Page 33 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Japan

5 DAYS

in Western Honshu

Day 1 elegant restaurant by the moat. Next,
catch a bus to the Shosha-Ropeway to
Begin your trip at Osaka’s grand castle visit the 1,000 year-old Engyo-ji temple.
(p218); tours take in the excellent collection Then, head to Nadagiku Shuzo (www.
of art and weaponry. For lunch, head to nadagiku.co.jp), an ancient sake brewery
Kuromon Ichiba market, a foodie hotspot near Himeji station. The brewery shuts at
50-minutes’ walk to the south. Travel back 6pm, but the restaurant, which specializes
into the city center to check out some in tofu and suminabe (a type of hotpot
cutting-edge Japanese fashion at the cooked over charcoal), is open until 9pm.
Hankyu department store (www.hankyu-
dept.co.jp), before exploring the eye-
catching National Museum of Art. In the Day 4
evening, take a relaxing dip in one of the
baths at Spa World (p220). For dinner, Catch the 90-minute shinkansen to
head to Tachinomi Nikou (p221), one of Hiroshima. Make your way to the Peace
Osaka’s tachinomi (small standing bars). Memorial Museum (p228) to learn about
the atomic bombing of the city in 1945,
then pick up a bento box from Onigiri
Day 2 Nitaya (www.nitaya.jp) and spend lunch-
time in quiet contemplation in the Peace
Take a one-hour train ride to the ancient
city of Nara (p214). Instead of leaving the Memorial Park (p228). After paying your
station, first make the short train journey respects at the park’s poignant monuments,
to Horyu-ji (p232) to see the oldest wooden catch the 45-minute ferry to Miyajima
building in Japan. Head back to central Island (p230) from the park’s pier. Unwind
Nara for an unagi (eel) lunch at Edogawa in the onsen at Kurayado Iroha Ryokan,
(43 Shimomikadocho), then take a stroll before enjoying the traditional meal pre-
through Nara Park. Huge wooden guardians pared by your host (www.visit-miyajima.jp).
mark the entrance to Todai-ji, home to
the towering Great Buddha (p216) – see if Day 5
you can squeeze through the hole behind
him to be blessed with everlasting luck. Rise early to view the world-famous Otorii
Choose Kura (16 Komyoincho) for dinner, of Itsukushima Shrine at high tide, when
an atmospheric izakaya (pub) housed in it seems to float on the sea. Explore the
a traditional art storehouse. rest of the shrine at your leisure, then
follow your nose to Kakiya (www.kaki-ya.
Day 3 jp) for a delicious lunch of fried oysters.
Enjoy a moment of calm at the Daisho-in
After a 2.5-hour train journey from Nara, Temple nearby, then make the 90-minute
you’ll be greeted on arrival in Himeji by hike up Mount Misen for spectactular
the breathtaking Himeji-jo fortress (p224). panoramic views. Take the ferry back to
Explore the main donjon and the verdant Hiroshima in time for dinner at Okonomi
grounds of the castle, before having a Mura (www.okonomimura.jp), which serves
late lunch at Wabisuke (2 Wabisuke), an delicious okonomiyaki (savoury pancakes).
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