Shikoku, Japan · City
Home to Dogo Onsen, one of Japan's oldest hot springs and a possible inspiration for 'Spirited Away'.
Train — Train or flight from Osaka/Hiroshima
🛌 Pure relaxation
One of Japan's oldest hot springs, thought to be a possible inspiration for Spirited Away.
An annex opened in 2017, 100 metres from the main building, with Asuka-period architecture and decoration commissioned from Ehime craftspeople: Tobe ceramics, Iyo kasuri weaving and Sakurai lacquer. Shorter queues and cheaper than the Honkan.
The grid of three parallel streets crossed by the Okaido arcade is the largest nightlife district in Ehime: tachinomi, izakaya, sake bars and the illuminated castle in the background. Nibancho is the densest of the three.
Temple number 51 on the 88-temple Shikoku pilgrimage, known for its Niomon Gate, a National Treasure, and its stone cave tunnel.
A triangular exposed-concrete building devoted to Shiba Ryotaro's novel about the Akiyama brothers and Masaoka Shiki, that is, about the Matsuyama that manufactured Japan's military modernisation. Closed Mondays.
Sea bream taimeshi comes in two rival versions, the Matsuyama one cooked and the Uwajima one raw with egg. Alongside it come jakoten, a fried cake of small-fish paste, five-coloured goshiki somen, botchan dango and taruto filled with yuzu bean paste.
Numbers 46 to 53 all lie within the city limits: it is the largest concentration of temples of the 88-temple circuit in a single municipality. The stretch from 46 to 51, about 20 kilometres, is among the most walkable of the whole pilgrimage.
Matsuyama is Japan's haiku capital: Shiki's home town and the city of 'Botchan'. Red post boxes are scattered around Dogo, the castle and the station where anyone can drop in a haiku of their own, and the best are selected and published. The city also has more than 200 monuments with verses carved into them.
A French-style villa from 1922 built by Count Hisamatsu at the foot of the castle; it is the best preserved Western architecture in Shikoku. Closed Mondays.
From 19 to 21 March, with longevity mochi handed out, parades, folk performing arts and a women's mikoshi contest. Free.
Almost 12,000 works inside the castle park: Monet, Cezanne, Yokoyama Taikan and local artists, for little more than 300 yen. Closed Mondays.
An official 67-kilometre coastal cycling route at beginner level, almost entirely flat, running from Imabari to the door of Dogo Onsen Honkan. It is the way to link the Shimanami Kaido with Matsuyama without taking the train; in July and August it is far too hot.
The Yamatoya Honten has a noh stage in its courtyard and programmes performances for its guests; the Dogokan and the Setsugetsuka round out the district's classic offering.
A Shinto shrine with striking architecture and a long stone staircase, located near the Dogo district.
Iyo kasuri was one of Japan's three great kasuri textiles. At the centre in Kinuyama you dye a scarf of your own and see original looms and school uniforms from the period; confirm opening before going.
An uninhabited islet within the city limits, in the Hojo district, three minutes away by ferry: free-roaming sika deer, a beach, easy hiking and a viewpoint declared a sacred spot for lovers.
The climax is the hachiawase on 7 October at 6:30am in front of Dogo Onsen station: eight fighting mikoshi crash into each other twice each and then climb the 135 steps of Isaniwa.
An original castle atop a hill, reachable by chairlift.
A dance festival in baseball uniforms born out of a game from 1924, with stages on Okaido and in the castle park in early August. Registration to dance is open.
The mikan is the prefecture's symbol and even appears on its flag. In season there is picking at farms on the hillsides and mandarin juice taps at the station and the airport.
A small boat crosses 80 metres of channel between Minatoyama and Mitsu, free of charge, from 7am to 7pm. Legally it is a section of municipal road Takahama number 2, and locals use it daily.
A neighbourhood fish market on the second and fourth Saturday of the month, 8am to 11am, with takoyaki and fried jakoten stalls in the car park. By 10am almost everything is sold; fish is butchered in plain view and the smell is strong.
The largest island of the archipelago, also part of Matsuyama, with a ferry from Takahama port: a cycling loop, beaches, barbecue and a night sky free of light pollution. In May the whole island smells of citrus blossom.
A hot spring complex in the Suemachi valley, ten minutes by car from Dogo but still within the city itself, with one of the largest open-air baths in western Japan.
Several breweries in the city offer a tour and tasting, one of them right next to Dogo Onsen; Ehime sake tends towards a distinctly sweeter profile than sake from the north.
A viewpoint and free foot bath above the rooftops of the hot spring district, open from 6am to 9pm. It is the best place to see Dogo from above without paying anything.
Behind temple number 51 begins a dark tunnel lined with statues that opens into a spherical dome full of carved figures. It is one of the strangest religious structures in Japan; there is no staff on site, so go by day and with company.
The same alkaline water as Dogo Onsen Honkan, with no tourism at all and for little more than 400 yen. There is a three-bath pass valid for two days covering all three Dogo bathhouses.
An animated mechanical clock in front of Dogo Onsen Station that reenacts scenes from Natsume Soseki's novel 'Botchan' every hour.
The municipal planetarium in Minatomachi: honestly the only thing in Matsuyama that fits under technology or science.
Remains of the Kono clan's medieval castle with its moat, among the 100 best historic parks in Japan; inside is the Shiki Museum, and in March it fills with cherry blossom.
A huge children's park on a wooded hill in the south of the municipality, with zip lines, a monorail, a play castle and boats.
Independent league baseball at Botchan Stadium: very cheap, very local and with none of the apparatus of the professional league.
Ehime FC play at the Ningineer Stadium and the Ehime Orange Vikings, of the basketball league, at the community centre; the team name mixes the mandarin with the pirates of the Inland Sea.
Some 300 pieces of Japanese glass from the Edo, Meiji and Taisho eras, with a garden lit up at night, in the hot spring district itself.
A 986-metre mountain in the north of the municipality with views over the Inland Sea and the city, and an accessible hiking route.
Covered shopping arcades in central Matsuyama, with shops, restaurants, and the greatest concentration of street life in the city.
Narrow lanes of fishermen's houses, converted warehouses and cafes, with no tourism at all; combine it with the ferry and the fish market.
A ropeway ride up to the castle, with a historic garden on the clan's former grounds.
A museum dedicated to Masaoka Shiki, the haiku poet born in Matsuyama, featuring manuscripts and personal belongings.
A reconstruction of the poet's birthplace with his original desk, for 50 yen: the cheapest admission in the city. Next to it stands a historic steam tram on display.
A replica of a period steam locomotive, inspired by the novel by Natsume Soseki.
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