Onomichi combines a long-distance cycling route with cultural sites and viewpoints in the city and on Mount Senkoji. If you’re looking for a hotel in Onomichi, you can first consider whether the Shimanami Kaido or the historic and literary sites will be the focus of your stay.
The Shimanami Kaido: a route across two islands
The Shimanami Kaido is a 70-kilometer national cycling route. It runs from Onomichi in Hiroshima Prefecture, on Japan’s main island of Honshu, via the Honshu-Shikoku Bridge Expressway to Imabari in Ehime Prefecture on the island of Shikoku. Onomichi and Imabari thus mark the endpoints of a route that extends beyond the city. Its length and course give cycling a different scale from the cultural sites located in Onomichi.
There are numerous bicycle rental shops, rest stops and cyclist-friendly facilities along the Shimanami Kaido. The route is well maintained and easy to navigate; its navigation aids include the blue Yahane Line. These features accompany the Kaido’s regional route and complement the information about its geographical course.
Senkoji: Old Town, mountain and views
Senkoji Temple is located in Onomichi’s historic Old Town. Senkoji Park extends from the summit to the middle slopes of 144.2-meter Mount Senkoji, which lies north of Onomichi Station. From the park’s summit observation platform, you can see the city of Onomichi and the islands of the Seto Inland Sea. This part of planning a trip brings together several points of interest: the temple’s location in the Old Town, the park’s expanse on the mountain, and the view from the summit over the city and islands.
Literature on Mount Senkoji
The literary trail Bungaku no Komichi is an approximately one-kilometer walking path, taking around an hour, from the summit to the middle slopes of Mount Senkoji. Excerpts from poems and novels by 25 writers and poets associated with Onomichi are carved into natural stones along the path. The texts give the walk a literary focus: you encounter them not just as a subject, but as inscriptions along the way. The approximate length and one-hour duration describe the walk, not the cycling route.
Two different scales for planning
The comparison makes the choice more concrete: the Shimanami Kaido is a 70-kilometer cycling route between Onomichi and Imabari; Bungaku no Komichi is an approximately one-kilometer walk, taking around an hour, on Mount Senkoji. These are different ways of getting around and different time scales. When planning your stay, you can decide whether the long-distance cycling connection or the more closely described cultural sites and viewpoints will be the deciding factor.
Discover more destinations: Fukuyama, Mihara, Fuchū, Kure, Kurogawa, Hatsukaichi, Miyoshi, Higashihiroshima
For the broader travel overview: Hiroshima Prefecture.
