Ehime in 4 Days: Day Trips to Uchiko and Ozu, or One Night in Ozu?
Stay three nights in Matsuyama for separate day trips to Uchiko and Ozu without changing hotels. For a night in Ozu, stay two nights in Matsuyama, then move via Uchiko. The overnight Ozu itinerary visits the castle on the last day before returning to Matsuyama.
Choose an itinerary for 4 days, 3 nights
Separate day trips to Uchiko and Ozu
Stay three nights in Okaido to visit both towns without changing hotels. Take a day trip to Uchiko's historic streets and another to Ozu Castle, using JR Matsuyama Station for both round trips.
Separate day trips to Uchiko and Ozu →4 days, 3 nightsOne night in Ozu after visiting Uchiko
Choose two nights in Matsuyama and one in Ozu to rest there after the castle and hot springs. On day 3, travel via Uchiko to Ozu. Visit Ozu Castle on the last day before returning to Matsuyama. The Uchiko stop is an option only if you can walk with light luggage.
One night in Ozu after visiting Uchiko →Separate day trips to Uchiko and Ozu
Stay three nights in Okaido to visit both towns without changing hotels. Take a day trip to Uchiko's historic streets and another to Ozu Castle, using JR Matsuyama Station for both round trips.
Day 1: Visit Matsuyama Castle from Okaido
Stay three nights in Matsuyama and visit Uchiko and Ozu on separate day trips. Both use round-trip trains from JR Matsuyama Station.
- Matsuyama Airport or JR Matsuyama Station → Okaido stop
If arriving by JR, take city tram 5 bound for Dogo Onsen from JR Matsuyama Station and get off at Okaido. From the airport, check that your limousine bus leaves after you can realistically board and stops at Okaido. Not every airport departure serves this stop. Arrival-day transportation is excluded from the sightseeing subtotal.
City tram timetableAirport limousine routes, fares, and October 1–24, 2026 timetableAccess to the lower ropeway station
- Okaido stop → Shinonomeguchi lower ropeway station
Walk from the Okaido tram stop to Shinonomeguchi lower ropeway station. The official walking estimate is about five minutes.
- Shinonomeguchi lower ropeway station → Upper station and keep ticket counter
Buy an adult round-trip ticket for ¥520 at the lower station and take the ropeway. From the upper station, walk through the main enclosure to the keep ticket counter. The operator's approximately 30-minute estimate from the lower station's first floor to the keep ticket counter excludes time inside the keep.
Castle admission and hoursAccess to the lower ropeway station
- Keep ticket counter → Matsuyama Castle keep
Adult keep admission is ¥520, separate from the round-trip ropeway ticket. Regular visiting hours are 9:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m., with last admission 30 minutes before closing. Hours differ in August and December–January, so check your date's cutoff before entering.
- Matsuyama Castle keep → Lower ropeway station and Okaido shopping streets
Return to the upper boarding area and take the ropeway down. Walk toward Okaido from the lower station for a meal or rest.
Visiting inside the keep and using the ropeway round trip require separate payments. Walking only in the main enclosure requires no keep admission. If you move the visit to day 2, rework the planned attractions, transportation, and admission cutoffs.
Day 2: Walk Uchiko's historic streets, then return to Matsuyama
Have breakfast at your hotel, then take city tram 5 from Okaido toward JR Matsuyama Station.
- Okaido hotel → JR Uchiko Station
From Okaido, take tram 5 to JR Matsuyama Station and walk into the JR station. Transfer to a train stopping at Uchiko. Matsuyama City Station is not a JR station. Check your date's arrival time and return service together. Walking from your hotel to the tram stop, tram transfers, JR ticket purchases, and platform access are outside the train journey time. Limited express travel requires an unreserved-seat surcharge in addition to the base fare.
City tram timetableApril 2026 fare chart, page 2Uchiko Tourism Association visitor FAQFare chartMatsuyama StationUchiko StationIyo-Ozu Station
- JR Uchiko Station → Uchiko historic streets
The tourism association gives about one kilometer, or a 15-minute walk, from Uchiko Station to the southern entrance of the historic streets. Explore old buildings and lanes and have lunch. Allow one to two hours for the streets and Uchiko-za surroundings, or about three with a meal or cafe stop. Uchiko-za's interior is excluded because the main building is closed for construction. For preserved houses, check opening days and admission alongside your return train.
Uchiko Tourism Association visitor FAQTourism association closure noticeUchiko Town dressing-room access notice
- Uchiko historic streets → Okaido hotel
Walk back from the southern entrance to Uchiko Station and choose a Matsuyama-bound departure for your date. Finish lunch in time for the 15-minute walk and boarding. Also check when the return train arrives in Matsuyama. At JR Matsuyama Station, go to the tram stop outside and take tram 5 bound for Dogo Onsen to Okaido. Return to your hotel and plan dinner nearby.
City tram timetableApril 2026 fare chart, page 2Uchiko Tourism Association visitor FAQ
Day 3: Walk from Iyo-Ozu Station to Ozu Castle
As on the previous day, take tram 5 from Okaido to JR Matsuyama Station.
- Okaido hotel → JR Iyo-Ozu Station
From Okaido, take tram 5 to JR Matsuyama Station and walk into the JR station. Choose a limited express stopping at Iyo-Ozu via Uchiko. Trains via Iyo-Nagahama also reach Iyo-Ozu, but the fare example below is for an unreserved-seat limited express via Uchiko. Even on an Uwajima-bound train, check that Iyo-Ozu is a stop in your date's timetable. JR's fare chart gives an adult one-way total of ¥1,840 Matsuyama–Iyo-Ozu: ¥1,080 base fare plus a ¥760 unreserved-seat limited express surcharge.
Uchiko Tourism Association visitor FAQFare chartMatsuyama StationUchiko StationIyo-Ozu Station
- JR Iyo-Ozu Station → Ozu Castle
The official walk from Iyo-Ozu Station to Ozu Castle is about 30 minutes. Follow the old Ozu road through Tokiwamachi's shopping streets and across the Hiji River toward the castle. Leave time for the walk and ticket purchase. Ozu Castle opens 9:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m., with ticket sales until 4:30 p.m.; adult admission is ¥550. Afterward, eat at an open restaurant or take a short riverside walk, then return to the station for your train. If you prefer the loop bus, check that day's frequency and fare separately. The base cost assumes walking between station and castle.
- Ozu Castle → Okaido hotel
Choose a Matsuyama-bound train from Iyo-Ozu. After the castle and lunch, leave time for the 30-minute walk back to the station. If your visit runs late, check the next Matsuyama service. Back at JR Matsuyama Station, take tram 5 toward Dogo Onsen to your Okaido hotel.
City tram timetableApril 2026 fare chart, page 2Uchiko Tourism Association visitor FAQIyo-Ozu StationUchiko Station
Day 4: Bathe at Dogo Onsen before departure
- Okaido hotel → Dogo Onsen Honkan
From Okaido, take tram 3 bound for Dogo Onsen to the last stop and walk along Haikara-dori to Honkan. Choose the Kami-no-Yu bathing-only course, ¥700 for adults. It operates 6:00 a.m.–11:00 p.m., with entry until 10:30 p.m. and a 60-minute visit. Advance reservations are not accepted. Other courses cost different amounts.
Bathing courses, prices, and reservationsCity tram timetableApril 2026 fare chart, page 2Official Dogo Onsen Station, shopping street, and Honkan walking map
- Dogo Onsen Honkan → Okaido stop
After bathing, return to Dogo Onsen Station and take tram 3 toward Matsuyama City Station. Get off at Okaido for a meal or rest in the shopping streets. For departure, choose the airport or JR route below according to your destination. For a morning departure, move bathing to another day.
Included items: Facilities ¥2,290 + Uchiko limited express round trip ¥3,220 + Ozu limited express round trip ¥3,680 + six tram rides: ¥1,500 cash / ¥1,380 with an IC card
Additional costs: Flights, hotels, meals, luggage storage, separately used transportation between hotels, stops, stations, and attractions, arrival-day transportation, airport limousine buses, taxis, and additional transportation cost extra. Paid houses and museums in Uchiko are excluded. Recalculate JR costs for local trains, reserved seats, or a pass.
This amount covers separate Matsuyama day trips to Uchiko and Ozu. Unreserved-seat limited express round trips cost ¥3,220 to Uchiko and ¥3,680 to Iyo-Ozu via Uchiko. Six trams cover Okaido–JR Matsuyama Station on both day-trip days and the final Dogo Onsen round trip. Staying in the same hotel still requires both JR round trips and all six tram rides.
Castle admission and hoursBathing courses, prices, and reservationsApril 2026 fare chart, page 2Boarding and payment guideFare chartOzu City castle information
One night in Ozu after visiting Uchiko
Choose two nights in Matsuyama and one in Ozu to rest there after the castle and hot springs. On day 3, travel via Uchiko to Ozu. Visit Ozu Castle on the last day before returning to Matsuyama. The Uchiko stop is an option only if you can walk with light luggage.
Day 1: Visit Matsuyama Castle
Stay two nights in Matsuyama, then move to Ozu for one night. Allow time on your last day to visit Ozu Castle and return to JR Matsuyama Station.
- Matsuyama Airport or JR Matsuyama Station → Okaido stop
If arriving by JR, take city tram 5 bound for Dogo Onsen from JR Matsuyama Station and get off at Okaido. From the airport, check that your limousine bus leaves after you can realistically board and stops at Okaido. Not every airport departure serves this stop. Arrival-day transportation is excluded from the sightseeing subtotal.
City tram timetableAirport limousine routes, fares, and October 1–24, 2026 timetableAccess to the lower ropeway station
- Okaido stop and hotel → Shinonomeguchi lower station and keep ticket counter
Official guidance gives about five minutes from near the Okaido stop to Shinonomeguchi ropeway station, then about 30 minutes by ropeway and on foot from the lower station's first floor to the keep ticket counter.
Access to the lower ropeway stationCastle admission and hours
- Keep ticket counter → Matsuyama Castle keep
The keep usually opens 9:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m., with last admission at 4:30 p.m. Hours vary seasonally.
- Matsuyama Castle and lower ropeway station → Okaido hotel
Take the ropeway down, eat in Okaido, and return to your hotel. If you do not enter the keep, the ¥520 keep admission does not apply. If arrival day leaves too little visiting time, swap with another day's city plans.
Day 2: Bathe at Dogo Onsen, then return to Matsuyama
Take city tram 3 bound for Dogo Onsen from Okaido and get off at Dogo Onsen Station.
- Okaido stop → Dogo Onsen Station
Take tram 3 bound for Dogo Onsen to the last stop. The walk from the station to Honkan and on-site waiting take additional time.
- Dogo Onsen Station and Haikara-dori → Dogo Onsen Honkan
Walk along Haikara-dori to Honkan and use the Kami-no-Yu bathing-only course. It costs ¥700 for adults, operates 6:00 a.m.–11:00 p.m., accepts entry until 10:30 p.m., and allows 60 minutes. Advance reservations are not available for this course.
Bathing courses, prices, and reservationsOfficial Dogo Onsen Station, shopping street, and Honkan walking map
- Dogo Onsen Honkan and Dogo Onsen Station → Okaido hotel
After bathing, eat or rest at an open shop in the shopping streets. From Dogo Onsen Station, take tram 3 toward Matsuyama City Station back to Okaido for your second night at the same hotel.
Day 3: Travel via Uchiko to your Ozu hotel
Change hotels from Matsuyama to Ozu via Uchiko. Storage for large bags in Uchiko is unconfirmed, so choose this route only if you can walk with light luggage. Otherwise, use the direct Iyo-Ozu option below.
- Okaido hotel → JR Uchiko Station
From Okaido, take city tram 5 toward JR Matsuyama Station. Matsuyama City Station and the JR station are different. Choose a limited express stopping at Uchiko. The adult one-way unreserved-seat example is ¥1,610: ¥850 base fare plus a ¥760 surcharge.
City tram timetableApril 2026 fare chart, page 2Uchiko Tourism Association visitor FAQFare chartMatsuyama StationUchiko StationIyo-Ozu Station
- JR Uchiko Station → Uchiko historic streets
From Uchiko Station, walk about one kilometer, or 15 minutes, to the southern entrance of the historic streets. Explore old buildings and lanes and have lunch. The tourism association suggests one to two hours for walking, or about three including a meal. Uchiko-za's main building is closed for construction, so interior visits are excluded.
Uchiko Tourism Association visitor FAQTourism association closure noticeUchiko Town dressing-room access noticeTabirian location and general business hoursTourism association FY2024 business reportRakutabi sales suspension notice
- Uchiko historic streets → JR Uchiko Station
After walking and lunch, retrace your route to Uchiko Station. Add ticket purchase and boarding time to the approximately 15-minute walk from the southern entrance, and choose an Iyo-Ozu-bound train for your date.
- JR Uchiko Station platform → A JR train stopping at Iyo-Ozu
Choose a train that stops at Iyo-Ozu on your actual travel date. The separate-leg unreserved-seat limited express example is ¥780: ¥330 base fare plus a ¥450 surcharge. Local trains, reserved seats, or passes do not use the same total.
- JR train to Iyo-Ozu → Outside JR Iyo-Ozu Station
Get off at Iyo-Ozu and exit the station. Choose the route to your Ozu hotel using its booked address, then plan dinner and rest nearby.
Stopping for a walk in Uchiko uses two legs: Matsuyama → Uchiko and Uchiko → Iyo-Ozu. Skipping the visit uses one Matsuyama → Iyo-Ozu leg. Check trains and stops for your actual travel date.
Day 4: Visit Ozu Castle before departure
- Central Ozu → Ozu Castle
Ozu Castle opens 9:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m., with ticket sales until 4:30 p.m.; adult admission is ¥550. The official walk from Iyo-Ozu Station is about 30 minutes. Follow the old Ozu road through Tokiwamachi's shopping streets and across the Hiji River bridge. If departure day starts early, move the castle visit to an earlier sightseeing day.
- Ozu Castle → JR Iyo-Ozu Station
Retrace your route from Ozu Castle to Iyo-Ozu Station. Add boarding time to the approximately 30-minute walk and choose a Matsuyama-bound train for your date. Limited express via Uchiko and local trains via Iyo-Nagahama have different routes and fares.
- JR Iyo-Ozu Station → Your departure boarding point
For a flight from Matsuyama Airport, take a JR train from Iyo-Ozu to Matsuyama via Uchiko and transfer to the airport limousine outside JR Matsuyama Station. Adult one-way unreserved-seat limited express costs ¥1,840: ¥1,080 base fare plus a ¥760 surcharge. The currently checked adult one-way bus fare from the JR station to the airport is ¥1,000 cash or ¥980 with a nationwide transit IC card. Reaching the airport requires this bus transfer. Compare your flight time with the time needed after the castle for train waiting, the walk to the bus stop, the bus journey, and airport check-in. For another city, choose a train to that destination separately from Iyo-Ozu.
Airport limousine routes, fares, and October 1–24, 2026 timetableFare chartMatsuyama StationIyo-Ozu Station
Included items: Facilities ¥2,290 + Matsuyama → Uchiko limited express ¥1,610 + Uchiko → Ozu limited express ¥780 + Ozu → Matsuyama limited express ¥1,840 + three tram rides: ¥750 cash / ¥690 with an IC card
Additional costs: Flights, hotels, meals, luggage storage, separately used transportation between hotels, stops, stations, and attractions, arrival-day transportation, airport limousine buses, taxis, and additional transportation cost extra. Paid houses and museums in Uchiko are excluded. Recalculate JR costs for local trains, reserved seats, or a pass.
This amount assumes traveling via Uchiko to Ozu, then returning toward Matsuyama Airport on the last day. JR fares are ¥1,610 Matsuyama → Uchiko, ¥780 Uchiko → Iyo-Ozu, and ¥1,840 Iyo-Ozu → Matsuyama, using each leg once. Three trams cover the Dogo Onsen round trip and one Okaido → JR Matsuyama Station journey. The JR station-to-airport bus costs extra. Skipping Uchiko or departing Ozu for another city changes JR legs and fares. Luggage storage is separate; availability and prices are unconfirmed.
Castle admission and hoursBathing courses, prices, and reservationsApril 2026 fare chart, page 2Boarding and payment guideFare chartOzu City castle information
Questions before you go
Is the ALL SHIKOKU Rail Pass cheaper for Uchiko and Ozu?
With three nights in Matsuyama and separate day trips, unreserved-seat limited express round trips cost ¥3,220 to Uchiko and ¥3,680 to Ozu, totaling ¥6,900. Following the October 1, 2026 revision, the adult ALL SHIKOKU Rail Pass costs ¥12,000 for three days or ¥20,000 for seven; four- and five-day pass sales have ended. Regular tickets for these two round trips cost less than the three-day pass. If you will also use JR to other cities, add those legs and compare travel dates. The pass requires a foreign passport and Temporary Visitor status. It does not include Iyotetsu city trams, airport buses, castle admission, or hot-spring bathing. Revised conditions checked October 9, 2026; JR fares checked October 8, 2026.
ALL SHIKOKU Rail Pass: official October 1, 2026 revision noticeOfficial ALL SHIKOKU Rail Pass guideFare chart
Can I visit Uchiko and continue to Ozu the same day?
Choose an Iyo-Ozu-bound train allowing about three hours for a meal and walk in Uchiko, the roughly 15-minute walk back to the station, and boarding time. On a hotel-change day, stop in Uchiko only if you can walk with light bags. With large luggage, go directly from Matsuyama to Iyo-Ozu and visit Uchiko another day or skip it. The direct option changes JR legs and costs.
Uchiko Tourism Association visitor FAQUchiko StationIyo-Ozu StationRakutabi sales suspension notice
Official sources and checked dates
- Castle admission and hours ·
- Access to the lower ropeway station ·
- Bathing courses, prices, and reservations ·
- Uchiko Tourism Association visitor FAQ ·
- Tourism association closure notice ·
- Uchiko Town dressing-room access notice ·
- Ozu City castle information ·
- Fare chart ·
- Matsuyama Station ·
- Uchiko Station ·
- Iyo-Ozu Station ·
- Ozu Castle access ·
- Tabirian location and general business hours ·
- Tourism association FY2024 business report ·
- Rakutabi sales suspension notice ·
- Airport limousine routes, fares, and October 1–24, 2026 timetable ·
- Matsuyama Airport bus guide ·
- City tram timetable ·
- April 2026 fare chart, page 2 ·
- Boarding and payment guide ·
- Official ALL SHIKOKU Rail Pass guide ·
- Official Dogo Onsen Station, shopping street, and Honkan walking map ·
- ALL SHIKOKU Rail Pass: official October 1, 2026 revision notice ·