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The Tottori Sand Dunes on the Sea of Japan coast
Korakuen garden in Okayama
The Bikan Historical Quarter in Kurashiki
Kintaikyo bridge over the Nishiki River in Iwakuni

Things to do in Chugoku: Hiroshima, Okayama, Iwakuni

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Photo: Suicasmo, CC BY-SA 4.0

Korakuen, Okayama

Stroll the lawns of Korakuen, one of Japan's three great gardens

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Photo: 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0

Bikan Historical Quarter, Kurashiki, Okayama

Walk the willow-lined canal of Kurashiki's old rice storehouses

Photo: 663highland, CC BY-SA 4.0

Kintaikyo Bridge, Iwakuni, Yamaguchi

Cross the five wooden arches of Iwakuni's Kintaikyo Bridge

Tours in Chugoku

Photo: Sailko, CC BY 3.0

Chugoku is the western end of Honshu, between Kansai and Kyushu, with the Seto Inland Sea on one coast and the Sea of Japan on the other. Most visitors come for Hiroshima and Miyajima, which have their own page. This hub adds three stops along the Inland Sea side: Korakuen garden in Okayama, the old rice storehouses on Kurashiki's canal and the arched Kintaikyo bridge at Iwakuni.

Places in this region

3 things to do in Chugoku

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Korakuen garden in Okayama

Stroll the lawns of Korakuen, one of Japan's three great gardens

Korakuen, Okayama

1.5 to 2 hours with the castleGo alone or with a tour

A lord's garden from 1687, ranked with Kenrokuen and Kairakuen, unusual for its wide lawns, tea fields and rice paddies.

Check dates and pricesOkayama Castle, Korakuen and Kurashiki day tour
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The Bikan Historical Quarter in Kurashiki

Walk the willow-lined canal of Kurashiki's old rice storehouses

Bikan Historical Quarter, Kurashiki, Okayama

Half a dayNo booking needed

An Edo-period rice port named after its storehouses, whose canal is lined with willows, stone bridges and white-walled kura.

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Kintaikyo bridge over the Nishiki River in Iwakuni

Cross the five wooden arches of Iwakuni's Kintaikyo Bridge

Kintaikyo Bridge, Iwakuni, Yamaguchi

Half a day from HiroshimaNo booking needed

A wooden bridge of five arches on stone piers, first built in 1673 and rebuilt after a typhoon swept it away in 1950.

Tours in Chugoku
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Traveller picks

Hidden gems suggested by travellers. We check each one before it goes up; the words are theirs, not ours.

No traveller picks for Chugoku yet. Know a place most visitors miss?

Plan your trip

  • Which place for what

    Hiroshima and Miyajima for the Peace Park, the sacred island and okonomiyaki. Okayama for one of Japan's three great gardens and its castle. Kurashiki for a preserved canal town with a major Western art museum. Iwakuni for its wooden bridge, an easy add-on to Miyajima.

  • How to combine them

    In must30's view, base yourself in Hiroshima for two or three nights and take Iwakuni as a half day. Okayama and Kurashiki fit in one day, by Shinkansen from Hiroshima or as a stop on the way from Kansai.

  • Getting around

    The Sanyo Shinkansen runs along the Inland Sea coast through Okayama and Hiroshima, and local JR trains reach Kurashiki, Miyajimaguchi and Iwakuni. In Hiroshima, trams cover the sights; in Okayama, a tram runs towards Korakuen.

Questions travellers ask

Is Okayama worth a stop?

In must30's view, yes, if you like gardens: Korakuen is ranked among Japan's three best landscape gardens, with Okayama Castle beside it, and Kurashiki's canal quarter is close by.

How do I get to Kintaikyo from Hiroshima?

Take a local train to Iwakuni (50 minutes, ¥770) and a bus to the Kintaikyo stop (15 minutes, ¥300). Miyajimaguchi is on the same line, halfway.

Why does Kurashiki look like that?

It was a rice trade hub ruled directly by the shogunate, and its canal was dug to move rice between the storehouses and the port. The white-walled kura along it now house cafes, shops and museums.

Other places to go

Things to do in Japan

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