Mt. Misen
- Panorama/Viewpoint
- Garden/Green Space/Nature
The why: The 535-meter sacred peak above Miyajima, covered in UNESCO-listed primeval forest where logging has been forbidden for over a millennium. The summit holds an "eternal flame" said to have burned continuously since Kobo Daishi lit it 1,200 years ago, the same source used to light Hiroshima's Flame of Peace.
Gotcha / logistics: Three trails reach the summit, each with a different character (see below). The ropeway gets you most of the way up but ends at Shishiiwa Station -- the actual summit is still a 30-minute hike with a steep final scramble. Ropeway lines back down can run 60-90 minutes after sunset; if you go up for the view, plan to descend before the queue forms.
The forest is rare: the religious ban on logging has preserved an ecosystem where southern broad-leaf evergreens overlap with northern conifers, a transition zone you cannot reproduce anywhere else in western Honshu. It is a UNESCO World Heritage component along with the shrine.
The three trails each have a distinct identity:
- Daisho-in Course (~3.0 km, 1.5-2 hrs, moderate): the most scenic. Paved stone steps, 2,000+ in total, past Shiraito Falls and several sub-temples. Open views of the shrine and Seto Inland Sea on the way up. Best for photographers; hard on the knees on descent.
- Momijidani Course (~2.5 km, 1.5 hrs, steep): forest immersion. Follows the river valley with the steepest gradient and limited views until the ridge. Good for fitness, less for sightseeing.
- Omoto Course (~3.2 km, 2.5 hrs, gradual): the quietest. Starts from Omoto Park, gentler grade, longer walk through ancient fir forest and the Komagabayashi rock formation. Skip if you’re tight on time.
The summit complex includes Misen Hondo (Main Hall), the Reikado (Hall of the Eternal Fire), and the Mt. Misen Observatory by Hiroshima architect Hiroshi Sambuichi (2013), built from local cedar and cypress with a cantilevered platform giving 360-degree views over the Inland Sea. The wild monkey troop near the summit is real; do not feed them and do not make eye contact.
The ropeway runs in two segments with a transfer at Kayatani Station; total ride time is about 20 minutes. From the upper Shishiiwa Observatory station the views are already excellent — the Seto Inland Sea spreads out below with dozens of visible islands. On clear days you can see as far as Hiroshima city. The final summit walk from Shishiiwa takes 30 minutes on a marked trail with some scrambling near the top.
The Reikado’s eternal flame has reportedly been burning since 806 AD, when Kobo Daishi is said to have lit it. A cauldron in the hall preserves the fire, which was used as the source to light Hiroshima’s Flame of Peace in the Peace Memorial Park. Hours: Ropeway 9:00–16:00 (last ascent); occasional maintenance closures.
Admission: Ropeway ¥1,100 one way, ¥2,000 round trip. Hiking trails free.
Access: Ropeway station is a 10-min walk inland from Itsukushima Shrine or 20 min from the ferry pier.
More in Miyajima
Daisho-in Temple
The headquarters of the Omuro branch of Shingon Buddhism on Miyajima, at the foot of Mt. Misen. Historically managed Itsukushima Shrine's affairs before the Meiji Restoration separated Buddhism from Shinto. It is the mountain-and-Buddhism counterpart to the sea-and-Shinto shrine below.
Itsukushima Shrine
A 12th-century shrine complex built over the tidal flats so that the sacred island would not be wounded by construction on its soil. The corridors, Noh stage, and sanctuaries form one of the few places in Japan where the architecture is engineered to flood.
O-Torii (Floating Gate)
The 16.6-meter vermilion gate standing offshore from Itsukushima Shrine, the single most-photographed object in Japan. The current gate is the eighth iteration, built in 1875 from camphor wood, weighing 60 tons and held in place purely by gravity and seven tons of stones inside its upper structure.
Omotesando Shopping Street
The 350-meter commercial artery running from the ferry terminal toward the shrine -- the island's economic engine and its sensory introduction. Every Miyajima food cliche lives here -- grilling oysters, steaming buns, deep-fried momiji manju, and the world's largest rice scoop.
Machiya Street
The historical main street of Miyajima, running parallel to Omotesando one block inland toward the mountain. Where Omotesando is the tourist artery, Machiya is the residential one -- dark-wood lattice merchant houses, lantern-lit alleys, and the slower pace of the people who actually live here.
Senjokaku & Five-Story Pagoda
A massive open-air pavilion (officially Toyokuni Shrine) commissioned by Toyotomi Hideyoshi in 1587 to chant sutras for the war dead. He died before construction finished, so it remains incomplete to this day -- no ceiling, no front gate, just exposed beams and a polished wooden floor that mirrors the surrounding maples.