Five days in Tokushima: which order for eastern and western stays?
For Tokushima’s performance and views and Naruto Strait first, spend three nights in Tokushima before moving to Iya. For the valley first, choose two Iya nights followed by two in Tokushima. Use a rental car in the west and return buses for Naruto. If adding the bridge on your final day from Iya, check there is time to return the car in Tokushima and catch your departure.
Choose a 5 days, 4 nights itinerary
A: three eastern nights, then one western night
See the dance show, mountain views and strait first, then spend a night in the valley. After three nights in Tokushima, move to Iya via Wakimachi. The final day combines the bridge with car return; for an early departure, move the bridge or omit it.
A: three eastern nights, then one western night →5 days, 4 nightsB: western sights first, finishing in the east
For the valley and vine bridge first, stay two nights in Iya, then move via Wakimachi to Tokushima. Stay two nights there too, return the car and visit Naruto by bus. Day one’s gorge views do not include a cruise.
B: western sights first, finishing in the east →A: three eastern nights, then one western night
See the dance show, mountain views and strait first, then spend a night in the valley. After three nights in Tokushima, move to Iya via Wakimachi. The final day combines the bridge with car return; for an early departure, move the bridge or omit it.
Day 1: a show, then a city stay
Stay three nights near Tokushima Station for the show, views and Naruto Strait. Rent a car on day four, travel via Wakimachi for one night in Oboke or Iya, then return it in Tokushima on the final day. For an early departure, move Kazurabashi to an earlier day or omit it.
- JR Tokushima Station → Your booked Tokushima hotel
Travel from Tokushima Station to your booked hotel.
- Tokushima hotel → Awa Odori Kaikan entrance
Walk to Awa Odori Kaikan. The theatre is on the second floor of the same building.
- Awa Odori Kaikan entrance → Second-floor theatre
See one daytime show in the second-floor theatre. Shows start at 11:00, 14:00, 15:00 and 16:00, last 40 minutes and cost JPY 1,300 per adult. For a late arrival, the 20:00 evening show costs JPY 1,600. Do not include regular shows on closure days or during the August 11–15 suspension.
Kaikan show and ropeway fees and operationsOfficial price list
- Awa Odori Kaikan → Dinner near the station or Kaikan, then the same hotel
After the show, choose an open restaurant near Kaikan or the station for dinner, then return to the same hotel. For an evening show, check restaurant last-order times.
Day 2: a return bus trip to Naruto Strait
View Naruto Strait from Uzunomichi’s walkway. Take a return bus trip to Naruto Park around the tidal times.
- Tokushima hotel and bay 16 outside Tokushima Station → Naruto Park stop
Take a Naruto Park-bound bus from bay 16 outside Tokushima Station and get off at the park. Adult fares are JPY 870 one way or JPY 1,740 return. Choose both buses around your date’s tide table and Uzunomichi’s admission deadline. Allow extra time for the walk from your hotel to the bay and bus waits.
October weekday timetableHoliday timetableFares and payment guidance
- Naruto Park stop → Uzunomichi entrance and strait walkway
Walk about five minutes from the stop to the entrance and buy the JPY 510 adult ticket. Explore the walkway beneath the bridge. Whirlpools may be absent at some times, so choose buses around your date’s tide table. Last admission is 16:30 from October through February and 17:30 from March through September.
Directions to the entranceCheck admission and closuresTide table for your visit date
- Uzunomichi and Naruto Park stop → Tokushima Station and the same hotel
After visiting, take a Tokushima Station-bound bus from Naruto Park and return to the same hotel. If eating lunch in the park, fit it around your return bus; if no shops are open, eat near the station. Choose the return service before sightseeing.
October weekday timetableHoliday timetableCheck admission and closures
Day 3: Bizan, then the same hotel
Walk from your Tokushima Station-area hotel to Awa Odori Kaikan, then go to the fifth-floor ropeway base station.
- Fifth-floor base station at Awa Odori Kaikan → Bizan summit station
Buy a return ticket at Kaikan’s fifth-floor Bizan Ropeway base station and ride to the summit. Adult return admission is JPY 1,500; the ride takes about six minutes and usually starts operating at 09:00. Allow extra time for tickets, queues and a summit walk. Recheck seasonal closing times and maintenance or bad-weather suspensions for your date.
Kaikan show and ropeway fees and operationsOfficial price list
- Bizan summit station → Base station and Tokushima hotel
After the views, take the same ropeway down. Eat in the city and spend your third night at the same hotel. If you saw a daytime show on day one, another evening show today is excluded from the basic budget.
Day 4: west via Wakimachi
Explore Wakimachi, then spend one night in Oboke or Iya. Check driving time using your hotel address and arrive before check-in and dinner deadlines. If delayed, shorten the street walk and head to the hotel first. For an early departure tomorrow, compare skipping Wakimachi and visiting Kazurabashi before the hotel instead. Choose that only if, after car pickup, you can fit the bridge’s hours and hotel check-in and dinner times; otherwise omit the bridge.
- Tokushima hotel and booked car pickup location → Ai Land Udatsu passenger-car parking
After collecting the car, enter Ai Land Udatsu’s passenger-car parking in navigation. The official one-hour-five-minute Tokushima city–facility drive excludes hotel–pickup travel, rental procedures and traffic delays. The facility opens 09:00–17:30 and closes December 27–January 1; the passenger-car lot has 39 spaces. Check fees and availability for your date separately.
Ai Land Udatsu location and operationsDistinguish passenger-car and tour-bus parking
- Ai Land Udatsu passenger-car parking → Wakimachi Udatsu Townscape
After parking, walk towards the connected Yoshida Residence and explore the old streets. Choose an open shop for lunch. The basic itinerary is a street walk; the Yoshida Residence interior is optional. For an interior visit, check the JPY 510 adult fee and 16:30 last admission.
Ai Land Udatsu location and operationsYoshida Residence fees and hours
- Wakimachi Udatsu Townscape and Ai Land Udatsu parking → Your booked Oboke or Iya hotel
Retrace your steps to the parking lot and drive to your booked western hotel’s actual address. Hotels near Oboke Station and Kazurabashi are in different locations, so there is no single driving time from Wakimachi. Check the exact route and driving time after choosing your hotel address.
Ai Land Udatsu location and operationsDistinguish passenger-car and tour-bus parking
Day 5: the bridge, then car return in Tokushima
Cross Kazurabashi, then return to Tokushima to drop off the car and leave. Allow time after refuelling and returning the car to reach your departure station or airport-bus boarding point. For a morning departure, move the bridge to an earlier day or omit it.
- Western hotel → Yumebutai parking and Iya Vine Bridge entrance
Ordinary-car parking costs JPY 500 per vehicle, separately from bridge admission, and cannot be reserved. After parking, walk through the Yumebutai facility towards Iya Vine Bridge. Check walking time from the lot and driving time from your hotel separately.
- Iya Vine Bridge entrance → Bridge and Yumebutai parking
Buy a ticket and cross the bridge. Admission is JPY 550 per person for junior high school students and older. Open 08:00–18:00 April–June, 07:30–18:30 July–August and 08:00–17:00 September–March. Bad weather can change operations. Afterwards, return to your parking lot.
- Yumebutai parking → Tokushima car return location and actual departure boarding point
Return to Yumebutai parking and drive to your contracted car return location in Tokushima. After refuelling and returning the car, travel to your departure station or airport-bus boarding point. Do not put the bridge on the final day for a morning departure.
Visit the bridge from your western hotel, then return to Tokushima. If the car return deadline and your actual departure service do not allow this, move the bridge to the previous day or omit it.
Included costs: Daytime show JPY 1,300 + Uzunomichi JPY 510 + Bizan JPY 1,500 + Kazurabashi JPY 550 + Naruto return bus JPY 1,740
Extra costs: Flights, accommodation, meals, airport or onward travel, hotel–boarding-point journeys and luggage storage cost extra. Rental, insurance, fuel, expressway tolls and parking are excluded. The optional Yoshida Residence interior adds JPY 510. Yumebutai parking is a separate JPY 500 per vehicle.
Yumebutai parking is a separate JPY 500 per vehicle. Add JPY 510 per adult for the Yoshida Residence interior. Omit the bridge and deduct JPY 550 from the facility subtotal. If you do not use its parking lot, the JPY 500 per-vehicle parking fee is also avoided. Moving a single visit to another day does not change admission.
Official price listKaikan show and ropeway fees and operationsCheck admission and closuresFares and payment guidanceAdmission and seasonal hoursYoshida Residence fees and hoursParking fees and guidance
B: western sights first, finishing in the east
For the valley and vine bridge first, stay two nights in Iya, then move via Wakimachi to Tokushima. Stay two nights there too, return the car and visit Naruto by bus. Day one’s gorge views do not include a cruise.
Day 1: Oboke Gorge, then your western hotel
For a relaxed valley stay, spend two nights in Oboke or Iya, followed by two in Tokushima. Rent a car in Tokushima on day one and stop at the Oboke tourist information facility on Route 32 before your hotel. You still need to arrive before hotel check-in and dinner deadlines; for a late arrival, go directly to the hotel.
Visit Kazurabashi on day two, then return the car in Tokushima via Wakimachi on day three. Take a Naruto bus day trip on day four and choose either a performance or Bizan on the final day.
Oboke Station-area and Kazurabashi-area hotels are apart, so check driving time using your hotel address. This itinerary uses a rental car. Without one, arrange a separate visit order around buses, hotel transfers and JR connections.
- Ikawa-Ikeda IC and Route 32 → Oboke tourist information facility parking
Drive to Oboke tourist information facility parking, following Route 32 towards Kochi from Ikawa-Ikeda IC. The address is 1553-1 Kamimyo, Yamashiro-cho, Miyoshi; the ordinary-car lot has 52 spaces. Check driving times from your pickup location and hotel using their respective addresses. Tourist information and the shop open 09:00–17:00 and close Tuesdays December–February, or the following day if Tuesday is a public holiday. Rest Area Oboke and Lapis Oboke · 道の駅大歩危
Miyoshi Tourism Association Oboke information and accessOboke facility hours, closures and tourist information
- Oboke tourist information facility → Gorge views, tourist information and the same parking lot
View Oboke Gorge and the Yoshino River, then consult the tourist information corner for tomorrow’s Kazurabashi access and local roads. Browse local goods in the shop, return to your parking lot and travel to your booked western hotel. The basic itinerary includes the free information and shop areas and gorge views, excluding the paid yokai and stone museum and the cruise. To add the museum, check current admission and last entry on site and whether it still allows arrival before your hotel deadline.
Miyoshi Tourism Association Oboke information and accessOboke facility hours, closures and tourist informationOfficial Shikoku roadside-station gorge views and facility guide
Day 2: Kazurabashi, then the same hotel
Visit Kazurabashi’s footbridge and return to the same parking lot.
- Western hotel → Yumebutai parking and Iya Vine Bridge entrance
Ordinary-car parking costs JPY 500 per vehicle, separately from bridge admission, and cannot be reserved. After parking, walk through the Yumebutai facility towards Iya Vine Bridge. Check walking time from the lot and driving time from your hotel separately.
- Iya Vine Bridge entrance → Bridge and Yumebutai parking
Buy a ticket and cross the bridge. Admission is JPY 550 per person for junior high school students and older. Open 08:00–18:00 April–June, 07:30–18:30 July–August and 08:00–17:00 September–March. Bad weather can change operations. Afterwards, return to your parking lot.
- Yumebutai parking → Western hotel
Retrace your route to Yumebutai parking and drive to your hotel. Allow separately for driving from the hotel and walking from the lot to the bridge. The official five-minute estimate is the bus stop–bridge walk.
Day 3: move to Tokushima via Wakimachi
Walk Wakimachi’s streets and look at historic homes with udatsu walls. Decide separately whether to visit inside the Yoshida Residence.
- Western hotel → Wakimachi Udatsu Townscape
After parking, walk towards the Yoshida Residence, explore the old streets and eat lunch at an open shop. The basic route is a street walk; the residence interior is optional. For the interior, check JPY 510 adult admission and 16:30 last entry. Ai Land Udatsu opens 09:00–17:30 and closes December 27–January 1, with 39 passenger-car spaces. From a western hotel, find the Wakimachi route using its address and check parking fees and availability. The prefectural tourism guide’s one-hour-five-minute Tokushima–Wakimachi drive does not apply to this western departure leg.
Ai Land Udatsu location and operationsYoshida Residence fees and hoursDistinguish passenger-car and tour-bus parking
- Wakimachi Udatsu Townscape → Tokushima hotel
After the walk, return to the lot and drive to your Tokushima return location. Drop off the car before your booked deadline, then travel to the city hotel for two nights. When choosing the hotel, check whether you can walk from the return location or need other transport.
Return the car in Tokushima after Wakimachi. Check parking, travel, return procedures and the onward trip to your city hotel using actual addresses and your rental contract.
Day 4: a return local-bus trip to Naruto
View Naruto Strait from Uzunomichi’s walkway. Take a return bus trip to Naruto Park around the tidal times.
- Tokushima hotel and Tokushima Station → Naruto Park stop
Take a Naruto Park-bound bus from bay 16 outside Tokushima Station and get off at the park. Adult fares are JPY 870 one way or JPY 1,740 return. Choose both buses around your date’s tide table and Uzunomichi’s admission deadline. Allow extra time for the walk from your hotel to the bay and bus waits.
October weekday timetableHoliday timetableFares and payment guidance
- Naruto Park stop → Uzunomichi entrance and viewing facility
Walk about five minutes from the stop to Uzunomichi, buy the JPY 510 adult ticket and view the strait. Before choosing buses, check your date’s tide table and seasonal last admission: 17:30 March–September or 16:30 October–February.
Check admission and closuresDirections to the entranceTide table for your visit date
- Uzunomichi and Naruto Park stop → Tokushima Station and Tokushima hotel
After visiting, take a Tokushima Station-bound bus from Naruto Park and return to the same hotel. If eating lunch in the park, fit it around your return bus; if no shops are open, eat near the station. Choose the return service before sightseeing.
Day 5: one city attraction before departure
Choose either an Awa Odori performance or Bizan’s views around your departure time. Allow time afterwards to return to your hotel and departure boarding point.
- Tokushima hotel → Awa Odori Kaikan theatre or Bizan summit station
If you arrive for a daytime show at 11:00, 14:00, 15:00 or 16:00, choose one in the second-floor theatre. Adult admission is JPY 1,300 and each show lasts 40 minutes; regular shows are unavailable on closure days and during August 11–15. For views instead, take the return Bizan Ropeway from the same building’s fifth floor. Adult fare is JPY 1,500, the ride takes about six minutes and operations usually start at 09:00. Choose only one around your departure time. The subtotal below includes only your chosen attraction.
Kaikan show and ropeway fees and operationsOfficial price list
- Chosen attraction and Tokushima hotel → Your actual departure boarding point
Work backwards from departure, allowing show or ropeway queues, the hotel return journey and boarding time.
Included costs: Kazurabashi JPY 550 + Uzunomichi JPY 510 + Naruto return bus JPY 1,740 + either the final-day daytime show JPY 1,300 or Bizan JPY 1,500
Extra costs: Flights, accommodation, meals, airport or onward travel, hotel–boarding-point journeys and luggage storage cost extra. Rental, insurance, fuel, expressway tolls and parking are excluded. The optional Yoshida Residence interior adds JPY 510. Yumebutai parking is a separate JPY 500 per vehicle.
Yumebutai parking is a separate JPY 500 per vehicle; the Yoshida Residence interior adds JPY 510 per adult. Day one’s Oboke visit includes only free areas, excluding the paid museum and cruise. Choose either the show or Bizan on the final day.
Official price listKaikan show and ropeway fees and operationsCheck admission and closuresFares and payment guidanceAdmission and seasonal hoursYoshida Residence fees and hoursParking fees and guidanceOboke facility hours, closures and tourist informationOfficial Shikoku roadside-station gorge views and facility guide
Before departure, on-the-day checks and FAQ
Does the west-first Oboke and Iya itinerary include a cruise before Naruto?
Day one includes the Oboke tourist information facility and gorge views, without the paid cruise. To add it, check sailings and timing separately and add JPY 1,800 per adult. The itinerary with a cruise is four-day B.
Oboke facility hours, closures and tourist informationOfficial Shikoku roadside-station gorge views and facility guideCruise operator’s fares and boarding guidance
Does the final-day cost cover both a show and Bizan?
Five-day B’s JPY 4,100 subtotal chooses the daytime show; JPY 4,300 chooses the Bizan return ride. Neither includes both. Choose one around departure, then collect hotel luggage and travel to your actual boarding point.
Official price listKaikan show and ropeway fees and operations
Official sources and check dates
- Kaikan show and ropeway fees and operations ·
- Check admission and closures ·
- Directions to the entrance ·
- Tide table for your visit date ·
- Admission and seasonal hours ·
- Parking fees and guidance ·
- Cruise operator’s fares and boarding guidance ·
- Ai Land Udatsu location and operations ·
- Yoshida Residence fees and hours ·
- Distinguish passenger-car and tour-bus parking ·
- October weekday timetable ·
- Holiday timetable ·
- Fares and payment guidance ·
- Official price list ·
- Miyoshi Tourism Association Oboke information and access ·
- Oboke facility hours, closures and tourist information ·
- Official Shikoku roadside-station gorge views and facility guide ·
- JR Shikoku October 2026 pass revision notice ·