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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.

Manikin Peeing Boy Statue
At the edge of this dizzying, 200 meter high cliff stands the boy statue posed as if he were peeing off the ledge down to the valley bellow.
This statue is placed at a beautiful scenic spot a few steps from The Iya ONSEN HOTEL, where local folklore says travelers would climb out to pee off in order to try to act strong or play chicken. 

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. 

The image is Sobamai zosui (buckwheat porridge), which is the local specialties of the Iya region made from dechaffed buckwheat berries in place of rice. 

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.

Shin-Iya Onsen Hotel Kazurabashi 
This hotel is located one of Japan's three major least visited regions.
The sky-high open-air bath is accessed by a cable car. It provides local dishes which are popular amongst guests.
The hotel has three outdoor baths, one for each gender as well as a mixed gender bath in which you can watch nice views out over the Iya Valley.
The baths are found high up on the mountainside above the hotel.
The can be accessed by a short cable car from the main building.

Daytime Hours: 10:00 to 16:00 
Daytime Admission: 1200 yen 
Overnight Stay: from 14,000 yen per person including 2 meals

Food
The image is Local dishes 

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.

Iya Onsen Hotel
The Iya Onsen Hotel is located high up on the steep slope overlooking the Iya Valley.
A notable point in the hotel is that its outdoor hot baths located along the river and you have to take a cable car some 170 meters below the hotel itself. 
The bath water is a lukewarm 39 degrees Celsius.

Daytime Hours: 7:00 to 18:00 (Last entry at 17:00) 
Daytime Admission: 1500 yen (including outdoor bath, indoor bath, and cable car) 
Overnight Stay: from 12,000 yen per person including 2 meals
Level of English: Good English website is available.

Food
The image is Kaiseki ryori (Traditional multi-course Japanese meal), which is used Local products.

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.

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.

Naruto, part of Tokushima Prefecture, is the northeastern most city on Shikoku Island.
The city is known for its swirling whirlpools.
You can see them in the Strait of Naruto underneath the Onaruto Bridge which connects Tokushima to Awaji Island. 

Naruto is also the starting point of the Shikoku Pilgrimage or Henro,
which is a religious pilgrimage where one goes around visiting the 88 holy temples on Shikoku.

About Naruto whirlpools 
Because of the change of tides, the whirlpools occur roughly every six hours and can typically be seen once in the morning and once in the afternoon for an hour or two.
 
Under ideal conditions, whirlpools of up to 20 meters in diameters can be seen.
On the other hand, there is not much to see outside of the peak times or on calm days.
So it always helps to check the tide schedule before heading out.
(English and Chinese time table available on the internet.)

The whirlpools are great ways to view from sightseeing cruises which get right up next to and among the whirlpools.

The next best views are from “Uzu no Michi”, an enclosed walkway that stretches under the Onaruto Bridge and overlooks the whirlpools.
The walkway's observation room is placed 45 meters above the whirlpools below which can be observed through glass windows set in the floor.

Naruto Park has a number of walking trails and viewpoints found around it with views of the whirlpools and Onaruto Bridge.
There are two good viewpoints. One is the Senjojiki Observatory. Another is Eska Hill.

Also found in the park is the Onaruto Bridge Museum Eddy, which is devoted to the construction of the Onaruto Bridge,
its whirlpools and the strait.

Access Information

Naruto Park is placed about seven kilometers north of central Naruto City.
One or two buses per hour run between Naruto Station and Naruto Park.
The one way ride takes 25 minutes with a cost of 310 yen. Buses stop near the “Naruto Kosoku” bus stop along the way,
where it is possible to transfer to highway buses.
Highway buses traveling in the direction of Tokushima also stop at “Naruto Koen-guchi” bus stop in Naruto Park along the expressway.

Uzushio Kankosen Boat Tours
Hours: 9:00am to 4:20pm (boat tours depart every 30 to 40 minutes)
Closed: Open year-round
Admission: Aqua Eddy: 2260 yen 
Wonder Naruto: 1580 yen (2580 yen for the upper deck) 

Uzushio Kisen Boat Tours
Hours: 8:00am to 4:30pm (boat tours depart every 30 minutes)
Closed: Open year-round
Admission: 1550 yen