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SHIKOKU TOURS

Travel and Adventure

Best of Shikoku Pilgrimage

7 Days

Experience the most beautiful and interesting temples of the Shikoku Pilgrimage in seven days.

There are eighty-eight temples on the Shikoku Pilgrimage, but for most people, visiting them all in a single trip isn’t practical. Besides, not all of the temples are equally appealing.

On this guided tour, you can experience the most beautiful and interesting temples of the Shikoku Pilgrimage in seven days, visiting all four prefectures of the island. You travel by private vehicle seeing the best of the Ohenro, and staying in the main cities of Shikoku. Your accommodation includes temple lodgings, modern hotels, and onsen ryokan for variety and a taste of what the island has to offer. You visit the most attractive and spectacular temples, particularly those associated with Kūkai, founder of the pilgrimage, and Emon Saburō, the first pilgrim.

Shikoku is a big place, and to see everything in eight days calls for busy days. However, you pass through some spectacularly beautiful and varied countryside, and this is sure to be a memorable journey.

This tour can be enjoyed at any time of year. Whatever the season, there’s something special to see, to eat and to drink.

Learn more about the pilgrimage in our Shikoku Pilgrimage section.

Who is this tour for?

This tour is for those who like to travel with a guide and a small group of like-minded people. The focus is on the temples of the Shikoku Pilgrimage and its legends. Some of the places visited can only be accessed by climbing a lot of steps, so if you want to visit all of the temples and shrines, you’ll need to be reasonably fit. We stay one night at temple accommodation that has ensuite toilets, but only a shared bath, so you need to be OK with getting naked with strangers, or flannel bathing in your room.

Price

Prices shown are per person

With 2 people: ¥638,000
With 4 people: ¥398,000
With 6 people: ¥358,000
With 8 people: ¥358,000

Accommodation is 1 room for 2 people. Additional charge for 1 room per person: ¥60,000

Day 1 :

The tour starts in Matsuyama, in Ehime Prefecture. Your first temple visit is to No. 60 Yokomine-ji. Located in the foothills of Mt. Ishizuchi, it’s renowned as one of the most difficult to access. The next stop is No. 64 Maegami-ji, once a Shintō shrine associated with Mt. Ishizuchi. No. 58 Senyū-ji on a mountainside outside Imabari has magnificent temple guardians. The next temple is No. 52 Taisan-ji whose belfry has remarkable scenes of heaven and hell. The last temple of the day is No. 51 Ishite-ji, associated with Emon Saburō, considered the first pilgrim. Your accommodation is a luxurious onsen ryokan hotel in the spa town of Dōgo where a luxurious course dinner is served (included).

Day 2 :

The day starts with a climb up to Kuma Highland where you visit No. 44 Daihō-ji in a forest of massive trees, and No. 45 Iwaya-ji built into a rocky mountainside. The beautiful Niyodo River rises in the highland, and you follow it down into Kōchi Prefecture. No. 36 Shōryū-ji is located on a peninsula jutting out into the Pacific Ocean. Kūkai is said to have produced a spring at No. 35 Kiyotaki-ji, the last stop. The day’s journey ends in Kōchi City, with dinner at the popular and convivial Hirome Market. Your accommodation is a smart, modern hotel in the centre of town.

Day 3 :

Your first stop today is Katsurahama Beach with its statue of Sakamoto Ryōma gazing out over the Pacific. Then you head around Kōchi Bay to No. 31 Chikurin-ji, a lovely leafy temple with a tall red pagoda. Next you visit No. 26 Kongōchō-ji where Kūkai debated a tengu. The next stop, No. 27 Kōnomine-ji is one of the difficult to reach temples situated 632 m above sea level. The last stop of the day is No. 24 Hotsumisaki-ji and the nearby lighthouse at the end of the Muroto Peninsula. Tonight’s accommodation is an old hotel on the peninsula popular with pilgrims, where dinner is served (included).

Day 4 :

The first stop is at Mikuro Cave where Kūkai lived when he sought enlightenment. Then you head up the eastern side of the Muroto Peninsula into Tokushima, to No. 23 Yakuō-ji. Here you can protect yourself from bad fortune by placing coins on the steep steps. At No. 22 Byōdō-ji, Kūkai dug a well for the consecration of this temple. You take a cable car to get No. 21 Tairyū-ji, situated high up in the mountains with a view over much of Shikoku. No. 20 Kakurin-ji is another beautiful mountaintop temple, featuring several statues of sacred cranes. You stay at a comfortable onsen hotel, where dinner is served (included).

Day 5 :

The day starts with a visit to No. 14, Jōraku-ji, site of a touching miracle. Next stop is No. 15 Awa Kokubun-ji, one of only three Zen temples on the pilgrimage. No. 1 Ryōzen-ji is where many pilgrims start, although traditionally, pilgrims have started from where they happen to enter Shikoku. The next temple, No. 2 Gokuraku-ji is visited by women seeking easy childbirth. At No. 8 Kumadani-ji, you can see the temple gate which is considered to be the finest of all 88 temples. The last stop is No. 88 Ōkubo-ji in Kagawa Prefecture, the last temple for many pilgrims. Your accommodation is a modern hotel by the sea, where dinner is served (included).

Day 6 :

The mountains of Kagawa Prefecture have a distinctive shape, and none more so than Mt. Yashima. The first stop is at No. 84 Yashima-ji atop this dramatic plateau. No. 85 Yakuri-ji is near the site of an ancient battle in the Genpei War. Kagawa takes its name from the next temple, No. 82 Negoro-ji, where a fragrant river flowed from the base of a tree there. No. 81 Shiromine-ji has some of the oldest buildings on the pilgrimage, dating back to the seventeenth century. At No. 73 Shusshaka-ji, the young Kūkai took a death-defying leap from imposing Mt. Gahaishi. Your final stop is No. 75 Zentsū-ji, a very large temple complex and the place of Kūkai’s birth. Your last night is spent in a luxurious onsen ryokan, where dinner is served (included).

Day 7 :

After visiting Konpira Shrine (optional), you can take convenient public transport from Kotohira to Takamatsu Airport or Station for your onward journey.

Included

  • Private vehicle
  • English-speaking guide
  • Accommodation
  • Meals shown as included
  • Basic insurance

Not included

  • Travel to and from Shikoku
  • Drinks
  • Comprehensive personal insurance

You can send your enquiry via the form below.

Best of Shikoku Pilgrimage
From ¥258,000
/ Adult
From ¥498,000
/ person with 2
From ¥338,000
/ person with 4
From ¥298,000
/ person with 6
From ¥258,000
/ person with 8