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The Iya Valley (祖谷渓谷 Iya Keikoku) region in Tokushima Prefecture, Japan is a scenic area known for its dramatic mountain valleys and old vine bridges.
The Iya Valley and the inner parts of Shikoku have historically been remote and difficult to enter,
making them a favorite retreat for refugees and defeated Heike warriors although access has improved in recent years.

Higashi Iya History and Folk Museum
The Higashi Iya History and Folk Museum is a history museum at the entrance to Oku Iya.
You will find exhibits and display items like tools, clothes, household items, and other traditional items of the region inside of the facility.

Hours: 8:30 to 17:00 
Closed: Weekends and holidays (Dec to Feb), New Year holidays 
Admission: 410 yen

The Iya Valley is usually divided into two areas.
Nishi Iya (West Iya) located around the entrance to the valley and is slightly more developed and more accessible as there are relatively frequent buses to some of the major attractions.
Oku Iya (Inner Iya, also called Higashi Iya or East Iya) lies further back into the valley so is difficult to reach without a rental car or other means of private transportation. 

Access Information
A rental car is recommended to visit the area.

1. To Nishi Iya (West Iya)
 *From Awa Ikeda Station to Kubo, take a bus and transfer to another bus bound for Nijukazurabashi or Mount Tsurugi.
Get off at the Nijukazurabashi bus stop.
The one way journey will take 2 hours with a cost of 1790 yen.
There are only 4 buses a day.
Moreover buses from Kubo to the bridge operate only on weekends and holidays from April to November.

2. To Oku Iya (Inner Iya)
Rental car stores are available around Oboke and Awa Ikeda Stations.
A rental car is recommended, particularly for visiting the less traveled Oku Iya area.
Note: The roads are very narrow and have frequent blind curves, which make driving both hazardous and slow.

The Iya Valley (祖谷渓谷 Iya Keikoku) region in Tokushima Prefecture, Japan is a scenic area known for its dramatic mountain valleys and old vine bridges.
The Iya Valley and the inner parts of Shikoku have historically been remote and difficult to enter,
making them a favorite retreat for refugees and defeated Heike warriors although access has improved in recent years.

Kazurabashi Bridge 
Suspension bridges made of mountain vines (kazurabashi) were one of the only ways to easily move people and goods across the river of the of the Iya Valley in the past.
Their origins are unclear but legends say that they were either first raised by Kobo Daishi, who was founder of the Shingon Sect of Japanese Buddhism,
or built by Heike refugees hiding in the area after their defeat in the Gempei War or Genpei kassen (1180-1185) as a means of quickly cutting off access to the valley.

There are only three surviving bridge as though 13 bridges once spanned the valley.
Iya Kazurabashi (祖谷かずら橋), the largest and most popular of the remaining bridges, stretches 45 meters across the Iya River at the center of the valley,
and offers visitors an restless view of the water 14 meters below the open slats of the span.
The bridge is rebuilt every three years and is anchored to tall cedar trees at both ends and has steel cables hidden within the vines for safety.
The bridge a one way street

Hours: Sunrise to sunset (illuminated in the evenings from 19:00 to 21:00)
Closed: No closing days
Admission: 500 yen
The level of English: Good

The Iya Valley is usually divided into two areas.
Nishi Iya (West Iya) located around the entrance to the valley and is slightly more developed and more accessible as there are relatively frequent buses to some of the major attractions.
Oku Iya (Inner Iya, also called Higashi Iya or East Iya) lies further back into the valley so is difficult to reach without a rental car or other means of private transportation. 

Access Information
A rental car is recommended to visit the area.

The Oboke Gorge (Ōboke) has unusual geological strata, including a rudaceous schist formation designated as a natural monument.
Oboke Gorge and neighboring Koboke Gorge a little ways downstream, are narrow, steep sided gorges near the entrance to the Iya Valley.
Their names mean "big dangerous steps" and "small dangerous steps" as their jagged, rocky walls can be dangerous to navigate.
Yoshino River has cut through the Shikoku Mountains over the ages, eroding crystalline schist into winding gorges with myriad shapes and forms,
which almost look like marble statues. 

The gorges are one of the leading outdoor destinations in Japan and are known for their beautiful natural scenery and for the variety of outdoor attractions.

Oboke Sightseeing Boat Cruise

Guides show interesting rocks, many of which resemble different animals, along the way on this gentle 30 minute boat ride down the Yoshino River.
Boats depart and return to a dock a short ways away from Lapis Oboke and Oboke Station.
Passenger requires taking off their shoes and sitting on the floor of the boat during the cruise.

Hours: 9:00 to 17:00 
Closed: No closing days 
Admission: 1080 yen

Access Information
A rental car is recommended to visit the area.

The Oboke Gorge (Ōboke) has unusual geological strata, including a rudaceous schist formation designated as a natural monument.
Oboke Gorge and neighboring Koboke Gorge a little ways downstream, are narrow, steep sided gorges near the entrance to the Iya Valley.
Their names mean "big dangerous steps" and "small dangerous steps" as their jagged, rocky walls can be dangerous to navigate.
Yoshino River has cut through the Shikoku Mountains over the ages, eroding crystalline schist into winding gorges with myriad shapes and forms,
which almost look like marble statues. 

The gorges are one of the leading outdoor destinations in Japan and are known for their beautiful natural scenery and for the variety of outdoor attractions.

Lapis Oboke
Lapis Oboke is a rest area (called Michi no Eki meaning, station on the road) close to Oboke Station with a tourist information center, restaurant and shop.
Inside is the funny little Yokai Museum featuring models and dioramas of the ghosts and monsters (yokai), such as Demon King.
The Museum was recognized by cartoonist, Mizuki Shigeru.  
A small gem museum resides on the floor above the Yokai Museum. 

Hours: 9:00 to 17:00 
Closed: Mondays from December to February 
Admission: 500 yen (both museums) 
The level of English: Moderate
 

The Oboke Gorge (Ōboke) has unusual geological strata, including a rudaceous schist formation designated as a natural monument.
Oboke Gorge and neighboring Koboke Gorge a little ways downstream, are narrow, steep sided gorges near the entrance to the Iya Valley.
Their names mean "big dangerous steps" and "small dangerous steps" as their jagged, rocky walls can be dangerous to navigate.
Yoshino River has cut through the Shikoku Mountains over the ages, eroding crystalline schist into winding gorges with myriad shapes and forms, which almost look like marble statues. 

The gorges are one of the leading outdoor destinations in Japan and are known for their beautiful natural scenery and for the variety of outdoor attractions.

River Rafting
The upstream of the Yoshino river, called Oboke and Koboke is famous for its torrent.
And the river  is one of Japan's most well known destinations for whitewater rafting.
There are several outdoor adventure companies which offer guided tours.
Full day and half day rafting tours are available, as well as a variety of other adventures sports such as hydrospeed and canyoning.

Hours: 8:00 to 20:00 
Season: April to November 
Admission: Half day tours start from 5200 yen
Some company has an English web site.

The Ando Museum opened in March 2013 in time for the second Setouchi Triennale in the Honmura town of Naoshima where it joins the buildings of the Art House Project as an additional magnet to contemporary art lovers. The museum is designed by star architect, Ando Tadao, who also designed most other museums on Naoshima.

The Ando Museum seems like a regular, traditional residence from the outside, blending in perfectly into the town's neighborhood. However, the inside of the building combines traditional interior design with Ando's signature use of concrete, creating a rather fascinating atmosphere. Explanatory signs and photographs along the walls document Ando's activities on Naoshima and elsewhere.    

Schedule & cost                                      
Hours: 10:00 to 16:30 (last entry 16:00)
Closed: Mondays (or Tuesday if Monday is a national holiday)
Admission: 510 yen
                    
Access info
There’re one or two buses per hour from Miyanoura Ferry Terminal bound for Tsutsujiso that stop at the Nokyo-mae bus stop in Honmura (5 minutes, 100 yen) along the way. Alternatively, it is a 2.5 kilometer bicycle ride (10 minutes) or walk (35-45 minutes) from the Miyanoura Ferry Terminal. Honmura has also its own port with infrequent ferry connections to Uno Port on Honshu.     

On the base of Yashima Mountain in Takamatsu City, Kagawa prefecture, lies an open air museum Shikoku Mura (四国村). Among the artwork displayed here are traditional building and structures from within Shikoku Island, farmhouses and storehouses from the Edo and Meiji Periods, as well as a small art gallery.

Visitors can explore the outdoors museum on the mountainside, viewing bridges, a light house and even a kabuki theater.  Among the most popular is a vine suspension bridge modeled after the ones in Tokushima Prefecture’s Iya Valley.  The bridges are made of vine and wood with reinforcements by steel cables.

Hours: 8:30 to 17:30 (until 18:00 from April to October)
Closed: Opened All Year Round
Admission: 800 yen (1000 yen combined ticket includes entrance to the gallery)

Access Information:
Via Kotoden:
Board a train from Takamatsu-Chikko Station to Kawaramachi Station. The journey should take about 5 minutes.  Transfer to the Shido Line and disembark at Kotoden Yashima Station. The journey here should take about 15 minutes. From the station, it should take about 5 minutes on foot to Shikoku Mura.
Note:  Though there are many trains from Takamatsu-Chikko Station to Kawaramachi Station, from Kawaramachi Station to Kotoden Yashima Station there are only 3 trains every hour.

Via JR:
From JR Takamatsu Station, board a local train to Yashima Station. The journey should take 15 minutes.  From the station, it should take about 15 minutes on foot to Shikoku Mura.
Note:  There are only 1 or 2 trains every hour.

Takamatsu Shopping Arcade is the long, covered shopping street from Takamatsu Castle to Ritsurin Koen.  Known in Japanese as a shotengai, these shopping streets consisting of small family businesses were an important part of life in Japan in the past. Said to be the longest covered shopping arcade in Japan, Takamatsu Shopping Arcade is nearly 2.7 kilometer in length.

With the passage of time, more and more shopping arcades in Japan are moving away from small family businesses to large corporate chain stores.  The northern end of the Takamatsu Shopping Arcade (near Takamatsu Castle) was been redeveloped into an upscale shopping plaza with tenants such as Louis Vuitton and Coach.  Hungry visitors best visit Lion Dori, a street running parallel to the main shopping street.  Here visitors will find an array of eateries, including places which serve the local delicacy, Sanuki Udon.

Hours:  varies from store to store.  In general, most stores are opened from 11am to 7pm or so.
Holidays:  varies from store to store.  Many stores are opened every day.  Some stores are closed once a week, typically on a Monday or Wednesday.

Access Information:
From JR Takamatsu Station or Takamatsu Castle, it is a 10 to 15 minute walk. 

Located along the Seto Inland Sea, Sunport Takamatsu is a beautiful, relaxing waterfront promenade that its visitors can enjoy while taking a seaside bicycle ride, tea, or even a business meeting.  

With the opening of the Seto Ohashi Bridge in 1988, Takamatsu Port’s role as the main port of entry into Shikoku changed. Though it still provides ferries to nearby islands such as Shodoshima, Naoshima, Megijima and Ogijima, the utilization of car ferries has drastically declined, requiring a change.  

Thus, Sunport Takamatsu was born. With ANA Hotel Clement, the Symbol Tower and even JR Takamatsu Station in its vicinity, Sunport Takamatsu is a convenient business and shopping center. Symbol Tower is the tallest building in Sunport Takamatsu.  Offices occupy the upper floors with the Maritime Plaza Shopping Center on the lower levels. Visitors can enjoy fine dining here as well.  There are three restaurants in the tower managed by the chefs from the popular television cooking show, Iron Chef.

Access Information:
Sunport Takamatsu is a short walk from JR Takamatsu Station.
It is located across the street from Takamatsu Castle.