Discover the Chugoku Region

Hiroshima Prefecture

More than its name suggests, Hiroshima is a city of warmth, resilience and quiet renewal. Beyond the harbour, forested gorges like Sandankyo cut through the mountains, where clear rivers wind between towering rock walls. In the city itself, okonomiyaki is a local institution, layered and grilled right in front of you. Further out, the Seto Inland Sea stretches endlessly, dotted with islands worth exploring. A city that asks you to slow down and stay a little longer, gateway to everything Chugoku has to offer.

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Yamaguchi Prefecture

Yamaguchi is where the coast becomes the main event. At Motonosumi Shrine (pictured), a row of vermilion torii gates cascades down the cliffside to meet the Sea of Japan, one of the region's most photographed sights. Elsewhere, Tsunoshima Bridge stretches nearly two kilometres across turquoise water, linking the mainland to a scattering of small islands. Inland, castle towns and pottery traditions run just as deep as the coastline runs wide. A prefecture that rewards those willing to follow the water all the way to the edge.

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Shimane Prefecture

Shimane moves at its own pace. In Tsuwano, Tonomachi Dori is lined with white-walled samurai residences and canals thick with koi, a traditional town tucked into the mountains that feels frozen in the best possible way. Off the coast, the Oki Islands (pictured) rise out of the Sea of Japan, an archipelago of cliffs, quiet fishing villages and open water. Inland or out to sea, Shimane asks you to slow down and look closer. A prefecture built for those who'd rather wander than rush.

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Tottori Prefecture

Tottori is defined by scale. Its sand dunes stretch for 16 kilometres along the coast, a rippling landscape unlike anywhere else in Japan, where the sea and the sand seem to blur into one. Inland, Mt Daisen rises over the prefecture, its peak often catching cloud even when the valleys below sit clear. Matsuba crab, pulled straight from these waters, is a local specialty worth planning a trip around. A prefecture that proves Japan's landscapes still have the power to surprise.

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Okayama Prefecture

Okayama is built for slowing down. Korakuen Garden, one of Japan's Three Great Gardens, unfolds across sweeping lawns, ponds and tea houses designed to be walked through without hurry. Nearby, canal towns thread through the countryside, their waterways still used much as they always have been. This is a prefecture where the pace of the day is set by the garden path, not the clock. A quieter side of Chugoku and one that stays with you.

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