Tokushima Prefecture

Head deep into a gorge carved by a river

Shosenkyo, Kiyotsu, Nezame-no-Toko, Oboke and Oirase are gorges and valleys that rivers have cut through rock over a very long time. Walking paths, a tunnel through the cliff and a sightseeing boat let you go right down inside them. They are spread across Japan, so pick the one on your route, and check access in winter, when some close or are hard to reach in snow.

Tokushima Prefecture

Watch sea whirlpools from a boat or a bridge

Where the tide rushes through the narrow Naruto Strait between Awaji Island and Shikoku, the water spins into whirlpools. Watch them from a sightseeing boat, or look straight down at them through a glass floor under the bridge. They are strongest for about an hour and a half either side of the fastest tide, and biggest in spring and autumn, so check the tide table; Naruto is about 2 hours from Osaka by highway bus.

See famous paintings recreated at full size

This museum shows famous Western paintings, from ancient wall paintings to modern art, reproduced at their real size on ceramic panels. Walk the large galleries in order of era and see side by side works that really hang in different countries. It is in Naruto, on the island of Shikoku, about two hours by highway bus from Osaka, and seeing it all takes half a day.

Ride a boat between the cliffs of a gorge

River boats carry you into gorges, where you sit close to the water and look up at cliffs, rapids and forest that you cannot see from the road. On some rivers, boatmen steer long wooden boats down the rapids by hand with poles and oars. Sailings stop when the water is too high or too low, so check the operator's notice on the day.

Wind deep into the mountains for an onsen

Hikyo onsen, hidden hot springs, are rustic inns deep in the mountains, often the only building in sight. Getting there is part of it: you wind up mountain roads or ride a cable car down into a gorge, then soak in water that comes straight from the ground. Many close on set weekdays or are cut off by snow in winter, and not all take day visitors, so check before you go.

A strait town of whirlpools and sea bream

Naruto, at the northeastern tip of Shikoku facing Awaji Island, sits on a narrow strait where the tide rushes through so fast that it spins the sea into whirlpools. Look straight down at them through a glass floor in a walkway under a bridge, then eat local sea bream (tai), said to be firm from swimming in the fast water, as sashimi or over rice. It is about two hours from Osaka by highway bus, so it works as a day trip; the whirlpools are biggest around high and low tide, so check the tide table first.

Drink fresh beer next to the tanks it came from

All over Japan, small craft breweries pour their beer in taprooms set right beside the brewing tanks, so what you drink was made a few steps away. Order a few small glasses to compare styles, often with food made to go with them. The places in and around Tokyo make an easy evening out, while those farther away fit into a longer trip through the region.

A hidden valley crossed by bridges of vines

The Iya Valley, deep in the mountains of Shikoku, is where warriors of the defeated Heike clan are said to have hidden in the 1100s, weaving bridges from wild vines that they could cut down if enemies came. Cross a swaying vine bridge, slurp Iya soba, the valley's thick buckwheat noodles, and take a boat through the gorge to see it from below. It is about two and a half hours from Osaka by shinkansen and limited express to Oboke Station, then a local bus that runs only a few times a day.

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