Japan City Guides: Hiroshima

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Hiroshima

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• Target of the world's first atomic bomb attack
• Rebuilt as a modern, clean, open city
• Population: 1,200,000
• Founded in 1589 by Terumoto Mori
• Easy to navigate on foot or street car.
• Within easy reach of Miyajima and rural Shimane.
• Home of the Mazda Motor Corporation
• Food speciality: Hiroshimayaki (savory pancake)

Nightlife and Eating Out

Nightlife areas include Nagarekawa and Shintenchi in the east of the city.
Try one of the more than 2000 Hiroshimayaki restaurants - a local variety of okonomiyaki - a kind of savory egg-based pancake. Hiroshima is also noted for its seafood, especially oysters.

Getting There

Served by the Sanyo Shinkansen line (2 hours 10 mins. to Osaka) and Hiroshima Nishi Airport and Hiroshima Airport (for Tokyo and international destinations).

The city has a cheap and efficient streetcar (trolley) system, using old stock from Kyoto, Kobe and Osaka, as well as new cars. Presently fares are 150 yen in the inner ring, pay as you leave.

Day Trips

Miyajima

The sacred island of Miyajima (Itsukushima) is known as one of Japan's top three views famous for its Shinto torii gate rising from the sea.

The island also has an aquarium, a pleasant beach and local crafts on display.

Stroll along the banks or take a cruise on any of the 6 rivers that flow through the city. Starting point for many cruises around the Inland Sea. It is also possible to take a river boat between two UNESCO World Heritage sites from Peace Park out to Miyajima.

Hiroshima is a good base for excursions to the traditional rural areas of Shimane, including Izumo Taisha Shrine (reputedly the oldest in Japan); the Tottori sand dunes; Iwakuni (famous for its castle and Kintai Bridge) and the scenic islands of Shikoku and Kyushu.

Things to see and do

Founded in 1589 by the feudal lord Terumoto Mori, who named the city Hiroshima (broad island) and built Hiroshima Castle. The city became a garrison town for the Imperial army after 1868 and entered the history books forever on August 6th, 1945 when a US B29 bomber 'Enola Gay' dropped the world's first atomic bomb on Hiroshima which eventually killed around 140,000 people and devastated the city.

Hiroshima has become a mecca for peace activists worldwide, so first on the list must be the Peace Park, Peace Memorial Museum, and the A-Bomb Dome. A new addition to the Peace Park area are the ten Gates of Peace - ten 9m glass arches inscribed with the word "peace" in 45 languages and completed in 2005.
Click here for detailed information on Hiroshima Peace Park Memorials

Other places of interest include Hiroshima Museum of Art (Tel: 082 223 2530), Hiroshima City Manga Museum and the Hiroshima Prefectural Art Museum.

Hijiyama Park, on a slight hill south of Hiroshima Station contains the Hiroshima City Manga Library and the Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art (Tel: 082 264 1121). Hijiyama Park is a popular cherry blossom viewing spot in spring.

Shukkeien Garden (Tel: 082 221 3620), modeled on Xi Hu (West Lake) in Hangzhou, southern China, was designed by Soko Ueda for the feudal lord of Hiroshima, Nagaakira Asano in 1620. Badly damamged by the bomb, the circular-tour garden has been restored to its original glory. Shukkeien is adjacent to Hiroshima Prefectural Art Museum (Tel: 082 223 2530), which exhibits work by Salvador Dali and Hirayama Ikuo.

Hiroshima Castle, or "Rijo" (Carp Castle), 2 km west of Hiroshima Station was completed in 1589 but completely destroyed in 1945 and rebuilt in 1958. There are great views over the city from the top. Gokoku Shrine in the castle grounds is a Shinto shrine dedicated to Japan's war dead.

Just to the south west of Hiroshima Castle is Chuo Park, the city's largest open space, containing Hiroshima Baseball Stadium, Hiroshima Museum of Art (Tel: 082 223 2530), with works by Picasso, Matisse Monet, Van Gogh and Degas and a Children's Museum (Tel: 082 222 5346).

Perched up on Futabayama behind Hiroshima Station is the silver Peace Pagoda, reached by a trail from Toshogu Shrine and Kinko Inari Shrine, and with fine views of the city and the sea. Walkers can continue to Ushitayama (around 2-3 hours) and return to Hiroshima by bus. Fudoin Temple, also north of Hiroshima Station, is Hiroshima's oldest surviving building.

The Yamato Museum (Tel: 0823 25 3017), a 5 minute walk from JR Kure Station, is dedicated to the world's largest battleship, which was built in Kure, the site of a former Imperial Navy shipyard and naval academy. A 1/10 scale reproduction of the Yamato forms the centerpiece of the museum which also displays guns, torpedoes, shells and aircraft of the WWII period. The giant ship was sunk by US aircraft in 1945 with the loss of 2,475 lives. Kure is east of Hiroshima and can be reached in about 30 minutes by JR Express trains.

Tourist information

Tourist information centers at Hiroshima Station (tel. 082-261-1877) and Hiroshima's Ujina Port. Cultural and other information available at the Hiroshima International Conference Center (tel. 082-247-6738) in the Peace Park.

Sports

Baseball: Hiroshima Municipal Baseball Stadium

Home of the Hiroshima Toyo Carp of Japanese baseball's Central League. Access: across the road from the A-Bomb Dome.

Soccer: Sanfrecce Hiroshima

The J.League's Sanfrecce play their home games at either the 50.000 capacity Big Arch Stadium built for the 1994 Asian Games or the more homely Hiroshima Stadium near Nishi Airport.

Access

Air

Hiroshima Nishi Airport and Hiroshima Airport (for Tokyo, Sapporo, Okinawa and international destinations). The tram runs to Hiroshima Airport.

Rail

Served by the Sanyo Shinkansen line to Osaka (2 hours 10 mins), Tokyo (4 hours 30 minutes to five hours), Kyoto, Nagoya and Fukuoka/Hakata.

Bus

There are long distance bus services from outside Hiroshima Station to Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, Nagoya and Nagasaki.

Ferry

There are ferry and hydrofoil services to Matsuyama on Shikoku.

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