The 2-Day Izukyu Discovery Pass (¥5,800) pays off only if what you would otherwise pay comes to more than that: your Izukyu train fares for 2 days in a row, any Odoriko charges, and the Shimoda Ropeway round trip (¥1,500). By local train, a round trip to Shimoda with the ropeway costs less with single tickets, whether you start from Ito (¥5,220) or Izu-Kogen (¥4,260). Add another ride, or take the Odoriko, and it can tip the other way; the sums are below.
We work with Izukyu, the railway company, on promoting this pass, and our booking page links to it. The sums below use the official fares. Prices are for adults unless marked "child", and were checked on 22 October 2026, except the JR TOKYO Wide Pass (see below).
What the pass is
Unlimited rides on the Izukyu Line, between Ito and Izukyu-Shimoda, for 2 or 3 days in a row, plus one round trip on the Shimoda Ropeway, about a minute's walk from Izukyu-Shimoda Station. Fourteen partner facilities give special benefits when you show the e-ticket on your phone.
- 2-Day: ¥5,800 (child ¥1,500)
- 3-Day: ¥6,800 (child ¥2,000)
It is for visitors with a non-Japanese passport. You buy it online as an e-ticket. For the trains, show its QR code on your phone at Ito (the tourist information center outside the ticket gates), Izu-Kogen, Izu-Atagawa, Izu-Inatori, Kawazu or Izukyu-Shimoda, and you get a paper pass. Do this within 7 days of the date you chose when buying. For the ropeway, you show the e-ticket on your phone at the ropeway itself, within 30 days of that date.
It covers local and rapid trains, the Resort 21 sightseeing trains, and the Odoriko in an ordinary car when a seat is free: Izukyu's page says "vacant ordinary car seats", the shop says "non-reserved seats in ordinary cars only". It does not cover the Saphir Odoriko, or JR from Tokyo to Ito.
The sums: when the pass pays off
The single fares we used, from Izukyu's fare table: Ito to Izukyu-Shimoda ¥1,860, Ito to Izu-Kogen ¥750, Izu-Kogen to Izukyu-Shimoda ¥1,380, Izu-Kogen to Jogasaki-Kaigan ¥190. The ropeway round trip is ¥1,500 at the regular price; the ropeway also sells advance and discount tickets, whose prices we did not check.
Day trip from Izu-Kogen to Shimoda and the ropeway, by local train. ¥1,380 + ¥1,380 + ¥1,500 = ¥4,260. The 2-Day pass is ¥1,540 more. Buy single tickets.
Ito to Shimoda and back, with the ropeway. ¥1,860 + ¥1,860 + ¥1,500 = ¥5,220. Still ¥580 short of the pass. One more ride within those two days, such as Ito to Izu-Kogen and back (¥1,500), tips it in the pass's favour.
One night in Izu-Kogen, arriving and leaving through Ito. Ito to Izu-Kogen when you arrive (¥750); the next day Izu-Kogen to Shimoda (¥1,380), the ropeway (¥1,500), then Shimoda to Ito on your way home (¥1,860): ¥5,490. Add one short ride on the first day, such as Izu-Kogen to Jogasaki-Kaigan and back (¥380), and you reach ¥5,870, just above the 2-Day pass.
If you ride the Odoriko. On the Izukyu Line the Odoriko adds a flat ¥800 limited express charge to each single ticket. The pass lets you ride the Odoriko in a free ordinary-car seat, so each Odoriko ride you would otherwise have paid for adds ¥800 to the pass's side. The Izu-Kogen day trip above, with the Odoriko both ways, becomes ¥5,860, just above the pass; with the Odoriko one way only, it is ¥5,060, still below.
The 3-Day pass costs ¥6,800. With two nights in Izu-Kogen, arriving and leaving through Ito (¥750 each way) and one day trip to Shimoda with the ropeway (¥4,260), the single fares come to ¥5,760. You need more riding than that, or the Odoriko, before the 3-Day pass pays off.
When it is harder to justify
- You will not use the ropeway. Then ¥1,500 of the pass's value goes unused, and your train fares alone must top ¥5,800. Ito to Izukyu-Shimoda and back twice (¥7,440) would; a few short rides around Ito and Izu-Kogen would not.
- Your dates fall between 13 and 25 December. The shop says the ropeway is closed for inspection then, with no refund for that part.
- You already hold a JR TOKYO Wide Pass, which covers the Izukyu Line (see below). Pay for the ropeway on its own instead.
- You want the Saphir Odoriko. The pass does not cover it.
How the JR passes work for Izu
Japan Rail Pass. The 7-day pass costs ¥50,000 bought online, or ¥53,000 through an overseas agency. It covers JR lines only, which on this route means as far as Ito. Izu-Kogen and Shimoda are on the Izukyu Line, a private railway, so beyond Ito you pay the Izukyu fare or use the Discovery Pass. If you already hold a JR Pass for a longer trip in Japan, the two fit together: JR Pass to Ito, Discovery Pass from Ito. For a simple round trip from Tokyo to Izu-Kogen, do not buy a JR Pass: an Odoriko costs ¥3,170 fare plus a ¥2,380 limited express charge bought in advance, so about ¥11,100 there and back.
JR TOKYO Wide Pass. ¥16,000 (child ¥8,000) for 3 days in a row, foreign passports only. Unlike the JR Pass, it covers the whole Izukyu Line to Izukyu-Shimoda, including Odoriko reserved seats. It does not cover the Tokaido Shinkansen, and the Saphir Odoriko needs an extra Green Car fee. Even a round trip from Tokyo all the way to Izukyu-Shimoda by Odoriko is (¥4,280 + ¥2,380) × 2 = ¥13,320, less than the pass. It only pays off if you add other trips in its area to the same three days. These Wide Pass figures are from our September 2026 check; we could not open JR East's page on 22 October.
Which train to take from Tokyo is a separate question; we answer it in Tokyo to Izu-Kogen by train.
Before you use the e-ticket
- Open it in your phone's browser with a working internet connection. Screenshots and printed copies are not accepted.
- Several passes bought in one order start together. Buy in separate orders if your group will start on different days.
- Refunds: the shop allows them only up to the day before the date you chose, and not once you have started using the pass. The official Izukyu page simply says "No refunds", so read the shop's terms before you pay.
Questions we get
Can I buy it at the station?
The official Izukyu page sends you to an online shop to buy it, and lists the stations only as places to exchange it. You buy the e-ticket online, then show its QR code on your phone at Ito, Izu-Kogen, Izu-Atagawa, Izu-Inatori, Kawazu or Izukyu-Shimoda to get the paper pass.
Does the pass cover the Odoriko?
Between Ito and Izukyu-Shimoda, in an ordinary car. Izukyu's page says 'vacant ordinary car seats'; the shop says 'non-reserved seats in ordinary cars only'. It does not cover the Saphir Odoriko, or anything north of Ito.
Does the JR Pass cover the Izukyu Line?
No. It covers JR lines only, which on this route means as far as Ito. Beyond Ito you pay the Izukyu fare, or use the Discovery Pass from Ito.
Can I use a screenshot of the e-ticket?
No. The shop says screenshots and printed copies are not accepted. Open the ticket in your phone's browser with a working internet connection.
Is the pass worth it in December?
Check your dates first. The shop says the Shimoda Ropeway is closed from 13 to 25 December for inspection, with no refund for the ropeway part. Without the ropeway, your train rides alone have to add up to more than the pass price, for example Ito to Izukyu-Shimoda and back twice (¥7,440).
Is there a child price?
Yes: ¥1,500 for 2 days and ¥2,000 for 3 days. We found no child age range on the pass pages when we checked in October 2026, and we did not check child train fares, so ask at the station before you decide. The child ropeway round trip is ¥750.