Shikoku: The 88-Temple Pilgrimage, Art Islands and Mountain Japan

Shikoku is the smallest of Japan’s four main islands and the least visited by international tourists — which is precisely what makes it worth the journey. The island that pilgrims have circled for 1,200 years carries a different quality of quiet than the well-travelled Honshu corridor. Its mountains are steeper and less manicured, its coasts longer and less developed, and its cities — Matsuyama, Kochi, Takamatsu, Tokushima — have maintained distinct characters without converging into the regional-outlet sameness that flattens some of rural Japan.

The centrepiece is the Ohenro: the 88-temple pilgrimage that has been walked continuously since the 9th century and now draws over 100,000 participants per year, most of them Japanese. But Shikoku earned recent international attention through Naoshima — an art island that became a global contemporary art destination by accident, in the 1990s, when Benesse Corporation began transforming a near-abandoned Inland Sea island into a museum landscape.

The 88-Temple Pilgrimage (Ohenro)

The Shikoku Pilgrimage (Ohenro or Shikoku Hachijuhakkasho) connects 88 temples associated with the monk Kobo Daishi (774–835 CE), who is said to walk the route still in spirit alongside every pilgrim. Traditional pilgrims wear white jacket (hakui), conical sedge hat (sugegasa), and carry a wooden staff representing Kobo Daishi’s presence. The walking is real: the circuit covers approximately 1,200 km of mountain paths, coastal roads, and town streets, traditionally completed over 30–60 days.

Modern pilgrims complete the circuit in many ways. By car: 10–14 days, covering 300–400 km per day with time at temples. By organised bus tour: 10–12 days, typically available from Takamatsu or Matsuyama. By bicycle: 25–35 days. By foot in sections: many pilgrims walk the most dramatically scenic stretches — particularly Temples 24–39 along Kochi’s Pacific coast, or the tough mountain cluster (Temples 60–65 near Matsuyama) — without attempting the full circuit.

The temples divide broadly by prefecture:

• Awa no Kuni (Tokushima): Temples 1–23. The “awakening” phase. Temple 1 (Ryozen-ji) in Naruto is the traditional start.
• Tosa no Kuni (Kochi): Temples 24–39. The “training” phase. The longest and loneliest stretch, along the Pacific coast.
• Iyo no Kuni (Ehime): Temples 40–65. The “enlightenment” phase. Includes Ishite-ji (Temple 51) near Matsuyama.
• Sanuki no Kuni (Kagawa): Temples 66–88. The “nirvana” phase. The shortest and most accessible section from Takamatsu.

Non-religious visitors are welcome at all temples. The minimum respectful visit involves ringing the bell at the main gate (once, not repeatedly), washing hands at the water pavilion, and placing a small donation in the main hall offering box. Temple entry fees run ¥300–¥500 where charged. The overall atmosphere is of continuing, living practice rather than museum exhibition.

Naoshima

Naoshima is the anchor of the Setouchi Triennale — a major contemporary art festival held every three years across seven islands in the Seto Inland Sea — and the island that proved contemporary art could become the economic engine of a depopulated rural community.

The island’s museum landscape was developed from the early 1990s by the Benesse Corporation and architect Tadao Ando, whose concrete-and-water aesthetic runs through the major institutions. The Chichu Art Museum (¥2,100 entry, reservation recommended) is the centrepiece: a building embedded entirely underground, containing five massive Monet water lily paintings in a room calibrated to change with natural light. Claude Monet’s works are shown alongside James Turrell’s light installations and Walter De Maria’s granite sphere room — each given its own architectural space, not hung gallery-style.

The Benesse House Museum (¥1,050 entry) integrates a hotel with a permanent art collection across the cliff-top building and grounds — Bruce Nauman, Richard Serra, Hiroshi Sugimoto. The museum-hotel combination (overnight guests have the museum after public hours) is the most coveted accommodation booking in the Inland Sea; rates from ¥55,000 per person.

The Art House Project turns seven historic buildings in Honmura village into permanent installations — including Tatsuo Miyajima’s LED number installations in an old bathhouse and James Turrell’s light rooms in a house overlooking the sea. Individual tickets ¥520 per venue or ¥1,050 combined (as of 2026, Chichu excluded).

Yayoi Kusama’s polka-dot pumpkin sculptures sit on the pier at Benesse and have become the island’s unofficial icon. The yellow version (partially damaged by a typhoon in 2021) was restored; the red version stands on the waterfront.

Getting to Naoshima: Ferry from Takamatsu Port (50 minutes, ¥1,220, as of 2026) or from Uno Port in Okayama Prefecture (20 minutes, ¥490). Reservations not needed. Bicycles can be taken on the ferry (¥100 extra) and are a good way to move between the museum clusters.

Day trips from Takamatsu are feasible and common; overnight stays allow pre-opening and post-closing museum access.

Matsuyama

Matsuyama is Shikoku’s largest city and its most accessible introduction — the only Shikoku city served by Shinkansen connections via ferry (Hiroshima to Matsuyama by hydrofoil takes 70 minutes, ¥7,670 as of 2026).

Matsuyama Castle is one of Japan’s 12 surviving original castles — built in 1603 and never reconstructed after fire damage, meaning the keep is authentically Edo period throughout. Entry ¥520 (cable car to the castle grounds ¥270 each way, or walk the paths for free). The hilltop position gives views across the city to the Seto Inland Sea.

Dogo Onsen Honkan is Japan’s oldest operating public bathhouse, in continuous use since at least the 8th century and the building that inspired the animated bathhouse in Hayao Miyazaki’s Spirited Away. The main Honkan building is currently undergoing conservation repairs through 2024 (check current status); an auxiliary wing operates in the meantime. Standard bath entry ¥700; private room packages from ¥1,250 (as of 2026). The surrounding shopping street has mikan (Ehime mandarin orange) soft serve, red bean dumplings (botchan-dango), and lacquerware shops.

Matsuyama is the birthplace of the haiku poet Masaoka Shiki (1867–1902), who modernised the form. The Shiki Memorial Museum (entry ¥400) and the old stone haiku markers (oho) embedded in walls throughout the Dogo and castle districts reflect the city’s literary identity.

Iya Valley

The Iya Valley (Iya-kei) in central Tokushima Prefecture cuts through some of the most dramatic gorge scenery in Japan: sheer rock faces dropping to the blue-green Iya River, vine bridges (kazurabashi) that have been rebuilt for 700 years using mountain wisteria, and remote villages accessible only by single-lane mountain roads.

The Kazurabashi vine bridges — the most famous near Nishi Iya — cost ¥550 to cross (as of 2026) and swing and flex underfoot as designed; the gaps between the wisteria-vine walkways are wide enough to see through to the water far below. Not for the vertigo-prone. A second bridge (Oku Iya Ni-jyu Kazurabashi) further into the valley is less visited and has a small cart that children (and adults) can ride across.

Oboke Gorge is accessible by boat tour (40-minute trips from ¥1,100 as of 2026) from the Oboke station area, and by road from the rim above. The gorge walls have been carved by water for millions of years and show extraordinary geological layering.

Chiiori Trust (www.chiiori.org) operates a restored thatched farmhouse in the deep valley as a cultural guesthouse — Alex Kerr’s restoration project that became a model for traditional rural preservation in Japan. Stays available from ¥10,000/person.

Getting here without a car is difficult — Oboke station is the nearest rail access (JR Dosan Line from Takamatsu, 1h40min), and taxis from there are expensive. The valley rewards a rental car.

Kochi

Kochi faces the Pacific coast with an openness that feels different from the sheltered cities of Honshu. The Sunday market (Nichiyo-ichi) has been running along Otesuji boulevard for over 300 years — farmers, antique dealers, and plant sellers setting up before dawn on a 1-km stretch of road. The market runs every Sunday, rain or shine, from about 5am to 4pm.

Kochi Castle (one of the 12 original surviving castles, entry ¥420) sits at the north end of the main arcade. The seafood is exceptional: katsuo (bonito) is the regional obsession — tataki style (lightly seared, eaten with ginger and citrus), available at the Hirome Market food hall (open from 10am) for around ¥600–¥1,200 per plate.

Getting Around Shikoku

The JR Shikoku network connects the four main cities reasonably well:

• Takamatsu–Matsuyama: 2h30min (JR limited express, approximately ¥5,800)
• Takamatsu–Kochi: 2h20min (JR Nankai Anpanman train, ¥2,560)
• Matsuyama–Kochi: 2h30min by limited express (¥4,520)

All of the above are JR Pass eligible. Rural areas — Iya Valley, coastal pilgrimage routes, Muroto Cape — require rental cars or infrequent local buses. The Shikoku Freepass (JR unlimited travel, 3 or 5 days, approximately ¥12,000–¥15,000) is worth considering for multi-city travel.

Ferries connect to Honshu from multiple ports: Takamatsu–Kobe (4h, ¥2,200), Matsuyama–Hiroshima (70 minutes, ¥7,670 by Setonaikai Kisen jetfoil), and Tokushima–Wakayama (2h, ¥2,590).

Plan your Shikoku visit: Tours and activities across Shikoku cover the region’s top experiences. Flights to Japan — compare early, especially for travel to regional airports outside Tokyo. Travel insurance for Japan and an Airalo eSIM are worth sorting before you fly.

City Guides for Shikoku

Detailed city guide: Matsuyama

Related guides: Matsuyama travel guide · Things to do in Matsuyama · Onsen guide Japan · Ryokan guide Japan · Japan Rail Pass guide

See also: Where to stay in Matsuyama · Best restaurants in Matsuyama · Day trips from Matsuyama · Chugoku and Hiroshima region · Kansai region guide · Getting around Japan