Iwakuni

Bar Manatee Dining

マナティー

Good bar with a great menu of snacks, particularly crepes and other desserts.

Tue-Sun 19:00-06:00

Hangetsuan

半月庵

Built in 1869 to serve as an Officer's Club of the Japanese Navy, this restaurant specializes in ayu, a kind of sweet fish that's often caught by the cormorant fishermen of Iwakuni. If you enjoy the food and the atmosphere, ask about overnight lodgings.

Closed · opens 10:30 am·Lunch sets from ¥2500, dinner ¥4000

Iwakuni Art Museum

岩国美術館 Iwakuni bijutsukan

Art and artifacts about samurai life, including some remarkable sword exhibits. The admission is a bit steep, but you'll find better English information here than elsewhere.

Mar-Nov: Fri-Wed 09:00-17:00; Dec-Feb: Fri-Wed 09:00-16:00·¥800 adults, ¥200 children

Iwakuni Castle

岩国城 Iwakuni-jō

Although the original castle only stood for seven years, that was excuse enough for a reconstruction during the 1960s. The foundations of the original lie a short distance behind the new one; the builders apparently decided to move it closer to the cliff for scenic purposes. Inside the castle is a small historical museum.

Daily 09:00-16:30·¥260

Kikkawa Museum

吉川史料館 kikkawa shiryōkan

Dedicated to the aforementioned family of warlords, and including some of their weapons.

Thu-Tue 09:00-17:00·¥500

Kikko Park

吉香公園

A pleasant green spot on the other side of the bridge, with some lovely flower gardens, large sprinklers for a soak on a summer day, and a popular cherry blossom viewing spot in April. Expect to meet some chatty locals here. The entrance to the park is overseen by a statue of Hiroyoshi Kikkawa, the feudal lord who directed the construction of the Kintai-kyo; the park was built on the grounds of the Kikkawa family home. There are two museums in the park for visitors interested in samurai culture and feudal Iwakuni.

24 hr

Kintai-kyo

錦帯橋

Only samurai used to be able to cross the arches of this long, magnificent bridge. These days, the river it spans has been reduced to a trickle, and anyone willing to fork over the admission can go back and forth as they please. The 210-m original was built in 1673 using only wood — no metal nails — but the present structure is a 1953 reconstruction.

¥300 adults, ¥150 children. After the ticket office is closed, you're on the honor system to leave the admission fee in the box out front

Marine Corps Exchange

MCX

If you're on an extended trip and you miss something from home that you can't find overseas, the Marines know how you feel — there's a store on base with American brands of daily essentials like deodorant and toothpaste, along with electronics, Japanese souvenirs, and CDs/DVDs. However, it's only open to U.S. active duty personnel, reservists, and retired members of all service branches; everyone else will have to make a friend on the base to get in.

Mon-Sat 10:00-20:00, Sun 10:00-18:00

Mekata Residence

旧目加田家住宅 Kyū metaka-ke jūtaku

The home of another family of Kikkawa retainers. (Don't try to enter either, though; they're still private residences.)

Nagaya Gate

長屋門 Nagaya-mon

At the south end of the park, you'll see the dramatic gate, the home of the Kagawa family who were the Kikkawa's principal samurai retainers.

Tokotoko Train

とことこトレイン

A 40-minute sightseeing train that travels through a "Dream Tunnel" that is filled with pictures made of fluorescent glowing stones, to Sozukyo Onsen.

¥650 (Discounts for those who come via Nishikicho Station)

Underground Kingdom Mikawa Muvalley

美川ムーバレー

An entire adventure theme park located underground. The premise of the adventure is based on ancient writings found in a mineshaft that leads to questions about whether the world and its history is really as we perceive it to be. The ancient underground kingdom appears to have been inspired by Mayan culture, at least as far as the statues, art, and motifs used. They have a variety of mission quests with tasks you can complete, panning for gold, digging for gemstones, as well as caves and waterfalls, a restaurant, and an onsen.

White Snake Museum

白蛇資料館, Shiryōkan

Dedicated to the white snakes that are native to the Iwakuni area (not the hair metal band.) As they are messengers of Benten, the Japanese goddess of wealth, an encounter with the white snakes is considered good luck.

Closed · opens 9 am·free, but zealous attendants tend to ensure that foreign guests make the ¥100 donation for an English pamphlet

Friendship Day

日米親善デー nichibei shinzen dē

At the other end of Golden Week, the Marine Corps puts on a public air-show attended by up to 250,000 curious Japanese nationals. Follow the crowds out of JR Iwakuni Station for the best viewing spots.

Closed

Iwakuni Festival

岩国まつり

A lively autumn celebration with food, a flea market, and goofy events like a public tug-of-war.

third weekend of October

Kintai-kyo Festival

This is the busiest day of the year around the Kintai bridge area of Iwakuni, with more than 40,000 visitors. It's held annually on Showa Day, at the beginning of the Golden Week national holidays. The centerpiece of the festival is the mid-day Daimyo Procession, featuring a traditional dress march across the bridge; there's also food, festivities, and samurai demonstrations around Kikko Park.

April 29

Chōko-kan

徴古館

A library with historical documents and scroll paintings.

Tue-Sun 09:00-17:00·free

Naka-dōri

中通り

A covered shopping arcade

Nishiki River Water Festival

錦川水の祭典 nishiki-gawa mizu no saiten

Fireworks in the skies over the bridge.

first Sat of August