What to do

• Walk the sea-side corridor of Itsukushima Shrine and view the torii gate from the pier area.
• Time your visit around low tide if you want to walk across the sand to the foot of the torii gate; time it around high tide for the floating effect.
• Ride the Miyajima Ropeway toward Mt Misen for forest and Seto Inland Sea views if you have extra time.
• Stroll Omotesando shopping street for grilled oysters, momiji manju, and souvenirs, and expect to see Miyajima's free-roaming deer.

Tickets and fees

Checked in July 2026: shrine admission is paid on-site and does not need advance booking for most travelers; the JR ferry and the Matsudai Kisen ferry both connect Miyajimaguchi to the island and charge a separate fare. Tide times change daily, so confirm the day's high and low tide before you commit to a specific viewing plan.

Getting there

Take the JR Sanyo Line or Hiroshima Electric Railway to Miyajimaguchi Station, then transfer to a short ferry (about 10 minutes) to Miyajima pier. The shrine is a walk of roughly 10 minutes from the pier.

Nearby

Miyajima is a common pairing with a Hiroshima city day that includes Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, since both are reachable from central Hiroshima in under an hour.

What to do

• View the Atomic Bomb Dome (Genbaku Dome) from outside; it is preserved as a ruin and is not entered.
• Visit the Peace Memorial Museum for exhibits on the bombing and its aftermath, using personal accounts and artifacts.
• See the Children's Peace Monument, covered in folded paper cranes sent from around the world in memory of Sadako Sasaki.
• Pay respects at the Cenotaph for the Victims and the Flame of Peace, which are aligned with the Dome across the park.

Tickets and fees

Checked in July 2026: museum admission is inexpensive and can usually be purchased on-site, though early-morning entry slots have required an advance online reservation in recent years. Confirm current hours and any reservation requirement on the museum's official site before you go, since hours shift seasonally and around the August ceremony period.

Getting there

From Hiroshima Station, take a Hiroshima Electric Railway (streetcar) toward Genbaku-Dome-mae, a ride of about 15 to 20 minutes. The park and museum are a short walk from that stop.

Nearby

Many visitors combine this with a day trip to Itsukushima Shrine on Miyajima, which is reachable from central Hiroshima in under an hour.

What to do

• Walk the Onomichi Temple Walk, a marked route connecting about 25 Buddhist temples across the hillside.
• Ride the Senkoji Ropeway up to Senkoji Park for a view over the town and the Seto Inland Sea, then walk back down through the Path of Literature.
• Browse the old shopping arcade (Onomichi Hondori) and try Onomichi ramen, a soy-based bowl often topped with pork back fat.
• Rent a bicycle near Onomichi Station if you plan to start riding the Shimanami Kaido toward Ehime.

Tickets and fees

Checked in July 2026: no ticket is needed to walk the town or temple route; only paid attractions like the ropeway require a ticket, purchased on-site. Bicycle rental terminals near the station sell rentals directly and accept one-way drop-off at other terminals along the Shimanami Kaido; confirm current pricing locally since rental rates can change seasonally.

Getting there

Onomichi Station is on the JR Sanyo Line, about 90 minutes from Hiroshima Station and about 70 minutes from Okayama Station by regular train.

Nearby

Onomichi is the Hiroshima-side gateway to the Shimanami Kaido cycling route, which continues across the Seto Inland Sea to Imabari in Ehime Prefecture.

What to do

• Ride the full route from Onomichi (Hiroshima) to Imabari (Ehime), crossing six islands: Mukaishima, Innoshima, Ikuchijima, Omishima, Hakatajima, and Oshima.
• Cross the Kurushima-Kaikyo Bridge near Imabari, one of the longest suspension bridge systems in the world, on its separated cycling deck.
• Stop on Ikuchijima to see the Kosanji Temple complex and the Hirayama Ikuo Museum of Art.
• Use one of the public rental terminals along the route if you want a one-way ride, since bikes can be picked up in Onomichi and dropped off near Imabari.

Tickets and fees

Checked in July 2026: no toll applies to cyclists on the dedicated bike route as of this writing, but the exemption is a time-limited government measure, so confirm current status before you go. Bicycle rental is paid directly at rental terminals near Onomichi Station or at other terminals along the route; a small local ferry crossing to Mukaishima at the Onomichi end also charges a separate low fare.

Getting there

Start from JR Onomichi Station in Hiroshima Prefecture (bike rental terminals nearby) and finish near JR Imabari Station in Ehime Prefecture, or ride the route in the opposite direction. Rental terminals allow one-way drop-off along the way if you do not want to ride the return leg.

Nearby

The route begins in Onomichi, which is worth a half day of its own for its temple walk and old town before or after riding.