You have three places to sleep when you visit Miyajima: on the island itself (about 23 inns, ryokan, hotels and hostels), in Miyajimaguchi, the mainland ferry port 10 minutes away, or in central Hiroshima, about an hour away by train and ferry. The right answer depends on one question: do you want to be on the island before 9:30 in the morning or after 5 in the evening? If yes, stay on the island or in Miyajimaguchi. If Miyajima is a daytime stop on a longer trip, Hiroshima is cheaper and easier.
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This page explains what each choice gives you, with the facts that matter: the JR ferry runs from 6:25 to 22:14, Itsukushima Shrine opens at 6:30, the shops close around 17:00–18:00, the Great Torii is lit until 23:00, and only four inns on the island have hot-spring baths. It also lists the island’s places to stay by type, and the mainland hotels worth knowing. (Times from the operators’ and shrine’s official websites, checked October 2026.)
Island, Miyajimaguchi or Hiroshima: at a glance
| On Miyajima | Miyajimaguchi (mainland) | Hiroshima city | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Choice | About 23 places, from historic ryokan to hostels. Sells out early in autumn | A handful of hotels within a 5-minute walk of the pier | Hundreds of hotels at every price |
| Price | Highest. Ryokan usually include dinner and breakfast | Middle | Lowest for the same standard |
| To the shrine | 5–15 minutes on foot | Ferry 10 min + walk 10 min | About 1 hour |
| Early morning | Walk into the shrine at 6:30 | First JR ferry 6:25, at the shrine by 6:50 | Earliest realistic arrival about 8:00 |
| Evening | Illuminated torii after dinner; the island is yours | See the illumination, take the 22:14 ferry back | Possible but a late night; last trains after 23:00 |
| Dinner | Mostly in your inn; few restaurants open after 18:00 | Hotel restaurants; little else after 20:00 | Okonomiyaki, oysters, everything |
| Car | Leave it on the mainland | Hotel parking available | City parking |
Why the time of day matters more than the hotel
Miyajima receives most of its visitors between about 9:30 and 16:30. The first ferries from Hiroshima’s hotels arrive around 9:30; the last day-trippers leave to catch evening trains. Within that window the shrine corridors are crowded, the shopping street is full and the deer are busy. Outside it, the island is a different place.
Three facts set the frame. Itsukushima Shrine opens at 6:30 every day (closing varies from 17:00 in December to 18:00 from March to mid-October). The JR ferry runs from 6:25 to 22:42 out of Miyajimaguchi and back from the island until 22:14. And the Great Torii, shrine, five-storied pagoda and Tahoto pagoda are lit from 30 minutes after sunset until 23:00. If you sleep on the island or in Miyajimaguchi, you can use all of that. If you sleep in Hiroshima, you can use some of it with effort.
There is also the tide. The shrine looks like it floats when the tide is above about 250 cm and you can walk out to the torii when it is below about 100 cm; the two states are about six hours apart. A day-tripper usually sees one. An overnight guest sees both. Check the tide times for your dates before deciding.
Staying on Miyajima: what it is like
The island has about 23 places to stay, almost all within 15 minutes’ walk of the pier and the shrine. They fall into four groups.
Historic ryokan with dinner
Iwaso, founded in 1854 in the Momijidani valley behind the shrine, is the island’s grand old inn, with maple trees at the door and a kaiseki dinner of Seto Inland Sea fish. Kinsuikan, on the waterfront near the pier, has rooms facing the torii and a hot-spring bath. Miyajima Grand Hotel Arimoto, below the five-storied pagoda, mixes Japanese and Western rooms and also has a hot-spring bath. These three and LiVEMAX RESORT Aki Miyajima, a resort hotel with its own natural spring that also takes day bathers, are the inns on the island with onsen. Their baths are compared in our Miyajima onsen guide, and each has a page of its own: Kinsuikan, Iwaso and Miyajima Grand Hotel Arimoto. Expect dinner and breakfast to be included and prices to match.
Smaller ryokan and guesthouses
Kikunoya, Jukeiso (on a hill with a view over the shrine roofs), Miya Rikyu and Itsukushima Iroha (formerly Kurayado Iroha) offer Japanese rooms, often with dinner, at a step below the grand ryokan. Sakuraya, 3 minutes from the ferry, is room-only. Guesthouses such as Mikuniya (breakfast and a vegan curry dinner included) and Kikugawa have a handful of rooms and English-speaking hosts. Four of the smaller inns are compared in detail in Sakuraya, Hotel Makoto, Seaside Hotel and Mikuniya.
Hotels
Hotel Miyajima Villa is closer to a Western hotel in style, with beds in every room and a buffet instead of kaiseki. Miyajima Seaside Hotel and Hotel Makoto are larger Japanese-style inns with tatami rooms and kaiseki dinner plans. Hotel Miyajima Villa, beside the pier, has its own page.
Hostels and budget
Omotenashi Hostel Miyajima and a few guesthouses near the pier offer dormitory beds and simple private rooms for travellers who want the early morning and the evening without a ryokan price.
Whatever the type, two things apply. Dinner is usually in your inn, because most island restaurants close by 18:00 and the shopping street shuts around 17:00–18:00; book a dinner plan or plan to eat before the shops close. And check-in is often expected by 17:00–18:00, so tell the inn if you will arrive late. All 23 places with their locations and features are compared in our Miyajima accommodation guide.
Staying in Miyajimaguchi: the practical compromise
Miyajimaguchi is the mainland port, a 10-minute ferry from the island and 30 minutes by JR from Hiroshima Station. Its hotels are within a five-minute walk of the terminal, and because the JR ferry runs from 6:25 in the morning to 22:14 at night, you can do almost everything an island guest can: first ferry, empty shrine at 6:50, dinner on the island or at the hotel, illumination, last boat home. What you give up is the feeling of being on the island after the last boat has gone, and the walk to the shrine in the morning mist.
- Miyajima Coral Hotel: beside the ferry terminal; sea-side rooms face the island. Buffet breakfast.
- Grandvrio Hotel Miyajima Wakura: a natural hot spring with an open-air bath looking towards Miyajima, free parking (details).
- Aki Grand Hotel & Spa: 194 rooms, hot-spring baths and private open-air baths, about 5 minutes by car from the pier.
- KAI Miyajima (Hoshino Resorts, opened July 2026) is a 54-room ryokan on the mainland shore west of the pier, with every room facing the island and its own hot spring, “Miyajimaguchi Onsen”, in a top-floor bath with a sea-facing open-air pool. It is about 18 minutes on foot from JR Miyajimaguchi Station with no shuttle, and a partner boat from the inn’s jetty reaches the island in about 20 minutes (extra fare). See the official site.
Prices in Miyajimaguchi are generally lower than on the island, drivers can keep the car at the hotel, and Anagomeshi Ueno (conger-eel rice since 1901) and the etto shopping building are across the road. More in our Miyajimaguchi guide.
Island or mainland?Check rooms on both sides before you decide
The island’s three hot-spring inns and the smaller ryokan sell out weeks ahead in autumn and at Golden Week. Miyajimaguchi usually has rooms later, and the 6:25 and 22:14 JR ferries make an early or late shrine visit possible from there too.
If your dates are set, look at availability first; the choice often makes itself.
See available rooms on Miyajima island
See available hotels in Miyajimaguchi (mainland side)
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Which part of the island to stay in
Miyajima’s inns are spread over a small area, but the differences between its corners matter for how your evening and morning feel.
- Around the pier and Omotesando street (Kinsuikan, Sakuraya, the hostels, Hotel Miyajima Villa). Closest to the ferry, so arriving with luggage is easy, and the shopping street is at the door. Lively until the shops close; quiet after. The torii is a 5–10 minute walk.
- Momijidani, the maple valley behind the shrine (Iwaso). A few minutes uphill from the shrine, beside the stream and the ropeway’s lower station. The quietest address on the island, with the maples at their best in mid-to-late November. Allow 15 minutes from the pier on foot.
- Below the five-storied pagoda and towards the shrine exit (Miyajima Grand Hotel Arimoto, Jukeiso, Kikunoya). Between the pier and the shrine, slightly uphill, with views over the roofs to the sea from the higher rooms. The shrine’s exit, Daiganji temple and the road to Daisho-in are close.
- West of the shrine, towards the aquarium (a few small guesthouses). Residential streets, the fewest visitors, 15–20 minutes from the pier. Good for a second night when you want to walk rather than shop. Note that the aquarium is closed for renovation from 1 December 2026 to 31 March 2027.
How ryokan stays work: meals, check-in, baths
If you have not stayed in a Japanese inn before, a few things are different from a hotel. Most ryokan on Miyajima sell plans with dinner and breakfast included; the price per person, not per room, reflects a multi-course kaiseki dinner served in your room or a dining room at a set time, usually 18:00–19:00. Tell the inn when you book if you have allergies or do not eat raw fish; they can adapt with notice but rarely on the day.
Check-in is typically from 15:00, and inns expect you by about 17:00–18:00 so that dinner can be served; if you plan to arrive later, say so. Rooms are tatami-matted, and staff lay out futon on the floor while you are at dinner; Western-style rooms with beds are available in the larger inns if you ask. Baths are communal and gender-separated; you wash at the taps before getting into the hot water, and you bathe without a swimsuit. Guests with large tattoos should ask the inn about its policy in advance; some offer private bath times.
Smaller inns and guesthouses may prefer cash or take cards only for the room; bring enough yen for the island, where cash is still common. Island inns can also help with luggage: several will collect bags from the pier if you tell them your ferry time, and all will store them after check-out so you can spend the morning unencumbered.
When to book, and what sells out first
The island’s inns are few, so demand sets the calendar. Mid-to-late November, when Momijidani turns red, is the hardest time to find a room; book two to three months ahead and expect the onsen inns to go first. Golden Week (29 April to 5 May), Obon (around 13–16 August) and New Year are the other peaks. Kangensai, the shrine’s great boat festival, falls on a different date each summer (30 July in 2026) and fills the island with spectators until late evening; the illumination and the festival boats make it a wonderful night to be a resident, if you can get a room.
Outside those weeks, a few weeks’ notice is usually enough, and weekdays in June, early September and January can be surprisingly quiet. Miyajimaguchi hotels generally have availability later than the island, which is why checking both sides at once is the quickest way to settle the question.
Staying in Hiroshima: when it is the better choice
Hiroshima has hundreds of hotels around the station and the Peace Park, restaurants open late, and a shinkansen station for the next morning. If Miyajima is one stop among several in Hiroshima, a day trip from the city is the sensible plan: JR to Miyajimaguchi, ferry, five or six hours on the island, back for okonomiyaki.
The cost is the early morning and the evening. The earliest you can realistically be at the shrine from a city hotel is about 8:00, by which time the first tour groups are not far behind. Seeing the illumination means leaving the island on the 22:14 ferry and reaching your hotel after 23:00. Many people do it once and are glad they did; few do it on a work night.
A good middle path for a two-night Hiroshima stay: spend the first night in the city for the Peace Memorial Park and the food, then move to Miyajima or Miyajimaguchi for the second night and give the island its full day plus an evening and a morning.
If you do stay in the city, pick the area by how you will reach the island. Around Hiroshima Station is best for the JR train (platform 1, every 10–15 minutes, about 30 minutes to Miyajimaguchi) and for the shinkansen onward. Around the Peace Park and Hondori suits the Hiroden tram from Genbaku Dome-mae (about 55 minutes to the pier) or the high-speed boat from Motoyasu Pier (about 45 minutes; book until the day before or buy a ticket at the pier on the day), and puts you in the middle of the restaurant streets in the evening.
Matching the choice to who you are travelling with
Couples and anniversary trips get the most from a night on the island: dinner in the room, the illuminated torii with nobody else on the shore, the shrine at dawn. Iwaso in the maple valley and the waterfront rooms at Kinsuikan are the classic choices; Jukeiso on its hill is quieter and a little less formal.
Families with young children often do better in Miyajimaguchi or Hiroshima. Ryokan dinners run to a dozen small courses served at a fixed time, which is a long sit for a five-year-old, and island rooms are priced per person. A mainland hotel with a buffet breakfast, a short ferry each way and the aquarium, ropeway and deer during the day keeps everyone happy. If you do want the island with children, the hotels (Hotel Miyajima Villa, Miyajima Seaside Hotel) and the guesthouses are more relaxed than the grand ryokan, and the onsen inns have family-friendly plans if you ask; LiVEMAX RESORT Aki Miyajima, with a buffet and a summer pool, is built around families. Note that the aquarium is closed from 1 December 2026 to 31 March 2027.
Solo travellers and budget travellers have the hostels near the pier, which give the same early-morning and evening island as the ryokan at a fraction of the price, plus a kitchen and other travellers to talk to. Groups of friends may find a guesthouse with two or three rooms, or a Miyajimaguchi hotel with twin rooms, easier to book than several ryokan rooms in autumn.
Onsen lovers have a fourth option: Miyahama Onsen, a small hot-spring area on the mainland a few kilometres west of Miyajimaguchi, with several resort hotels that have large baths and sea views. It is 10–15 minutes from the ferry by car or hotel shuttle, so it works for drivers who want a proper onsen evening and the island the next morning, but it is awkward without a car.
Sample plans
One night on the island
- Day 1, 14:00 Arrive by ferry, leave bags at the inn. Omotesando street and the shrine at the afternoon tide. 17:30 Check in, bath. 18:30 Dinner at the inn. 20:00 Walk to the illuminated torii; the shore is almost empty.
- Day 2, 6:30 Shrine at opening, the other tide. 8:00 Breakfast. 9:30 Mt. Misen ropeway (runs from 9:00) or Daisho-in. 13:00 Lunch and ferry out as the crowds arrive.
One night in Miyajimaguchi
- Day 1 Hiroshima Peace Park in the morning, JR to Miyajimaguchi mid-afternoon, check in, ferry over for the shrine at the afternoon tide and the illumination, 21:00 ferry back, late dinner at the hotel or an onigiri from the convenience store.
- Day 2 6:25 ferry, shrine at 6:50, breakfast on the island or back at the hotel, Mt. Misen in the late morning, JR onward from Miyajimaguchi in the afternoon.
Day trip from Hiroshima
- 8:00 JR from Hiroshima → 8:45 ferry → 9:00 shrine before the groups. Shopping street for lunch, Mt. Misen or Daisho-in in the afternoon, 16:30 ferry back, dinner in Hiroshima. Hour-by-hour plans for the tide and the ropeway are in our Miyajima day trip guide.
Frequently asked questions
Is it worth staying overnight on Miyajima Island?
Yes, if you want the shrine at 6:30 without crowds, both tides, and the illuminated torii after dinner. If Miyajima is a half-day stop, a day trip from Hiroshima is fine.
What is the best place to stay in Miyajima?
For a classic ryokan experience with a hot-spring bath: Iwaso, Kinsuikan or Miyajima Grand Hotel Arimoto. For a smaller inn with dinner: Kikunoya, Jukeiso or Miya Rikyu. For a budget stay: Omotenashi Hostel or a guesthouse near the pier.
Is it better to stay in Hiroshima or Miyajima?
Hiroshima for variety, price and late dinners; Miyajima or Miyajimaguchi for the early morning and evening on the island. A night in each is the most common happy answer.
How long should I stay in Miyajima?
One full day is enough for the shrine, the shopping street and Mt. Misen. One night lets you see both tides and the illumination. Two nights is for people who want to walk the island’s quieter trails and temples.
Are there hot springs on Miyajima?
Four inns have onsen baths: Kinsuikan, Iwaso, Miyajima Grand Hotel Arimoto and LiVEMAX RESORT Aki Miyajima. The first three are for their guests only; LiVEMAX RESORT Aki Miyajima also takes day bathers. Other day-use hot springs are on the mainland at Miyahama Onsen.
Can I get dinner on the island if my hotel does not serve it?
A few restaurants and izakaya near the pier stay open into the evening, but most places close by 18:00. Check your hotel’s advice and do not count on a wide choice after dark.
Do I need to book dinner at a ryokan?
Yes, choose a plan with dinner when you book, or tell the inn at least a day ahead. Kaiseki dinners are prepared to the number of guests, and most inns cannot add a dinner on the day of arrival. Check-in by about 17:00 keeps the dinner slot.
Can I take my car to Miyajima?
The ferries carry cars, but there is no visitor parking on the island and the central streets are closed to traffic in the daytime. Park in Miyajimaguchi; see the parking guide.
Sources: JR West Miyajima Ferry (timetable), Itsukushima Shrine (opening hours), Miyajima Tourist Association (illumination), Miyajima Ropeway (hours), and the inns’ own websites for facilities; checked October 2026. Hotel descriptions are factual summaries, not reviews of stays we have not made.
