Autumn 2025. We – Sam and Danny, Michel and Wille, and Timothy – are travelling to Japan for a quite classic tour of the Land of the Rising Sun. We are flying separately as we used miles. On the planning: Tokyo, Kanazawa, Shirakawa, Osaka, and Expo 2025, Hiroshima, Himeji, Miyajima, Kyoto, Nara, Nagoya, Hakone, and back to Tokyo. Three weeks plus some extra days.

Let’s go to Miyajima! Or Itsukushima? That shrine with the huge torii gate in the water. Which is what and what is which?

How to get there?

To reach the ferry port from Hiroshima Station, take the JR Sanyo Line to Miyajimaguchi Station (25 minutes, 420 yen one way, covered by the Japan Rail Pass). Alternatively, you can take tram line number 2 from central Hiroshima bound for Miyajimaguchi. The tram is slower, but costs only 240 yen one way (not covered by the Japan Rail Pass).

From Miyajimaguchi Station, it is a short walk to the ferry pier, from where ferries depart frequently for Miyajima. There are two competing ferry companies operating from this port: JR and Matsudai. Both companies’ ferry rides take 10 minutes and both cost 200 yen one way (excluding visitor tax). The Japan Rail Pass is valid on JR ferries.

Itsukushima and Itsukushima Shrine

Itsukushima (厳島) is an island in the western part of Japan’s Inland Sea, situated in the northwestern area of Hiroshima Bay. It is widely known by its popular name Miyajima (宮島), meaning ‘Shrine Island‘. 

The island forms part of the city of Hatsukaichi in Hiroshima Prefecture and was formerly part of the town of Miyajima before its merger with Hatsukaichi in 2005.

Covering an area of 30.39 km² and home to around 2,000 people, the island is mountainous, forested, and largely rural, with no traffic lights and only a few small settlements. Its inhabitants are known for preserving the island’s natural environment, which is renowned for its cherry blossoms in spring and vivid maple foliage in autumn.

The island and its surrounding waters form part of Setonaikai National Park. Strong tides define the coastal scenery: at low tide, the seabed extends beyond the island’s torii gate, while at high tide the sea rises to envelop the base of the shrine’s wooden walkways. 

Because Itsukushima is considered sacred, trees may not be cut for timber, and births and deaths have traditionally been forbidden on the island to maintain ritual purity. Sika deer, regarded in the Shinto faith as messengers of the gods, roam freely through its streets.

Miyajima’s local delicacies include momiji manjū, maple-leaf-shaped pastries filled with red bean paste, custard, chocolate, or cheese. Another well-known craft is the shamoji, a flat wooden paddle used for serving rice, said to have been invented by a monk on the island. Oversized decorative examples can be seen in the shopping district.

The highest point on the island is Mount Misen, rising to 535 metres. Visitors can take the Miyajima Ropeway most of the way up, followed by a short hike to the summit. The area around the peak is associated with the Buddhist monk Kōbō Daishi (774–835), founder of the Shingon school, and includes Daishō-in Temple, one of the island’s most significant religious sites. The Miyajima Natural Botanical Garden lies along the northern coast.

Itsukushima Shrine

Itsukushima Shrine (厳島神社, Itsukushima-jinja), a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is the island’s most famous landmark. It is renowned for its ‘floating’ torii gate, which appears to rise from the sea at high tide. 

The shrine complex consists of two main sanctuaries—the Honsha Shrine and the Sessha Marodo-jinja—alongside 17 subsidiary buildings and structures. Several of its buildings and treasures are designated National Treasures of Japan.

Itsukushima-jinja was historically the ichinomiya (chief shrine) of Aki Province and one of its ‘Three Great Shrines‘, along with Take Shrine and Hayatani Shrine. The first torii is said to have been erected in 569 CE by Saeki Kuramoto during the reign of Empress Suiko (592–628). 

The shrine in its present form was established in 1168 under the patronage of Taira no Kiyomori, the powerful military leader and governor of Aki Province, who transformed it into both a place of worship and a base for maritime activities. The current torii dates from 1875.

Kiyomori regarded the island as the sacred home of the gods of navigation and the sea. According to legend, he rebuilt the shrine after dreaming of a monk who promised him dominion over Japan if he honoured the island’s deities. 

Itsukushima subsequently became the Taira family’s tutelary shrine. In the 16th century, Mōri Motonari of Chōshū Domain rebuilt the honden (main hall) in 1571. His earlier battle on the island in 1555 was said to have violated the island’s sanctity, as bloodshed was forbidden on sacred ground. The only surviving structure from the Kamakura period is the Kyakuden, or ‘Guest-God’s Shrine‘.

The shrine is dedicated to the three daughters of Susano-o no Mikoto – Ichikishimahime no Mikoto, Tagorihime no Mikoto, and Tagitsuhime no Mikoto – collectively known as the sanjoshin, or ‘three female deities’. They are goddesses of the sea and storms. 

Kiyomori believed them to be manifestations of the bodhisattva Kannon, further linking the site’s Shinto and Buddhist traditions. The island’s name, Itsukushima, means ‘island dedicated to the gods’, and the entire island is itself regarded as divine.

The shrine’s treasures include the Heike Nōkyō (‘Sutras dedicated by the House of Taira‘)—32 scrolls of Buddhist scripture transcribed by Kiyomori and his relatives, richly decorated with gold, silver, and mother-of-pearl.

Architecture

Itsukushima Shrine is an outstanding example of Shinden-zukuri architecture, the aristocratic style of the Heian period. The complex is built over the water on stilts, giving the illusion that it floats at high tide. This design allowed worshippers to approach the shrine directly by boat without setting foot on the sacred island.

The shrine’s most iconic feature is its vermilion ōtorii (‘great gate’), 15 metres tall and made from camphor wood resistant to decay. The extra supporting legs in front of and behind each main pillar identify it as a Ryōbu Shintō style torii, associated with the Shingon Buddhist tradition. At low tide, visitors can walk out to the gate; at high tide, it appears to float. The current structure dates from 1875.

The main hall (honden) is an eight-by-four bay building with a kirizuma cypress-bark roof and white-stuccoed walls accented by vermilion woodwork. The adjoining haiden (oratory) and heiden (offertory hall) are unusually long and connected by covered corridors. Extending from the haraiden (purification hall) is a noh stage dating from 1590, where ritual performances were held to honour the gods.

On 5 September 2004, Typhoon Songda caused severe damage to the shrine’s boardwalks and roofs, leading to temporary closure for repairs. Today the site is open to visitors, with an admission fee of 300 yen.

Other temples and sites on the island

In addition to Itsukushima Shrine, the island features other significant religious and cultural landmarks. 

These include Toyokuni Shrine with its five-storied pagoda, Daiganji Temple – one of Japan’s three main Benzaiten temples – and Senjōkaku (Toyokuni Shrine Hall), commissioned by Toyotomi Hideyoshi in the 16th century. Other shrines include Kiyomori Shrine, Omoto Shrine, and the Two-Storied Pagoda.

Many visitors make the short ferry trip from the mainland to pray at Miyajima’s shrines and to admire its tranquil forests, sacred deer, and sweeping views over Hiroshima Bay. Together, Itsukushima and Itsukushima Shrine form one of Japan’s most celebrated sacred landscapes—a symbol of the country’s spiritual heritage and its enduring harmony with nature and the sea.

A visit

Itsukushima or Miyajima is very easy to visit if you focus on the shrine, which is located very near the ferry harbour. 

The island is very popular with Japanase tourists, other Asian tourists and western tourists alike so expect crowds. But it never felt overwhelming. 

The ōtorii is such an icon and often use as a cover photo for Japan guidebooks. So yes, as the Eiffel Tower in Paris, you want to see it in person.

2025 Journey Across Japan

1. Japan’s Superconducting Maglev train breaks world speed record at 603 km/h.
2. Japan’s maglev bullet train delayed to 2035 or later as costs rise to ¥11 trillion.
3. QUESTION | Should you be stressed about travelling to Japan, and fear of missing out?.
4. Brussels Airport to Milan Malpensa with Brussels Airlines, operated by Air Baltic, ft. the 2025 check-in and boarding software hack.
5. REVIEW | Sala Montale Exclusive Lounge and Sala Gae Aulentin Premium Lounge at Milan Malpensa Airport, extra Schengen.
6. REVIEW | All Nippon Airways (ANA), Business Class, Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner to Tokyo.
7. REVIEW | Toei Animation Museum in Nerima, Tokyo.
8. JAPAN | Tokyo Station, its Character Street and Pokémon Store.
9. REVIEW | Onyado Nono Asakusa Hotel in Tokyo.
10. TOKYO | Asakusa ft. Sensō-ji Temple.
11. JAPAN | The Odoriko train from Tokyo to Ito on Izu Peninsula.
12. PHOTOS & REVIEW | The Izu Teddy Bear Museum in Izu-Kōgen.
13. JAPAN | A visit to Ito on Izu Peninsula in Shizuoka Prefecture.
14. REVIEW | Japan’s Saphir Odoriko in Premium Green Car from Ito on Izu Peninsula to Tokyo Station.
15. GAY TOKYO | 24 Kaikan in Asakusa (+ Ueno and Shinjuku).
16. TOKYO | Sawara in Chiba Prefecture, ‘Little Edo’ beyond Narita.
17. TOKYO | Omotesandō in Shibuya – AEON Shinonome –  Uniqlo – Muji.
18. PHOTOS | The Edo-Tokyo Open Air Architectural Museum in Koganei Park.
19. JAPAN | Solo in Tokyo.
20. REVIEW | Brussels Airport The View lounge.
21. REVIEW | Qatar Airways Business Class Brussels to Doha.
22. REVIEW | Qatar Airways Al Mourjan The Garden Business lounge.
23. REVIEW | Qatar Airways Q-Suite Business Class Doha to Tokyo.
24. REVIEW | Pullman Tokyo Tamachi.
25. REVIEW | The Railway Museum, Ōmiya, Saitama City, Saitama Prefecture.
26. TOKYO | Imperial Palace East Gardens – Akihabara – Tamiya flagship store – Skytree.
27. JAPAN | Kanazawa Castle – Kenrokuen Garden – Higashi Chaya District.
28. REVIEW | Daiwa Roynet Hotel Kanazawa Eki Nishiguchi.
29. JAPAN | Road trip to Hida no Sato, Takayama and Shirakawa-go from Kanazawa.
30. OSAKA | Namba Parks – Dōtonbori – Glico Man – Shinsaibashi.
31. REVIEW | Swissôtel Nankai Osaka.
32. Experiencing Expo 2025 Osaka Kansai Japan.
33. KANSAI | Osaka Castle ft. Toyotomi Stone Wall Museum.
34. OSAKA | EGDE store – Umeda Sky Building – Grand Front – Namba Parks – Daiso – Luscious.
35. REVIEW | Mazda Museum in Hiroshima.
36. REVIEW | Candeo Hotels Hiroshima Hatchobori.
37. JAPAN | The Hiroshima Peace Memorial, the Peace Memorial Park and the Peace Memorial Museum.
38. JAPAN | Himeji Castle.