An artificial beach 300 meters from the real thing

There's an absolutely amazing beach in Japan, filled with white sand, blue water, and a lapping wave. But this beach did not exist before 1993. It's known as the Ocean Dome, the most popular artificial beach in an arena that's quickly becoming fashionable. There's now artificial beaches in Monaco, Paris, Rotterdam, Toronto, Hong Kong, and Singapore.

The heated beach can accommodate 10,000 tourists, even though it's competing with plenty of other attractions on Kyushu Island - 1,500 kilometers south of Tokyo. The kicker is that there's an actual beach, which looks decent, 300 meters away. Talk about stiff competition.

Of course, if I was in Kyushu, I would definitely want to check out this place. First of all, the weather's always fantastic, since it's situated indoors. Then, there's the volcano. That's right, there's an artificial volcano that spews smoke every fifteen minutes and flames on the hour. If that's not enough entertainment, professional surfers can be found riding the waves.

You gotta love the Japanese. Check out the link below for some great shots. Absolutely spectacular.

Gallery: Japan's Ocean Dome

Filed under: Surfing, Japan