Tokushima & Naruto

Famous for the giant whirlpools of the Naruto Strait and the Otsuka Museum of Art, while Tokushima's Awa Odori is one of Japan's liveliest summer festivals.

Tokushima & Naruto occupy the northeastern corner of Shikoku, facing Awaji Island across the Naruto Strait, and form the gateway to Shikoku from the Kansai region. In the north, Naruto is famous for the Naruto whirlpools beneath the Onaruto Bridge, which you can see from a sightseeing boat or look down on from the Uzu-no-Michi walkway inside the bridge. The same island in Naruto is home to the Otsuka Museum of Art, which reproduces great Western paintings on ceramic panels. In the Bando area of western Naruto are Temples 1 and 2 of the Shikoku pilgrimage and the German House. To the south, Tokushima City centres on Awa Odori, Mount Bizan and the Shinmachi River, and its compact centre is easy to explore on foot. Further out, you can visit the Wakimachi udatsu old street and the Awa no Dochu earth pillars on the middle reaches of the Yoshino River, or head south to Tairyu-ji, Yakuo-ji in Hiwasa and the sea turtle beach. The whirlpools are largest during the spring and autumn spring tides, so be sure to plan around the tide tables. Hotels fill up during the Awa Odori Festival (Aug 12–15) and should be booked months in advance. Highway buses from Osaka and Kobe cross the Akashi Kaikyo Bridge to Naruto or Tokushima in about 2–2.5 hours, and Tokushima Awaodori Airport has flights to and from Tokyo. Plan to stay 2–3 days; a car makes the outlying sights much easier to reach. Local specialities include Tokushima ramen, Naruto Kintoki sweet potatoes, sudachi citrus and Awa-odori chicken.

Top sights

• Naruto Whirlpool Sightseeing Boats – Sail beneath the Great Naruto Bridge for a close look at the Naruto whirlpools, which can reach 20 meters across. They are one of the world…
• Uzu-no-Michi Walkway – An over-sea walkway built inside the Great Naruto Bridge. A 450-meter stroll leads to a point 45 meters above the water, where glass floors…
• Otsuka Museum of Art – One of Japan's largest museums by display area, reproducing over a thousand Western masterpieces at original size on ceramic panels, includ…
• Naruto Park (Senjojiki & Narutoyama Observatory) – A scenic park beside the Naruto Strait. The Senjojiki Observation Deck faces the Great Naruto Bridge, and a long escalator leads up to Naru…
• Ryozenji Temple – Temple No. 1 on the Shikoku 88-Temple Pilgrimage, where pilgrims buy white robes, hats, and staffs before setting out on a 1,200-kilometer…
• Gokurakuji Temple – Temple No. 2 on the Shikoku Pilgrimage, famous for its “Longevity Cedar” about 1,200 years old and its finely crafted strolling garden.
• Naruto German House – A museum commemorating the Bando prisoner-of-war camp from World War I, where German POWs gave the Asian premiere of Beethoven's Ninth Symp…
• Oasahiko Shrine – The Ichinomiya of ancient Awa Province, with towering old cedars lining the approach, a thousand-year-old sacred camphor tree, and stone br…
• Awa Odori Kaikan – A theater where Awa Odori dance is performed every day of the year, with audience members invited on stage to learn the steps. The upper fl…
• Mount Bizan – Tokushima City's landmark mountain, about 290 meters high. A 6-minute cable car ride reaches the summit, with views over the city, the Yosh…
• Tokushima Central Park & Castle Ruins – The site of Tokushima Castle, the seat of the Hachisuka clan. It preserves distinctive blue-stone walls and a reconstructed Washi Gate, and…
• Shinmachi River & Hyotanjima Cruise – A small sightseeing boat circling Tokushima's “Gourd Island” city center, passing under more than a dozen bridges in about 30 minutes. The…
• Awa Jurobe Yashiki – The former residence of Bando Jurobe, the protagonist of the puppet drama “Keisei Awa no Naruto.” A traditional Awa puppet theater performs…
• Ai no Yakata (Indigo Museum) – An indigo dyeing museum in the former home of the Okumura family, indigo merchants of Tokushima. Visitors can try indigo dyeing and take ho…
• Wakimachi Udatsu Townscape – A merchant district on the middle Yoshino River that prospered from indigo trade. Along an approximately 430-meter old street stand mansion…
• Awa no Dochu Earth Pillars – A group of earth pillars formed as rain erodes a gravel layer, one of the world's three great earth pillar sites and a National Natural Mon…
• Tairyuji Ropeway – The longest ropeway in western Japan, spanning about 2.8 kilometers over the Naga River and forested ridges to reach Tairyuji, Temple No. 2…
• Yakuoji Temple (Hiwasa) – Temple No. 23 on the Shikoku Pilgrimage and the last temple in Awa. Known for warding off misfortune, where pilgrims place a coin on each s…
• Ohama Beach & Hiwasa Chelonian Museum Caretta – A white-sand beach where loggerhead sea turtles lay their eggs, designated a National Natural Monument. The adjacent Caretta Sea Turtle Mus…

Where to eat

• Chukasoba INOTANI Main Store – A representative shop for brown-broth Tokushima ramen, featuring a dark but clean-tasting soup, traditionally eaten wit…
• Funamoto Udon Takashima Main Store – A Naruchuru udon shop featured on Naruto City's official tourism website, known for its uneven, hand-cut thin noodles w…
• Katsuo Ryori BINBIYA – A highly popular seafood restaurant along the coastal highway in Kitanada, Naruto, famous for freshly prepared fish set…
• Shina Soba Sanpa Saita – A famous yellow-broth Tokushima ramen shop in Naruto with over 50 years of history, serving a golden pork bone and chic…

Itineraries

• Shikoku Grand Loop Self-Drive – Embark on a grand loop from Naruto through Iya, Kochi, Shimanto, Ashizuri, Uwajima, and Dogo, ending in Kotohira and Ta…
• Shikoku Henro Highlights & Mount Koya – Follow the traditional pilgrimage route to representative temples from Tokushima to Kagawa, complete the journey at Oku…