramic Glass Art Museum (tel. 0557/54-9600) with Chinese works, the Izu Lake Ippeki Museum of Perfume (tel. 0557/45-7700) with early-20th-century American and European perfume bottles, the Brian Wild Smith Museum (tel. 0557/51-7330) with original pictures and books including Mother Goose, the Bohemian Glass Museum (tel. 0557/53-4630), and the Antique Jewelry Museum (tel. 0557/54-5566) with Victorian brooches, rings, and more. There are also special-interest museums with collections dedicated to Santa, the teddy bear, dolls, music boxes and automatic musical instruments, stained glass, antique clocks, ammonites, cats, and even penguins. A wax museum boasts likenesses of Elvis, the Beatles, Charlie Chaplin, Michael Jackson, presidents Lincoln and Clinton, and other celebrities. Contact the Ito Tourist Office for more information.
To see the Jogasaki Coast with its dramatic, rugged, cliff-lined coast and hiking paths, take the train to Jogasaki Station; from there it's a 20-minute walk. For bathing, there's the Ito Orange Beach not far from Ito Station.
Hot-Spring Bathing
Although many accommodations boast hot-spring baths, Japanese think nothing of visiting additional hot-spring facilities during the day. Unique is Tokaikan, 12-10 Higashimatsubara-cho (tel. 0557/36-2004), located next to Ryokan Inaba . A beautiful Japanese inn built in 1928 and boasting superior wood craftsmanship, it was in danger of becoming a parking lot before it was rescued by the city and opened to the public. You can wander its halls for free, but taking the waters in the tiny public baths costs ¥500 ($4.75). It's open daily 11am to 8pm; closed the third Tuesday of every month.
Seaside Spa, located in a small, waterfront shopping/dining complex called Marine Town, 571-19 Yukawa (tel. 0557/38-1811), offers indoor and outdoor baths with views of the sea, whirlpools, and saunas daily from 10am to 10pm; admission is ¥1,500 ($14). It's about a 25-minute walk from Ito Station; turn left out of the station and left again at the coast.
