Official Language:
Japanese
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Currency:
Japanese Yen
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Population:
Approxiamtely 2,882,000 people call Hiroshima home.
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Weather:
Climate and current weather information for Hiroshima: Hiroshima has a very mild climate, with low humidity and little precipitation. The average temperature in Hiroshima is 60/16°C. The average temperature in January is 41°F/5°C and 78-95°F/26-35°C in August.
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Cruise ships dock at the Port of Hiroshima, a brief taxi or bus ride away from all your destinations in the city.
Hiroshima's streetcar system is by far the most efficient method of getting around town. Costing 150 yen (approx. $1.25) one way, the streetcars make timely runs to the main attractions of the city, including Peace Memorial Park, Shukkei-en Garden, the Hisroshima Prefectural Art Museum, and many other sights. However, if the weather is nice and you feel like exploring the subtleties of this beautiful city in detail, you can cover these same sights all in one day on foot.
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Attractions |
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As you walk around Hiroshima today, you'll find it hard to imagine that the city was the scene of such widespread horror and destruction 50-some years ago. On the other hand, Hiroshima doesn't have the old buildings, temples, and historical structures that other cities have, yet it draws a steady flow of travelers who come to see Peace Memorial Park, the city's best known landmark. Dedicated to peace, the city also seems committed to art in addition to its fine art museums, you'll find statues, stone lanterns, memorials, and sculptures lining the streets.
Your Welcome Card, available for free at city tourist offices, gives a 20% discount on admission to Hiroshima Castle, Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art, and Shukkei-en Garden.
A-Bomb Dome - In 1945, the A-Bomb Dome was a government building in the bustling neighborhood of Sarugaku-cho. A nearby photo displays the destruction of the atomic blast. Sarugaku-cho was leveled, save a few trees and telephone poles, and the Dome's structural girders and brick walls. Today, the dome is surrounded by a fence, a lawn and sculpted hedges, and it is lit at night. An aura of that fatal day remains, however, in the rubble at its base, and in its empty, exposed interior.
Address: 1-10 Otemachi, Naka-ku
Hiroshima 730-0051, Phone: +81 (0)82 247 6738 (Hiroshima Tourist Association)
Hiroshima "Carp" Castle- What "Carp Castle" lacks in grandeur or historical authenticity--the original castle was destroyed by the bomb--it makes up for in a pleasant, park-like environment. Designated a national treasure in the 1950s, reconstruction (in concrete) of the donjon and some of the outbuildings began shortly thereafter. Overgrown foundations give the grounds an enjoyably unkempt air. The five-story castle donjon houses a collection of swords, armor, a display of "instruments used to make an arrest" and exhibits related to Hiroshima's past.
Itsukushima Shrine- Much of Hiroshima has been reconstructed since the 1945 atomic bombing; few buildings of historical and/or cultural interest remain intact. An exception, along with Mitaki and Fudoin Temples, is Itsukushima Shrine on nearby Miyajima island. Suspended over the blue waters of the Seto Inland Sea, Itsukushima Shrine is traditional, Shinto Japan at its best, blending unique architecture with the natural environment to create an aesthetic--and spiritual--whole. Its vermilion torii gate standing in the sea is a national treasure. Sanctum entrance fees are JPY300 for adults, JPY100-200 for students.
Municipal Baseball Stadium - Baseball is very popular in Japan, and Hiroshima Carp fans are loud and proud, as you can see any game day. This beautiful stadium seats 32,000. Advance and game-day tickets are on sale at the ballpark's south-side office, facing Motomachi. Sales are cash only. The ticket office is open every day except Sundays and holidays when there is no game being played. Gates open an hour and a half before the game on weekdays, and two hours before on Sundays and holidays. Tickets start at JPY1,500, which is less than the cost of a movie!
Address: 5-25 Motomachi Hiroshima 730-0011 Phone: +81 (0)82 221 2040
Museum of Contemporary Art
Set in the wilds of Hijiyama Park, the Museum of Contemporary Art blends landscaping and aesthetics into a pleasing whole, a metaphor of the natural environment around this premier cultural institution. Inside, the Museum is notable for periodic displays of contemporary art. Recent exhibits have included works by Andy Warhol and a display of "art as resistance" from the politically troubled islands of Indonesia. Outside, the Museum is sculpted into the mountainside. Around the Museum are sculpture-lined trails, and a scenic lookout over Hiroshima, complete with Henry Moore installation.
Address: 1-1 Hijiyama Koen
Minami-ku, Hiroshima 732-0815
Phone: +81 (0)82 264 1121
Fax: +81 082 264 1198
Peace Memorial Park -Hiroshima has declared itself an international city of peace, and Peace Memorial Park symbolizes its commitment to a nuclear weapons-free world, as well as commemorating the victims of a brutal fact of history. Despite the serious raison d'etre of its founding, the park is neither morbid nor fixated on the past. Enjoy a picnic lunch near parasol trees that survived the blast. See shrines and monuments such as the A-Bomb Dome and 1964 "Flame of Peace" visited daily by prayer-offering, incense-burning monks. The Peace Memorial Museum, opened in 1955, is also located here.
Address: Nakajima-cho, Naka-ku
Hiroshima 730-0811 Phone: +81 (0)82 261 1877 (tourist information)
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