Kurashiki

Kurashiki (倉敷) is a city in Okayama prefecture, Japan.

Travel to Kurashiki - Visa Requirements

Flights and airtickets to Kurashiki

A shuttle bus will take you from Okayama's airport to Kurashiki station in approximately 45 minutes (¥1000). Tickets can be purchased from a vending machine outside of the airport. Large luggage is okay; the driver will stow it underneath the seats. Staff at the information booth just beyond baggage claim are very helpful, and will go outside with you to purchase the ticket and get you on the appropriate bus. Like most buses in Japan, the driver will collect the ticket when you disembark.

By train

Kurashiki is on the JR San'yo Main Line between Okayama and Fukuyama.

The best way to reach Kurashiki from the San'yo Shinkansen is to transfer to a local train at Okayama; the ride takes about 15 minutes (¥320). Note that the limited express trains between Okayama and Kurashiki are more than twice as expensive, and will only save you one or two minutes.

However, if you have a Japan Rail Pass, you can take either a local or a limited express; on the latter, hop onto any non-reserved car and simply flash your rail pass to the conductor, declaring Kurashiki as your destination.

The San'yo Shinkansen does has a stop at Shin-Kurashiki station (新倉敷), another 10 minutes down the San'yo Main Line, but this stop is only served by all-stopping Kodama trains.

Buses to Kurashiki

123bus [1] is a company which provides daily night time bus services between Tokyo and Kurashiki and Osaka and Kurashiki (4 3/4 hours, ¥3000 one way). With online booking service in English.

Tours and Getting around Kurashiki

Most of the sights in Kurashiki are in and around the Bikan area (see below). The station is about ten minutes away on foot down Chuo-dori.

Kurashiki tourist attractions and sightseeing

Bikan Historic Area

There is a tourist information office with several decent maps/guides available in several languages, and most of the workers speak some English. To find the office, exit the train station to the south (left from JR ticket collection), to where you overlook the bus station. Stay on the upper level, and the office is in the shops to the right (west).

• The Bikan area is a preserved district of traditional merchant buildings in Japan. White walls and store houses (倉 kura) with lattice windows, many of which have been converted into museums, share space with weeping willow trees along the banks of an old canal. The canal and its bridges is illuminated at night.

• Ohara Museum of Art, near the canal, [2]. houses a renowned collection of classic European and American art, including Picasso, Renoir, Monet, Matisse and many others. It also has another building for exhibitions by modern Japanese artists. The neoclassical columns are easily recognized amidst the more traditional buildings in the Bikan area. Look for the Rodin statues out front and in the small sculpture garden at the back.

• Japan Rural Toy Museum, 4-16 1-chome Chuo-dori; Tel. 086-422-8058. Also in the Bikan area, has a collection of over 40,000 toys, although only 5,000 usually are on display. Most are show-pieces (and occasionally eerie ones at that), but there are some that kids can play with hands-on. Admission is ¥300 for adults, ¥200 for teenagers and ¥100 for kids.

• Museum of Folkcraft, 1-4-11 Chuo-dori; Tel. 086-422-1542. Hosts excellent seasonal and permanent exhibitions of Japanese folk crafts. Even if you're not captivated by the subject matter, the space in which it's housed - three vintage structures connected by narrow corridors and old stairwells - is worth checking out. Hours are 9am - 5pm for most of the year, 9AM-4:15PM in the winter. It's closed on Mondays.

• Archaeological Museum
• Ohashi House
• Achi Shrine
• Kurashiki Insect Museum
• Museum of Natural History

Tamashima Area

Although the Bikan Historic District is the most popular area to visit in Kurashiki, the Tamashima area is the most easily accessible, with Shin-Kurashiki Station, accessible by Shinkansen, as the main station.

• Saisou-tei
• Entsuji Temple

Kojima Area

The Kojima area is located along the Seto Inland Sea, and offers many great views of the Seto Ohashi Bridge.

• Jeans Factory The Kojima area of Kurashiki is known throughout Japan for its high-quality jeans, and the museum displays items made in the factory and the history of Kojima jean production. （086）473-4460
• Yugasan Rendaiji Temple A unique complex composed of both a shrine and a temple. The torii gate is made of Bizen pottery
• Seto Ohashi Memorial Bridge Museum
• Ogino Museum of Art
• Tsusenen Garden
• Washuzan Highland
• Washuzan Hill

Kurashiki city tours

Kurashiki souvenirs and shopping

• Kurashiki Ivy Square (Motomachi 7-2), located in an old cotton mill, sells high-end art, fabrics, textiles and other traditional wares.
• Hon-dori and Ebisu-dori are covered shopping arcades leading back toward the station.

Kurashiki Restaurants: cheap, moderate and expensive

• Takadaya is a smokey, yet fantastic little yakitoriya (grilled chicken kebab joint) just behind the Ryokan Kurashiki, on the back alleys, next to the Avenue Jazz club. Prices are reasonable and the food is fantastic. No English spoken.

Kurashiki nightlife, bars, clubs and pubs

• Ko-hi-kan is a decent coffee shop on Chuo-dori, between the station and the Bikan area. Expect to pay 450-500¥ for a coffee, about the same for a sandwich.

• SWLABR is a cozy pub/coffe-shop/clothing store located two minutes South of the station, on the way to the Bikan area. Good food, friendly staff, and popular with foreigners.

Kurashiki cheap and luxurious hotels, youth hostels and lodging

• Young Inn Kurashiki, +81(86)425-3411, [3]. A large, red-brick hotel with several floors of small, Western-style rooms for ¥4200 per night. It's not very clean, especially by the standards of most Japanese hotels, but it's close to the station and fairly easy to find. The owner speaks a little English, and reservations can be arranged over the internet. Breakfast is available.

• Kurashiki Terminal Hotel,[4] just outside the train station, is a typical business hotel--clean small rooms. It's a short walk from here to the Bikan area. Rooms from ¥6,825 single; ¥9,450 twin.

• Ryokan Kurashiki, 4-1 Honmachi, 81-86-422-0730, [5] is definitely a splurge. It's a traditional inn, where guests are fussed over and fed elaborate dinners in their rooms. Western-style breakfast is available. The inn occupies an atmospheric complex of old buildings, facing the canal in the Bikan section. There are various styles of suites--Western, traditional, mixed--scattered along a maze of corridors. Little English is spoken, but the staff welcomes foreigners. Rooms from ¥28,000 per person, including dinner and breakfast. Guests should arrive early enough to sip tea by the garden and soak themselves before dinner. On the left side of the canal as you walk from the train station, at a bend in the canal.

Get out

Within Okayama Prefecture there are many worthwhile places to travel:

• Okayama is a short train ride away, featuring Koraku-en, one of Japan's Top 3 gardens, the Kibi Trail, a variety of museums, and all the Momotaro you could possibly want.
• Soja is a city famous for its Zen temple, Hofukuji Temple where the poet and priest Sesshu once lived, as well as housing the other half of the Kibi Trail.
• Takahashi is a famous castle town with the highlight being Bitchu Matsuyama Castle, one of Japan's only remaining original castles, as well as the highest castle in the country.
• Niimi is famous for its two caves; Ikura Ravine and Maki Cave.
• Tsuyama is famous for Kakuzan Park, where springtime visitors will be treated to Okayama's best place to view cherry blossoms, as well as the beautiful Shurakuen Garden and historic Joto Street.

Outside of Okayama Prefecture, one can easily take daytrips to:

• Fukuyama, known for Fukuyama Castle and a variety of interesting museums

This page was last edited by Wikitravel user ChubbyWimbus. Based on work by Marc Heiden, David, Jose Ramos and Jani Patokallio, Wikitravel user(s) Texugo, RogerR, EnergyMan and Episteme and Anonymous user(s) of Wikitravel. - Content on this page is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 1.0 license