Mie · SuzukaNo.1213★★Open in map →

Suzuka Circuit

entertainmentOff the trail — and worth it

A racing course built by Honda in Suzuka, Mie, laid out in a figure eight so the track passes over itself mid-lap. On days without a race it opens as a family theme park, with a hotel and a hot spring on the same site.

FromShiroko Station (Kintetsu Nagoya Line)
~20 min by busKintetsu + bus, ~20 min
Suzuka Circuit

Directions ↗

The sweet spot

This is a famous place, not a hidden one — the Japanese Grand Prix fills it once a year. The less obvious part is that the same gates open the rest of the time, and on those days Suzuka works as a family theme park rather than a motorsport venue.

Where it is

17 more notes in Mie · open the map →

What to look for — in walking order

Grandstand and main straightseating along the pit straight, the start of a lap that runs through 18 corners
Honda RACING Galleryan indoor display of Honda machines and power units that actually raced
Suzuka Circuit Parkthe amusement park side, with rides small children steer for themselves
Aqua Adventurethe summer-only water zone, with shallow pools and slides
The crossoverthe point mid-lap where the track passes over itself and the direction of the turns flips

How to actually get there

Kintetsu Nagoya Station → Shiroko Station (Kintetsu Nagoya Line, about 50 minutes).
Shiroko Station west exit → Suzuka Circuit (Mie Kotsu bus, about 20 minutes, 500 yen).
Enter the park and start at the grandstand, looking down the main straight.
Work through the park attractions, then take the same bus back to Shiroko Station.

Kintetsu Nagoya Line to Shiroko, then a bus: From Kintetsu Nagoya Station, the Kintetsu Nagoya Line reaches Shiroko Station in about 50 minutes. From the bus stop at the west exit, the Mie Kotsu service bound for Suzuka Circuit takes about 20 minutes and costs 500 yen for an adult. Departures are limited on ordinary days, so read the timetable before you set out.
The same bus back to Shiroko: Buses return to Shiroko Station from the stop at the circuit. Outside race days the service is thin, so note the posted departure times when you arrive. If the last one has gone, a taxi covers the same road.

Directions from my location (Google Maps) ↗

About the place

The four-wheel course measures 5.807 kilometres. What sets it apart is the shape: an east loop and a west loop meet at a crossover, so cars run clockwise through one half of the lap and counter-clockwise through the other. Very few circuits anywhere are built this way. Wrapped around the track is Suzuka Circuit Park, an amusement park aimed at families, with a hotel and a hot spring on the same grounds. That gives the place two entirely different faces: a race weekend, and an ordinary day spent on the rides with the grandstand in view.

How to enjoy it

Two quite different days are possible here. On a race weekend the timetable and the grandstands take over; on an ordinary day the site runs as a theme park and the course becomes the backdrop. Opening hours move with the season and with the racing calendar, so check the date you have in mind before you buy anything.

Background & history

Honda built the circuit in 1962, at the urging of founder Soichiro Honda, who came back from the Isle of Man TT convinced that Japan needed a proper racing course of its own. It was the first in the country to combine a fully paved course with permanent spectator stands. Formula 1 arrived much later: the Japanese Grand Prix was run here for the first time in 1987, and Suzuka has been the sport's Japanese home ever since.

Before you go

Cash: Park admission and race tickets are sold separately, and some attractions inside carry their own charge, so check current prices on the official site. The Ise Railway station on the alternative route does not accept IC transport cards — bring cash if you go that way.
Good to know: Opening hours and closed days move with the season and with the racing calendar. The circuit warns that roads nearby jam badly on major race days, stretching journey times well past the usual.
Another way: From Nagoya Station, the JR Kansai Main Line runs to Yokkaichi in about 30 minutes; change there to the Ise Railway for Suzuka Circuit Ino Station, about 20 minutes more. From the station you walk west along a road nicknamed Circuit Road. Trains on that line can be one to two hours apart, and no bus links the station to the gate.
After you get off: The Shiroko bus runs all the way to the Suzuka Circuit stop, so there is no long walk at the end. Arriving by Ise Railway instead, head west on foot from Suzuka Circuit Ino Station.