Futami Seaside Park

Futami Seaside Park lies on the shore of the Iyo Sea at Futami in Iyo. It has a beach of white sand, a roadside station with shops and a restaurant, and it is laid out for one thing above all: watching the sun go down over the water.

Futami is on the national list of a hundred places for the evening sun, and the town describes itself as the place where the setting sun stops. The sea wall in the park is built as a flight of steps facing west, which serves as seating for it.

Out on the sand a small headland runs into the sea, with a monument standing on it. For a few days around the spring and autumn equinox the sun sets inside the ring at its centre.

In 2008 the park became the first place in Ehime to be named a lovers' sanctuary, a designation given to spots thought suitable for a proposal. Besides the monument that marks it there is a stone called the wishing stone, where a couple put their hands together and make a wish on the setting sun.

The beach can be swum from in summer. Changing rooms and showers are open in July and August, and dogs and other pets are not allowed inside the park.