Setouchi and San’in

Central Setouchi and San’in Tour

6

days

¥328,000

starting price

6

People max.

Okayama

starting place

Overview

This tour visits the major sights of Okayama, Shimane, and Hiroshima prefectures, focusing on the small historic cities of each region. This area is known as the home of swordmaking and the foundation myths of Japan. You travel in a private vehicle with a guide, staying in characterful local accommodation. You experience the different atmosphere and food of the Sea of Japan and Seto Inland Sea regions, and the mountainous region that lies between them.

Who is this tour for?

This tour is for people who want to experience the little-known but beautiful historic towns of western Japan.

Price

From

  • ¥498,000 / person with 2
  • ¥398,000 / person with 3
  • ¥358,000 / person with 4
  • ¥328,000 / person with 5

Itinerary

  • You meet your guide and driver at Okayama Station and drive to Bitchū Takahashi, a picturesque town in the mountains of Okayama Prefecture. After exploring the town, you visit impressive Bitchū Matsuyama Castle, with towering walls perched high on a mountaintop. Then you drive to Fukiya, a historic town with a street of Edo period buildings uniformly painted with bengara ferric oxide. At Fukiya Furusato Mura, you learn about the traditional industries that sustained the region. You stay at a kominka in the countryside, where dinner is served.

    Included: Dinner

  • After breakfast, you leave the kominka and drive to Hiruzen Highland in northern Okayama Prefecture, a plateau at an elevation of 500 metres with many outdoor attractions. Then you head into Tottori Prefecture and visit Hanakairo Flower Park, a massive garden with exotic plants. The last stop is Mt. Daisen, a huge extinct volcano. You stay at a hotel near the mountain, where dinner is served.

    Included: Breakfast, Dinner

  • After breakfast, you leave the hotel and drive to Yasugi, an ancient town in Shimane Prefecture. Here you visit the acclaimed Adachi Museum of Art. Next you drive to Matsue and visit the Shiomi Nawate area and the Matsue History Museum. You learn about the history of the town and about Lafcadio Hearn, a celebrated author and resident. You stay at a ryokan in Tamatsukuri Onsen, where dinner is served.

    Included: Breakfast, Dinner

  • After breakfast, you leave the hotel and drive to Izumo Shrine, one of the most sacred places in Japan. Then you drive to historic Okuizumo, famous for its swordsmiths. Here you visit the Tatara Sword Museum where you learn about the famous swords produced in Okuizumo from ancient times. You head into Hiroshima Prefecture to Taishaku Gorge, where you stroll down a beautiful valley with several impressive stone arches which were once part of an ancient cave system. You stay at a hotel in Shōbara, where dinner is served.

    Included: Breakfast, Dinner

  • After breakfast, you leave the hotel and drive to Sera Highland Farm, located on a plateau in central Hiroshima Prefecture, known for its massed arrays of flowers in each season. Then you drive to Onomichi and visit Senkō-ji Park with its expansive views over the Shimanami Kaidō. Your next stop is Takehara, a town with streets of elegant buildings dating from the Edo period. You stay at a hotel in Hiroshima city. Dinner is at a local restaurant.

    Included: Breakfast, Dinner

  • After breakfast, you leave the hotel and take the convenient and nostalgic trams to visit the Hiroshima Peace Park and Atom Bomb Dome, ending the tour at Hiroshima Station.

    Included: Breakfast

Highlights

Bitchū Matsuyama Castle

Bitchū Matsuyama Castle

Bitchū Matsuyama Castle stands on a mountain high above the town of Bitchū Takahashi. The high stone walls are very impressive, and the view from the keep is expansive and awe-inspiring.

Fukiya Furusato Mura

Fukiya Furusato Mura

A street of Edo period buildings uniformly painted with bengara ferric oxide. This town once thrived from mining this valuable red mineral.

Hiruzen Highland

Hiruzen Highland

Hiruzen is an area located on the border of Daisen Oki National Park, known for its spectacular natural beauty.

Tottori Hanakairo Flower Park

Tottori Hanakairo Flower Park

The Tottori Hanakairo Flower Park is a vast garden built around a dome greenhouse with hundreds of orchids, palm trees and other exotic flora.

Mt. Daisen

Mt. Daisen

Mt. Daisen is a dormant volcano in Tottori Prefecture on the Japan Sea coast. At 1,729 m, it’s the highest mountain in the Chūgoku region.

Yasugi

Yasugi

Yasugi is a town in Shimane, bordering the Nakaumi, a small inland sea on the Japan Sea coast.

Adachi Museum of Art

Adachi Museum of Art

The Adachi Museum of Art in Yasugi houses a collection of nihonga Japanese paintings, pottery, and sculpture.

Matsue Castle

Matsue Castle

Matsue Castle stands on the shore of Lake Shinji near the Japan Sea coast, at the heart of Matsue’s central riverside district.

Matsue History Museum

Matsue History Museum

Located east of Matsue Castle, Matsue History Museum has the exterior of a samurai residence and offers a fine view of the castle.

Shiomi Nawate area

Shiomi Nawate area

Shiomi Nawate is a picturesque street by Matsue Castle, lined with historic homes and pine trees, evoking ancient Japan.

Tamatsukuri Onsen

Tamatsukuri Onsen

Tamatsukuri Onsen is a hot spring resort on the shore of Lake Shinji in Shimane. It’s a sulphate spring with water temperatures between 50–70 °C.

Izumo

Izumo

Izumo is a city located in central eastern Shimane Prefecture.

Izumo Shrine

Izumo Shrine

Izumo Taisha, officially called Izumo Ōyashiro, is one of the most ancient and important Shintō shrines in Japan.

Okuizumo

Okuizumo

Okuizumo is a town located in the southeast of Shimane Prefecture, with steep mountains near the prefectural border and the border with Unnan.

Okuizumo Tatara Sword Museum

Okuizumo Tatara Sword Museum

The Okuizumo Tatara Sword Museum is devoted to the ancient and ongoing tradition of tatara iron and sword-making.

Taishaku Gorge

Taishaku Gorge

Taishaku Gorge is an 18 km-long ravine along the Taishaku River, one of the tributaries of the Takahashi River in Shōbara and Jinseki Kōgen, Hiroshima.

Shōbara

Shōbara

Shōbara is a city located in the Chugoku Mountains in the northeast corner of Hiroshima Prefecture.

Sera Highland

Sera Highland

Sera Highland is located in the centre of Hiroshima Prefecture on a plateau ideal for growing flowers. The rolling fields of this huge park are planted with masses of flowers

Onomichi

Onomichi

A fascinating maritime town of ancient temples and alleyways

Senkō-ji Park

Senkō-ji Park

Senkō-ji Park is a mountaintop park with an amazing view over Onomichi.

Shimanami Kaidō

Shimanami Kaidō

The Shimanami Kaidō is a chain of islands across the Seto Inland Sea, joined by a series of bridges which carry an expressway and cycle paths.

Takehara

Takehara

Takehara is a port town on the Seto Inland Sea famed for its traditional wooden buildings from the Edo period and its sake production.

Hiroshima

Hiroshima

The western node of the ‘Golden Route’, famous for being atom bombed.

Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park

Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park

The Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park is a sprawling memorial site located in Hiroshima, Japan, dedicated to commemorating the victims of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima.

Atom Bomb Dome

Atom Bomb Dome

The A-Bomb Dome is the ruin of the former Hiroshima Prefectural Industrial Promotion Hall, built in 1915.

Included

    • Guide
    • Transport
    • Meals
    • Basic insurance

Excluded

    • Travel to and from Shikoku
    • Drinks
    • Comprehensive personal insurance

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