This post was originally published on A Globe Well Travelled in 2019. The content has been revised and updated with fresh information.
Hiroshima was surprisingly delightful.
I’m not quite sure what I was expecting – I guess I hadn’t really considered Hiroshima as a tourist destination – but the city ended up being a cultural mecca with amazing Japanese food, walkable streets, and unique attractions. I found it to be much quieter and more intimate than Japan’s other popular cities, and I’m so glad that we decided to make it the first stop on our Japan itinerary.
Although the city is often associated with it’s tragic past, Hiroshima has made an impressive recovery and is a great destination for anyone who wants an authentic Japan experience. If you’re planning a trip to this part of Japan, here’s how to spend one day in Hiroshima!
Quick summary:
This Hiroshima itinerary visits the city’s main attractions in just one day, including the Peace Park, memorials, and museum. It also includes some food spots to stop for lunch and dinner, and a few fun things to do in Hiroshima.
Recommended tours:
👣 Hiroshima Historical Walking Tour – Learn about the city’s past with a guided visit to key sites like the Atomic Bomb Dome and Peace Park.
🍶 Hiroshima Bar Hopping and Food Tour – Sample local izakaya fare, sip sake, and try Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki in a fun evening.
⛩️ Hiroshima and Miyajima Day Tour – Combine Hiroshima’s highlights with a trip to Miyajima Island in just one day.
Where to stay in Hiroshima:
🏨 We stayed a few nights at Candeo Hotels Hiroshima Hatchobori. Our hotel room did not have a view, but it was fairly nice and decently priced for Japan.
The location was literally perfect—we could walk to the Peace Park in around 10-15 minutes, and catch trams from a stop 5 minutes away. This made it easy for us to access Hiroshima Station (for the Shinkansen to Kyoto) and get to the Miyajima ferry terminal.
The best selling point for this hotel was the Sky Spa—a top floor onsen with killer views of the city! I went up there twice to soak my muscles after full days of walking around. Soooo relaxing.
Hiroshima itinerary
H – Candeo Hotel Hatchobori
1 – Hiroshima Castle
2 – Atomic Bomb Dome
3 – Aioi Bridge
4 – Children’s Peace Monument
5 – Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum
6 – Hondori Shopping Street
7 – Okonomimura
Morning
Start your day with one of the top Hiroshima attractions – Hiroshima Castle. This monument is a reconstructed version of the original 16th century castle which was unfortunately destroyed in the bombing of 1945. You can head inside to visit the museum, or just admire it from the outside as we did.
Next, walk south towards the Atomic Bomb Dome. I felt a sense of unease when looking upon this crumbling ruin, which had survived events beyond anything I could possibly comprehend. This building was almost directly under the bomb when it exploded over the city, and amazingly it was one of the few structures that remained standing. At one stage there was debate about demolishing it, but the city decided to leave it in place as a historic reminder.
Next to the dome is Aioi Bridge – this was the original intended target for the bomb when it was dropped on Hiroshima. The bridge was repaired after the bombing and was in use for another four decades, though the bridge you see today is a replica of the original. Walk across it to access the Peace Park.
After stepping off the bridge, you’ll come across the Children’s Peace Monument. We happened to arrive here right as a large group of school children were singing in front of it, and I was tearing up within seconds – it was such an emotional moment. There are some large glass cases at this memorial filled with strings of paper cranes which have been left by visitors. These are meant to commemorate the thousands of children that died in the atomic bomb attack and in the years after from radiation-related illnesses.
👣 If you’d like to see all of these locations with a guided commentary, I would highly recommend booking a Hiroshima historical walking tour. It will give you a much better understanding of why the atomic bomb was dropped on this city.
Lunch
After an emotional morning, you’ll probably need a long break for lunch to collect yourself. I certainly did! We had a look inside the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum cafe for lunch, but found the menu to be uninspiring and lacking vegetarian options so we went for a walk to find another place to eat.
Just down the road, we found a local noodle restaurant with Udon noodle soup on the menu. Despite our limited knowledge of the Japanese language, we successfully managed to order it without meat. It was incredibly tasty! If noodle soup isn’t what you’re hungry for, there’s also a bagel shop around the corner.
Afternoon
After lunch, head inside the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum. This is a sobering experience, but certainly one of the essential Hiroshima activities. You’ll probably need a few hours to go through the museum, which has explanations (in both Japanese and English) about the lead up and the aftermath of the atomic bombing in WWII, along with personal stories from survivors, affects from the radiation, how nuclear weapons were developed, and how we might work towards a future that is free of nuclear war.
If you’ve still got some energy after the museum, head across the river to Hondori shopping street. This is where locals shop for clothes and Japanese teenagers hang out after school. The mall also has a Sega arcade where Rob and I spent way too many hundreds of yen trying to become pros at the ‘Dance Stardom’ game!
Dinner
You absolutely have to try Okonomiyaki while you’re in town! This local specialty dish is a kind of cabbage and soba noodle pancake topped with a special sauce and other toppings.
Eat them at Okonomimura, which has a variety of stalls that sell Okonomiyaki in a multi-level building. Levels 2, 3, and 4 are all filled with vendors where the chefs cook your food in front of you. Sipping on a draught beer as we watched our meal being made was one of my favourite experiences in Hiroshima!
🍶 For foodies who want to try the local fare and visit a few local izakayas for drinks, I’d suggest hopping on a Hiroshima bar hopping and food tour for a fun evening with sake and okonomiyaki included!
Combine Hiroshima with a Miyajima day trip
⛩️ I haven’t included it in this Hiroshima itinerary, but I do highly recommend visiting Miyajima Island in Hiroshima Bay if you have the time. Miyajima can easily be done as a day trip from Hiroshima, or you can do them both with a Hiroshima and Miyajima day tour.
Miyajima features the iconic floating torii gate of Itsukushima Shrine, a scenic ropeway with views over the bay, some very mischievous deer, and charming shrines and temples. Check out my Miyajima day trip guide for all the details on how to get there, what to see, and where to find the best snacks.
Leave a Reply