Destination guide
Hiroshima
Japan
Hiroshima (広島) is an industrial city of wide boulevards and criss-crossing rivers along the coast of the Seto Inland Sea. Although many only know it for the horrific split-second on August 6, 1945 when it became the site of the world's first atomic bomb attack, it is now a modern cosmopolitan city with excellent…
AI insights
AI-written from the Wikivoyage listings, transport section and the video stats on this page
When visiting the Peace Memorial Museum, plan to spend your entire morning or afternoon there and schedule no other major activities afterward; the experience is deeply emotional, and you will need significant time to decompress.
For the most authentic okonomiyaki experience, skip the larger, tourist-heavy venues and seek out tiny, tucked-away stalls near the railroad tracks or in back alleys; look for shops where the griddle is built directly into the table, allowing the shopkeep to serve you the traditional way.
If you attend a Hiroshima Toyo Carp baseball game, specifically purchase 'Carp Performance' tickets to join the section with the drums, chants, and most intense local fan energy, rather than the standard seating areas.
While the tram network is the most reliable way to navigate the city's main sights, consider renting a bicycle to explore the river paths and neighborhoods at your own pace, as the city’s wide sidewalks make it exceptionally cycle-friendly.
While the A-Bomb Dome is the city's most recognizable landmark, do as the locals do and use the surrounding benches for a quiet moment of reflection or lunch, rather than just walking past for a photo.
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Ranked by views and how well each landed with the people who watched it, judged against the other coverage of this place — plus a local creator where we found one.
【広島】絶対に外せない観光スポットを20ヶ所一気に紹介します！
Top 5 Things to do in Hiroshima
【広島観光】1泊2日で観光・グルメを満喫するおすすめモデルコース｜おりづるタワー｜嚴島神社｜原爆ドーム｜お好み焼き｜牡蠣｜もみじクロワッサン
THE Hiroshima Guide: ESSENTIAL Spots For Your Trip!
【広島観光】はじめての広島、おすすめの観光スポット７選
How to Spend 2 Days in HIROSHIMA - Japan Travel Itinerary
HIROSHIMA, JAPAN (2026) | The Best Things To Do In & Around Hiroshima
Best time to go
Best window: October–November and March
July and August are the months to avoid — very heavy rain. The window below is when it is genuinely pleasant.
Rated from ten years of daily temperature and rainfall recorded at this destination, via Open-Meteo's ERA5 reanalysis. Hover a month for its real numbers.
Getting around
By tram
Hiroshima has an extensive tram (streetcar) network, which is operated by Hiroden (広電). It's a slow but reliable way of getting around.
By bus
Bus lines run through Hiroshima and out to the suburbs. Generally speaking, these serve areas more likely to be used by locals than visitors. Signs include English, and buses depart next to the tram depot in front of JR Hiroshima Station.
By metro
The modern Astram (アストラムライン) links the city center with the northern suburbs, although there aren't many tourist sights out that way. Trips range from ¥180-470 by distance, with departures every few minutes 06:00-00:00.
By bike
Hiroshima is a great city for cycling. Most of the sidewalks are fairly wide by Japanese standards; the paths along the branches of the rivers offer a very pleasant ride, and if you're looking to test your legs, head up to the hills around Hijiyama Park.
Transport notes from Wikivoyage, CC BY-SA 4.0.
What to see
Places are listed from Wikivoyage and our own sourced research. Worth it means a second, independent source names the place too; “3 sources agree” means three or more do — and each card names them, so you can check.
Peace Memorial Museum
Worth itAlso recommended by Lonely Planet
1-2 Nakajima-chō, Naka-ku· Free
This heart-wrenching museum documents the atomic bomb and its aftermath, from scale models of the city "before" and "after" to melted tricycles and other displays and artifacts related to the blast.
Vetted sources
A-Bomb Dome
Worth itAlso recommended by Lonely Planet
The skeletal remains of the dome are the most recognizable symbol of the atomic bombing in Hiroshima. In another lifetime, the building was one of the city's best-known sights for an entirely different reason; designed by Czech architect…
Vetted sources
Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park
Worth itAlso recommended by Lonely Planet
The skeletal A-Bomb Dome and Peace Memorial Museum document the 1945 bombing.
Vetted sources
Hiroshima National Peace Memorial Hall for the Atomic Bomb Victims
1-6 Nakajima-chō, Naka-ku· Free
The Peace Memorial Hall is dedicated to collecting names and photographs of people who died in the blast. The entrance of the memorial hall leads downward to a quiet hall for contemplation, and then back up again to a set of kiosks with…
Vetted sources
Memorial Tower to the Mobilized Students
Commemorates the 6,300 students who were conscripted to work in munitions factories and killed by the atomic bomb. There are statues of doves scattered throughout its five levels; at the base is a beautiful Kannon statue, always draped…
Vetted sources
Children's Peace Monument
Perennially draped in thousands of origami paper cranes folded by schoolchildren across Japan in the memory of the young bomb victim Sadako Sasaki (see Literature). You can bring your own origami cranes and donate them to the memorial.
Vetted sources
Hypocenter
One block east of the A-Bomb Dome (outside Shima Clinic) is a plaque which marks the exact point above which the bomb exploded.
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What to do
Hiroshima Toyo Carp Baseball
10 minute walk east from JR Hiroshima Station, or a shorter walk from the Enkobashi-cho tram stop
The much-beloved and much-bemoaned Carp are Hiroshima's entry in the Central League of Nippon Professional Baseball. After more than fifty years in a stadium across the street from the Peace Park, the Carp moved to the new Mazda Zoom Zoom…
Vetted sources
Sake Festival
The suburb of Saijo is famous for its sake breweries and this annual boozy blow-out. For the price of entry, attendees can drink their fill of sake from local breweries.
Vetted sources
Hiroshima Sanfrecce Soccer
Astram to Koiki Koen-mae
Sanfrecce (Japanese/Italian for "three arrows", from a Japanese folk tale) are Hiroshima's entry in the J-League, although they date back to 1938 as a semi-pro team.
Vetted sources
Flower Festival
· Free
This is Hiroshima's biggest festival, begun in 1975 to celebrate the Carp's first baseball championship. There are food vendors and things for sale, but live performances now dominate the program, with comedians and J-pop bands on stages…
Vetted sources
Peace Memorial Ceremony
Peace Memorial Park· Free
Held each year on the anniversary of the atomic bombing, with many hibakusha in attendance. Ceremonies are held in the morning (8:15AM, the time the bomb was dropped).
Vetted sources
Food Festival
· Free
This one's pretty simple — food, glorious food of all kinds, from international delicacies to local favorites, from roasted slabs of meat and seafood to delicious vegetarian-friendly dishes and desserts, served in stalls lining the…
Vetted sources
What to eat
Okonomimura
Worth itAlso recommended by Mark Wiens
A three-storey building packed with stalls grilling Hiroshima-style layered okonomiyaki.
Vetted sources
Okonomi-mura
Hatchobori tram stop
Three floors packed with no less than 27 okonomiyaki shops. This, indeed, is Hiroshima culinary nirvana. They all serve beer and okonomiyaki with some variations (kimchi, oysters, etc.), and they'll all start clamoring for your business as…
Vetted sources
Otis!
1-20 Kako-machi, Naka-ku
Serving Tex-Mex in Hiroshima for more than twenty years, Otis! is the most vegetarian/vegan/organic-friendly restaurant in town, with items clearly marked on their English menu.
Vetted sources
Sankanou
11-2 Ōsuga-cho, Higashi-ku
A tiny okonomi shop in a little back alley near the railroad tracks and beside Hiroshima Station. The shopkeep speaks English and is a friendly, enthusiastic young manga fan.
Vetted sources
Organ-za
Tokaichi-machi tram stop
If you and your companion have completely different tastes in mind, Organ-za offers dishes from India, Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, and others direct from the imagination of a capable and creative chef. English menus are available.
Vetted sources
Micchan
Chuden-mae tram stop
Reasonably priced okonomiyaki restaurant. There are branches in Hatchobori, Hiroshima Station, Sogo Department Store, Fukuya Department Store and Tokyo.
Vetted sources
Tachikoma
Dambara 1-chome tram stop
A tiny okonomoyaki shop where locals go, with very friendly owners. The okonomiyaki is quite good and filling, and there's beer to enjoy with it.
Vetted sources
Where to stay
K's House
Matoba-cho tram stop
Part of the popular hostel chain. No curfew or lockout, free wifi, computers with Internet access available in the lobby for a small fee, and laundry facilities.
Vetted sources
Mitsui Garden Hotel Hiroshima
9-12 Nakamachi, Naka-ku
Although the hotel is three-star, it provides many services such as free Wi-Fi, buffet breakfasts and three restaurant choices. Some guests have the chance to overlook the Hiroshima Peace Park right at the windows of their room, and there…
Vetted sources
J-Hoppers Trad Guesthouse
Dobashi-cho tram stop
A lively hostel with English speaking staff. Every private room is Japanese style. They also offer free wifi with your laptop (¥100 per 30 min for hostel computers) and rental bikes (¥500 per day), with no curfew or lockout and…
Vetted sources
JMS Aster Plaza
Wel City/Kosei Nenkin Kaikan bus stop
aka Hiroshima International Youth House (広島市国際青年会館). City convention center with guest rooms on top two floors. Cable Internet access in rooms, coin-fed access available in lounges, coin laundry facilities on 7th floor.
Vetted sources
Hiroshima Town Hotel 24
Hatchbori tram stop
Sort of a hybrid of a business hotel and a love hotel, featuring a bewildering array of cheap rates from the 70 minute "shower" up to 20 hours. It is clean, convenient, and comfortable.
Vetted sources
Minshuku Ikedaya
Dobashi-cho tram stop
The rooms at this minshuku are clean, bright, and pleasant. The staff speak enough English to get you checked in, although you may not see a trace of them afterward.
Vetted sources
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Travel content from Wikivoyage, CC BY-SA 4.0. Encyclopedic context from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Videos via the YouTube Data API.