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Onomichi
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
city · JP

Onomichi

Recommended stay: 1 day
Getting around: Onomichi is on the JR Sanyo Line and Shinkansen-adjacent (via Shin-Onomichi Station or the main Onomichi Station), making it an easy stop between Hiroshima and Okayama. The hillside temple walk that the town is known for is entirely on foot, following a marked path connecting several temples above the town; a bicycle is the standard way to tackle the Shimanami Kaido cycling route that starts here, with rental shops offering one-way returns at other points along the route.
Hours: The temple walk (Onomichi Temple Walk) has no gate and is accessible during daylight hours, with individual temples along the way keeping their own more limited visiting hours; the route is steep and involves stairs in sections, so allow more time than the distance alone suggests.

Onomichi is a small port town built up a steep hillside facing the Seto Inland Sea, known for two distinct things: a walking path connecting 25 temples scattered across the hillside, with narrow lanes, stone steps, and cats (the town has a notable population of them, celebrated in local shops and a small cat-themed alley) along the way, and as the starting point of the Shimanami Kaido, a roughly 70-kilometer cycling route across a series of bridges linking Honshu to Shikoku via several small islands.

The hillside temple walk offers good views over the town and the Inland Sea's shipyards and islands, and the town's laid-back, slightly worn character has made it a favorite of Japanese filmmakers for decades. The Shimanami Kaido cycling route is considered one of the best cycling routes in Japan, with dedicated bike lanes across the bridges and rental shops that allow one-way drop-off, making a partial or full crossing to Imabari in Shikoku a realistic day or multi-day undertaking for visitors with time and interest.

Onomichi FAQs

Do I need to be a serious cyclist to ride the Shimanami Kaido?

No, the route has dedicated, well-marked bike lanes and rental shops offer varying difficulty options and one-way drop-off, so casual cyclists can do a shorter partial segment while more ambitious riders tackle the full roughly 70-kilometer crossing to Imabari.

What is the Onomichi Temple Walk?

A marked walking path connecting 25 temples up the town's hillside, involving stairs and narrow lanes, with good views over the town and Inland Sea; it takes a few hours to walk in full.

Why is Onomichi known for cats?

The town has a notable resident cat population that's become part of its identity, with a dedicated cat-themed alley (Neko no Hosomichi) and cat-related shops and art along the temple walk.

How do I get to Onomichi?

By JR train on the Sanyo Line, with Shin-Onomichi Station connecting to the Shinkansen network; it's a straightforward stop between Hiroshima and Okayama.

Is one day enough for Onomichi?

For the temple walk and town itself, yes; if also cycling a significant stretch of the Shimanami Kaido, plan for a full day just for that or split it across two days.

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