5-Day Shikoku Trip by Train via Takamatsu Airport

Ritsurin Garden is a daimyo (feudal lord) garden, which was completed in 1745 over a period of one hundred years. Designated as a Special Place of Scenic Beauty, this spacious garden features 6 ponds and 13 landscaped hills. While strolling you can enjoy the changing landscape, therefore it is said that the variety of scenery has the attraction of "ippo ikkei" or a change in scenery with every step. In the garden there are buildings, such as Kikugetsu-tei teahouse, where you can have matcha (powdered green tea) while viewing the picturesque landscape, and the Sanuki Mingeikan (Folk Craft Museum), where Sanuki folk crafts are exhibited. You can also enjoy a ride on a Japanese boat, the “Senshu maru”.

This is a popular shrine, commonly known as Konpira-san. It is the head shrine of "Kotohira" or "Konpira" shrines in Japan and has been worshiped since ancient times as "the God of the Sea".
There is an extremely long staircase, consisting of 1,368 steps. The area around the shrine is crowded with many shops such as cafes, teahouses, souvenir shops and udon restaurants. You can rent a walking stick and go for a stroll or take a ride in a "kago" palanquin and enjoy the sights as you are carried around.
At the mid-way point, you will find the Main Shrine. The shrine is dedicated to many gods including the gods of agriculture, livestock, medicine and marine safety. There are wonderful paintings on the ceiling of the main shrine. On certain festival days you can see the priests and shrine maidens dancing in traditional clothes. You can also purchase a beautiful Kofuku no Kiiroi Omamori (Yellow Charm of Happiness).

Hirome Market feels like a festival every day of the year! Kochiites and visitors alike come here to check out the food shops and grab a table to enjoy an array of local and international cuisine. Nicknamed "Kochi's kitchen", this is one spot you simply cannot miss!
Located just a short walk away from Kochi Castle, Hirome Market is home to around 65 stalls. This is a great place to try a wide range of Kochi specialties, as you can buy food and drinks from the stalls and enjoy them at one of the many large tables set up around the market. Hirome Market is open from morning to late in the evening, but no matter what time you visit there are sure to find plenty of friendly folks chatting, eating, and sipping some of Kochi’s smooth dry sake.
While discovering the local delicacies is part of the fun, there are a few dishes that are sure to start you off on the right path. Katsuo no tataki (seared bonito) is the soul food of Kochi, and here you can catch the chefs searing the filets over piles of burning straw. Keep an eye out for packs of inaka-sushi (country-style sushi) made with preserved vegetables and crunchy aonori (laver) tempura, as well as other popular dishes like juicy fried chicken and gyoza (potstickers).

For over 100 years, the Kure Taisho Town Market in the town of Nakatosa has been the community’s beloved shopping arcade for all kinds of foods, including freshly-caught seafood, home cooked side dishes, vegetables and fruit.
Take a stroll through the quaint alley lined with 9 shops decorated with large colorful fishermen’s flags, traditionally flown on fishing boats to indicate a successful catch. Make sure to visit the market by 11:00am, to see the fish caught that morning being sold and experience the lively atmosphere. If you’re also not sure what type of fish you’re looking at, feel free to ask the friendly shop owners. Interacting with the community is part of the beauty and fun of the market!
For lunch, try the market’s most popular dish called Kure-don, a bowl of rice topped with the fresh seafood of your choice. We highly recommend trying katsuo-no-tataki (seared bonito), which is the universal soul food of Kochi Prefecture.

The Shimanto River Basin will make your heart soar!
Take a scenic bike ride through Nakamura, a Kyoto-esque village, or one of its low-water crossing bridges.
Kick back and relax as you watch the clear water of the Shimanto River flow by.

Nanraku-en is the largest Japanese garden in Shikoku, over four times as large as the Hanshin Koshien baseball stadium. The garden was created using the pre-eminent techniques of modern garden design. Designated as one of the “Best 100 Urban Parks in Japan”, the garden presents beautiful scenery based on the themes of “mountain, village, city, and the sea”. Come and experience the beauty of Japanese nature through each of the four distinctive seasons. The 30,000 irises in bloom around May are a particular visitor favourite!

Dogo Onsen Honkan is thought to be the oldest hot spring in Japan is mentioned in the ancient texts of the Kojiki and Manyoshu. The main building, a three-storey castle-style wooden structure has been designated an Important Cultural Property. The bathhouse is an iconic feature of Matsuyama in the novel “Botchan” and many other masterpieces of literature and film. After enjoying the smooth hot spring water, put on a Yukata robe, stroll around the local streets full of culture, and get into the spirit of this Onsen town. A new annex “Asuka-no-Yu”, adopting the architectural style of the 6th to 8th centuries, will be opened in September 2017.

Matsuyama Castle, in the style of the Momoyama period, is one of Japan’s few original surviving castles. Its 21 buildings are listed as Important Cultural Properties, and the castle is regarded as one of the three best ‘Renritsu-shiki Hirayama-jiro’ (Renritsu-shiki: an architectural style where the top castle tower is in the centre with smaller towers on either side; Hirayama-jiro: a castle built on a hill on a plain). The towers are all connected to defend the main castle building. The castle is a well-known symbol of Matsuyama and is written about in the prologue of the novel, “Clouds Above the Hill” by Ryotaro Shiba. It has been and will be guarding the city of Matsuyama for centuries!