Hiroshima is a beautiful and modern city in Hiroshima Prefecture, located an four hours shinkansen ride away from Tokyo and also served by a local airport and highway bus station. The following article suggests activities plan for a 3-day trip in Hiroshima.

Day One - Visiting Miyajima Island

Once checking in at your local accommodation, I recommend you to get to Miyajima Island. This holy Island is located about 50 minutes away from Hiroshima station. You take the JR local train to Miyajimaguchi Station and a ferry to Miyajima, or using Hidoden Pass. Once arrived at the island you will be greeted by the local animals, the deers. [caption id="attachment_30783" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Deer Miyajima[/caption] These animals are walking around all over the island peacefully unless you don't have any food in your hand. If you are into hiking you can take a two hour hike up to Mount Misen. Alternatively a ropeway can drive you up to the mountain station. From there it's just a 30 minutes walk to the sightseeing spot. If you are lucky to get there on a sunny day, you will get a stunning view of the Seto Inland Sea. But even during rain it is a very nice view. [caption id="attachment_30784" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Mount Misen in rain.[/caption] The rest of your day in the afternoon can be spend visiting some of beautiful and traditional temples. Before leaving the island again you should make a stop at the big red torii floating in the sea. Because the whole island is meant to be a sacred place the gate is located in front of the island. If you check out the tide information before visiting the island you can see the Torii with low tide. [caption id="attachment_30785" align="aligncenter" width="496"] Miyajima's famous torii gate[/caption]

Day Two - Mazda Museum

The second day you can visit the Mazda Museum in Hiroshima. The car manufacturer's head quarter is located in Hiroshima along with a huge car manufacturing department. For visiting the museum it is necessary to make an online reservation in advance. The reservation can be made via this Link to Mazda museum. The museum gives you very organised and structured overview about the company Mazda. Upon arriving you are welcomed at the lobby and hand out your visitor pass. At the time of the departure, a bus will take every visitor from the lobby to the museum itself. The museum is located on a 10 minute bus ride away. During the bus ride you can enjoy the first attractions, the manufacturing and processing buildings.  After a short introduction movie the English speaking guide begins with the tour. You will the see the different decades of car manufacturing and the first product of Mazda. [caption id="attachment_30782" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Mazda T2000[/caption] The last stop during the museums tour marks the highlight of this whole museum, the assembling road. While walking on a balustrade underneath the ceiling of the assembly hall, you can see the workers of Mazda in action. It is very interesting to watch how a car is built up. You will see two different assembly roads. On each road you see how the different car models are composed. If there is time left after the museum tour and you are hungry, visit the okonomimura. This village of Okinomiyaki restaurants is located in the city center of Hiroshima. One building has more then 20 different Okinomiyaki restaurants on four floors.

Day Three - Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park

The last day in Hiroshima, do not miss to visit the memorials in the city. Hiroshima was the first city hit by a atomic bomb and was suffering a lot of damages during the second world war. To keep a memento of all victims, the city built several memorials. The following tent-shaped sculpture should protect the souls underneath it. You can see the atomic bomb dome in the back. [caption id="attachment_30787" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Peace park Hiroshima[/caption] The Atomic bomb dome is a building which was almost destroyed by the atomic bomb. It didn't remove the building and kept it as a memory. [caption id="attachment_30788" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Atomic bomb dome[/caption] Then,  you can go to the atomic bomb museum. Currently (As of September, 2017) the main building of the museum is under construction and not accessible until July 2018. The peace park just a 5 minute walk away from the shopping area of Hiroshima. You can enjoy the evening at one of nice restaurants at the hatchobori.  

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