Seto-sail into yesteryear & savour this region’s sublime surrounds
I refuse to release autumn’s incandescent glow. I still feel the warmth of the fading sun on my face, my hair gently tousled by the breeze; ok stuck to my wet face like a flimsy yet determined octopus, during windier conditions.
I can smell and taste the saltwater spray from skimming the sea’s surface in our weathered cabin-cruiser; humming over the ripples as one of the region’s famously glorious sunsets played peekaboo between the islets. Santorini, Southern Italy or the Maldives?
No… but then Japan’s Seto-naikai (the Seto Inland Sea) is known for notching up the surprise.
Languishing between the coastal fringes of Japanese main islands Honshu and Shikoku, the inland sea’s elongated body of water conceals an immersed ancient landmass (covered over time by rising sea levels) and is punctuated by almost 3000 small islands; some barely large enough to hold a picnic, while others, including the better known Naoshima and Teshima, and lesser-known Shodoshima, Awajishima, Inujima, Megijima and Ogijima… just to name a few, offer sprawling canvases for a thriving and ever-developing contemporary art scene. And so much more.
The over-arching Setouchi region stretches as far in kilometres as it does in character, from scenic, sleepy Yamaguchi Prefecture in southern Honshu to Hyogo Prefecture in the north, captained by the cosmopolitan port city of Kobe. A diverse cluster of destinations lay along the connective roads and waterways in between, awaiting discovery. So you’d best hop to it.
Okayama City, best known for its black castle and joyously extensive Korakuen garden, awash with colour year-round, is also a Shinkansen jumping-off point for transport to Shikoku and the spectacular art islands. An amble away, the exquisitely preserved canal precinct of Kurashiki showcases a brilliant collection of folkcraft, including local indigo textiles, at Kurashiki Mingeikan. Industrious Imbe pottery village is a magnet for admirers of Bizen-ware and its thousand-year history.
Kobe’s Shin-Kobe station is the closest Shinkansen stop for accessing transport to the island of Awaji (Awajishima) and northern Tokushima, which is connected to Awajishima by a bridge swooping over the famous Naruto whirlpools. Not far from Kobe City, Akashi City’s port area houses rustic Uontana fish market and several quirky taverns, one in which I was wooed by my husband in the early days of our courtship; I still carry the playing card scrawled with his initials, plucked by a magician-publican from his foretelling deck.
Hiroshima is regularly frequented for its humbling Peace Memorial Museum, phenomenal sake, floating torii and sacred deer of Itsukushima (shrine) on Miyajima, and the best okonomiyaki in the land. Nearby, charming Onomichi is perfect for kicking off on the 70km Shimanami Kaido cycle route – a breathtaking ride across the bridge-linked island chain connecting to Imabari in western Shikoku, within the greater Setouchi region – the tiny, quiet islets beg to be explored.. and are very much on my agenda for adding to a future tour itinerary!
On several occasions over the last handful of years, tour guests and I capped our Seto island-hopping with a blissful stay at Naoshima’s luxurious accommodation, nestled between domiciles and vegetable fields behind the Art House Project and Honmura Port. Sumptuous Roka Ryokan’s contemporary riff on a traditional stay style, is focused on comfort, relaxation, and incredible meals – ask any of my guests and you’ll learn it was terribly hard to leave… however, it was our time on the smallest of Japan’s main islands – Shikoku (note: only part of the island is located within the Setouchi region) – which truly captured our hearts.
A year before I hosted my first tour in the region I arrived in Takamatsu for a private famil (familiarisation) – with hope from local tourism bodies that I’d develop a tour in the region. It was only my second visit, the former being with my mum, around 3 decades before. Takamatsu was a noticeably low-profile city, that didn’t seem to have changed much over the years, and felt rather lacklustre on first glance – an unfair comparison to Japan’s larger cities perhaps…
As I sank into a beautifully crafted kaiseki meal inside a restaurant at the old-fashioned but uber-convenient JR Clement Hotel, located between the train station and ferry terminal, I was forced to eat my words. Each ingredient heralded the pristine waters and fertile lands of which I found myself surrounded by, showcasing just-caught seafood, tender pork and beef raised on Shodoshima-grown olives as well as Awajishima’s famously sweet onions – sought by chefs Japan-wide, and Ehime’s exotic citrus, or as I like to call them – nectar of the deities, found in a swathe of varieties with profoundly different flavour profiles. It was a very good start to a region I didn’t know well at the time and had quickly mis-judged. But that’s a little bit of Shikoku’s magic – and it didn’t take long to realise that I’d stumbled into an experience that I can only describe as witnessing a tightly bound ball of dusty silken thread unfurl slowly before my eyes, before wrapping around my soul for all eternity.
Strolling beneath the sculpted pines of Ritsurin garden, my host and I bonded with giant Koi clambering over one another in pretty waterways, seeking crumbs from the Kimono-clad ladies who teetered on arched bridges above them. We enjoyed a meal in a tiny teahouse on the premises and talked about this wondrous place and way lay ahead – until my legs numbed from the extended tatami-sitting and he had to lift me off the floor…
On a subsequent visit with older guests, who’d not been subjected to the glory of tatami seating, we sauntered the city’s atmospheric shotengai and yokocho (old-school shopping arcades and izakaya alleyways), fragrant with grilled chicken and steamed nikuman (pork buns), we discussed our impressions of the city, only connected to Honshu by bridge in fairly recent times – coming up for 40 years ago now! But in the scheme of things in Japan, that is very recent and is the reason why Shikoku has maintained its charm and unique culture.
Although the truest form of distance between the lands, and Shikoku’s certain reluctance to shift into more updated furnishings is readily observed and appreciated by all my guests these days – it is unanimously un-anticipated.
In Ozu Castle township, on another visit, my tour group collectively fell under the spell of southern Ehime prefecture, and into a deeper appreciation of a bygone era. Nipponia, a hotel group known for its exquisite conservation and restoration of Edo, Showa and Meiji-period architecture, has collaborated with Ozu council and private investors to revive historic properties around Ozu Castle and the surrounding old-town lanes. Guests can now sleep, eat and drink in the lavishly appointed historic, cultural properties operated as a ‘dispersed hotel’, offering suites in what were originally homes and storehouses (kura) of wealthy merchant families. A separately booked private stay is also available within Ozu Castle itself. Quaint laneways lined with revived shophouses allows the opportunity to support local artisan and cafe tenants whilst slipping further into an utterly dreamy, altered reality. Check out local soy breweries and the wonderful Garyo Sanso – tea house /garden by the river. Nearby Uchiko is another attractive village well worth wandering – don’t miss the traditional candles from this famous wax producing area.
In historic Tobe pottery village we shopped for ceramics in glorious blue hues (the same we’d found on our table at Nipponia’s fine dining restaurant – by the way, if staying at the hotel they will drive you to the restaurant and back on request as it’s a little further away from most of the accommodation buildlings, except the castle itself) , and watched an elderly woman hand weave an obijime (a thin rope like sash that wraps around a broader obi sash). In Matsuyama we strolled high above the city to gaze upon the Ghibli-esque Dogo onsen while we soaked our tootsies in a free foot spa on the street, before puchasing Japan’s famous incomparably soft Imabari towels then admired the impressive grounds of Ishiteji (temple) where some of us took time lighting incense and ringing the giant bell – and a couple of us braved the dark and eerie, increasingly narrow Mantra cave lined with Jizo statues. Which are not ‘dead babies’, BTW. Look it up – you’ll find the background to be a wonderfully comforting story that deals with loss in an inspiring way.
In Uwajima we hugged the scenic sea-fringe, evoking memories of the Mediterranean as we clambered towards fragrantly terraced mikan groves and hung out with local kids rollerskating in circles, gently herding the town’s feline population. We visited the small but picture-perfect garden of Tensha-en and giggled inappropriately at an enormous shrine phallus and sugar-crafted ver-jayjays – offerings to the gods of sex and fertility. Our gracious guide also took time to read out the Japanese horoscopes which most of the group had acquired from an on-site dispenser.. some of the group were well beyond child-bearing years, but certainly not devoid of romantic interest or pursuit… my ears are still ringing with cackles and laughter!
Our stays in this beautifully untrampled pocket of Japan always offer unexpected, transformative experiences – no one trip is like the next.. And each time we have to leave, there is a strange and not-unsubtle grief that hangs like noren across our farewell frame. Final twilight legs across the Inland Sea always offer a deeper reflection of the romance of yesteryear – and remind us of the benefits of staying true to oneself, whether a person or an island.
I think I might retire in the Setouchi…
Getting there
Take the shinkansen to Okayama station (3 hours from Tokyo, 1 hour from Osaka) then transfer to either the rapid Marine Liner for Shikoku’s Takamatsu station/port area (1 hour), or the JR line to Uno station/port (50 minutes). Art island ferries operate from each port. Accessing Naoshima from Uno takes 20 minutes, from Takamatsu, about 1 hour.
Ozu, in Ehime prefecture, is about 2 hours and 50 minutes’ drive from Takamatsu. If flying, it’s about an hour’s drive from Matsuyama airport.
ANA and JAL fly regularly between Tokyo’s Haneda airport and both Takamatsu (80 minutes), and Ehime’s Matsuyama airports (90 minutes).
** Unfortunately the gates have closed for November 2026’s Shikoku Tour…and we won’t be repeating this tour next year as it’s time to share another incredible regional Japan destination – but we’re not done with the Setouchi of course – so keep your eyes peeled for what comes next.
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However ! While it’s only TWO WEEKS until BOOKINGS CLOSE – You still have time to join us in February 2027 for our magical, mystical – a little bit witchy, a little bit woo woo and a lot of wonderful – 11 Senses Tour, a deeply cultural Kyoto journey of discovey and retreat.
And there’s still 6 spots on May 2027’s Kyushu Roads of Tea and Clay tour – food, craft, culture through Fukuoka City and Prefecture and neighbouring Saga… swoon. If you haven’t been to Kyushu yet, and you’re into ceramics, you don’t know what you’re missing.
Please enquire with me directly via the Zenbu Travel Contact form or by emailing me at janelawsonfood@bigpond.com.
