Things to Do in Shimanami-Kaido: 5 Top Attractions (2026 Guide)

Shimanami-Kaido is one of the world's most-visited cities, and the volume of attractions can be overwhelming on a first trip. We've narrowed the field to 5 sights that consistently reward the time and ticket price — each entry below links to a full visitor guide with verified opening hours, current pricing, and the practical tips that don't make it into the official site's FAQ. Bookmark this page as your starting point.

Top 5 attractions in Shimanami-Kaido

Kosanji Temple

Kosanji Temple is a flamboyant Buddhist complex on Ikuchijima island in Setoda, along Hiroshima's Shimanami Kaido. Founded in 1936 by industrialist Kozo Kanamoto in memory of his mother, it is nicknamed the "Nikko of the West" for its ornate, brightly coloured halls — many of them replicas of Japan's most celebrated temple and shrine buildings, including a recreation of Nikko Toshogu's Yomeimon Gate. Beyond the temple architecture, visitors descend into the Senbutsudo, an underground cave depicting the Buddhist hells and paradise, and climb to Miraishin no Oka (the Hill of Hope), a hillside garden of dazzling white Carrara marble sculptures with sweeping views of the Seto Inland Sea. The on-site Kosanji Museum houses more than two thousand artworks and nineteen Important Cultural Properties.

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Innoshima

Innoshima is a Seto Inland Sea island on the Shimanami Kaido, administered by Onomichi in Hiroshima. Free to visit, it is renowned for its Murakami suigun (pirate) heritage, the Innoshima Suigun Castle museum, the Innoshima Flower Center, Mt. Shirataki's Buddha statues, and as the birthplace of hassaku citrus. The Innoshima Ohashi bridge links it to Mukaishima.

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Kurushima-Kaikyo Bridge

The Kurushima-Kaikyo Bridge (来島海峡大橋) is the dramatic climax of the Shimanami Kaido, a roughly 4 km chain of three connected suspension bridges linking the island of Oshima to Imabari in Ehime Prefecture. Opened in 1999 as the world's first triple suspension bridge, it carries cars on the Nishiseto Expressway alongside a dedicated bicycle and pedestrian lane. Cycling and walking across are free (bicycle tolls were abolished in 2022), while cars pay a road toll. The SunriseItoyama cycling terminal at its Imabari foot is the main base for rentals and rest, and the crossing offers sweeping views over the Kurushima Strait's famous whirlpools and shipping lanes.

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Setoda

Setoda is the lively halfway town on Ikuchijima, the 'lemon island' at the midpoint of the Setouchi Shimanami Kaido cycling route across the Seto Inland Sea. Free to explore on foot, it pairs the marble Hill of Hope at Kosanji Temple, the Hirayama Ikuo Museum of Art and the retro Shiomachi shopping street with palm-lined Setoda Sunset Beach and famous lemon gelato from Dolce.

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Tatara Bridge

The Tatara Bridge is a soaring 1,480-metre cable-stayed bridge on the Shimanami Kaido, linking Ikuchijima (Hiroshima) and Omishima (Ehime) across the Seto Inland Sea. Opened in 1999 as the world's longest cable-stayed span, its 220-metre inverted-Y towers are a landmark for cyclists, who now cross for free after tolls were abolished in 2022. At the tower base, the 'Tatara Naki-Ryu' whispering-wall spot turns a hand-clap into a rippling echo, and the adjacent Michi-no-Eki Tatara Shimanami Park roadside station offers views, local food, and a rest stop midway along the route.

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Planning your visit to Shimanami-Kaido

Most of these attractions are clustered in walkable districts. Pair two or three per day, rather than trying to sprint between them — opening-hour overlap and ticket-window queues make a tight schedule riskier than it looks on a map. The individual guides linked above each call out the best time of day to visit and which nearby sights are worth bundling.