In Hiroshima, you can focus on different things: remembering the atomic bombing, historic garden culture, art or okonomiyaki. When choosing a hotel in Hiroshima, it helps to first consider which of these themes you want to shape your stay. The sights offer very different points of interest—from peace education to collections and local cuisine.
Remembrance and peace education
Peace Memorial Park is a city park created to commemorate the victims of the atomic bombing and to pray for lasting world peace. The Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum opened in 1955 to convey the reality of the atomic bombing and promote the abolition of nuclear weapons and lasting world peace. The museum also hosts talks by survivors and lends materials for peace education.
The Atomic Bomb Dome is listed as a World Heritage Site; it was inscribed in December 1996. It can only be viewed from the outside; visitors cannot enter. Check the latest conditions before your visit. The Atomic Bomb Relics Exhibition Hall displays remains of houses and paved roads that still bear traces of damage from the atomic bombing. In this way, the park, museum, exhibition and building each offer a different approach to the subject.
Shukkeien and two art collections
Shukkeien was created in 1620 as the historic garden of a Japanese daimyĹŤ and is located in the heart of Hiroshima City. The garden offers a different focus from the memorial sites: its history as a historic garden and its setting in the city take center stage. If you would like to include garden culture in your trip alongside the memorial sites, Shukkeien is a distinct theme to explore.
The art museums also differ in what makes their collections distinctive. The Hiroshima Museum of Art displays around 90 works from its collection in a permanent exhibition, including modern French art, especially Impressionism. The Hiroshima Prefectural Art Museum has a collection of around 5,200 works, including art related to Hiroshima Prefecture and arts and crafts from Japan and Asia. The figures therefore refer to different things: works in a permanent exhibition at the Hiroshima Museum of Art and the size of the prefectural museum’s collection. When choosing which museum to visit, its particular artistic focus may be more useful than a simple comparison of the numbers.
A boat ride, views and local cuisine
The Hiroshima Castle Pleasure Boat offers a sightseeing cruise around the castle moat; on board, the history and sights of Hiroshima Castle are explained. If you plan to take this cruise, check the current schedule in advance. On a clear day, the Atomic Bomb Dome and Miyajima can be seen from the roof of HIROSHIMA ORIZURU TOWER. The tower’s café offers homemade drinks and sweets made mainly with fruit from Hiroshima. As café operations may change, check whether it is open before your visit.
Okonomi-mura is a visitor attraction in Hiroshima with 23 okonomiyaki restaurants. As the number may change, check the current selection if you are making specific plans. To get to Peace Memorial Park, the Hiroshima Meipuru-pu city bus reaches the park in about 16 minutes on the Orange Route. As schedules and journey times may change, it is advisable to check the latest timetable. A boat ride, views and food offer further, clearly distinct interests to help shape your stay.
Choose a focus for your stay
Whether your main interests are the memorial sites, Shukkeien and the art collections, or food and views makes a difference when planning. First decide which of these themes interests you most, and use that to guide your search for a hotel in Hiroshima. This way, choosing where to stay starts with the purpose of your trip, without requiring the different sights to be combined into a fixed itinerary.
Discover more destinations: Hatsukaichi, Sera, Onomichi, Mihara, Kurogawa, Fuchū, Fukuyama, Miyoshi
Return to the overview of destinations: Hiroshima Prefecture.
