Things to do in Hiroshima

Best Things to do in Hiroshima

Planning a trip and wondering about the top things to do in Hiroshima? From historic landmarks to modern experiences, the city offers something for every traveller, making it a perfect getaway in 2026.

With over 191 activities in Hiroshima, there is plenty to explore. Visit some of the most popular tourist attractions in , including iconic sites, vibrant neighbourhoods and cultural hubs. Whether you’re exploring bustling markets, sampling local delicacies or relaxing at scenic spots, every corner has something new to discover.

With experiences starting at INR 287, it’s never been easier to plan your perfect trip. Make the most of your visit to Hiroshima in January and create memories that will last a lifetime.

Things to do in Hiroshima: Quiet Lessons and Living Streets

About Hiroshima

The first sound you notice is the tram, its bell carrying down the street. Then the river comes into view, slow and wide, with bridges arching across it. Cafés spill light in the evenings, and the air smells faintly of batter and sauce from okonomiyaki grills. At first, Hiroshima feels like any other Japanese city moving at its own steady pace.

Walk further and you reach Peace Memorial Park. The mood changes without warning. Trees line the paths, the flame burns quietly, and the Atomic Dome waits across the water. People speak more softly here. Some stop in silence, some take photographs, others just stand still.

The shift between these two worlds is what defines Hiroshima. The weight of memory is here, but so is the rhythm of daily life — students rushing for trams, families gathering in small restaurants, ferries leaving for the islands. The city does not hide its past, but it does not stop at it either. For a traveller, that balance is the reason to stay, to look, to listen.

Unique Experiences

Hiroshima No1 Food Okonomiyaki Cooking Class

The grill hisses when the batter touches it. Steam rises, carrying the smell of cabbage and sauce across the room. A local teacher shows you the layers, one by one — noodles, egg, vegetables — her hands moving quickly while yours stumble. The air feels warm, heavy with food. Someone laughs at a flipped pancake gone wrong. In the end you sit down with a dish of your own making, uneven around the edges, but rich with flavour. Eating it here feels different than ordering it at a shop. It feels like being let in on a ritual that belongs to the city.

• Where: A small kitchen space in central Hiroshima
• Pricing: Usually INR 3,000 to INR 4,500 per person
• Timing: Classes usually start late morning around 11:00 AM and again in the afternoon around 2:00 PM. Each session lasts about two hours.
• When to Visit: Open year round, though in winter the heat from the grill is especially welcome

Hiroshima 3hr Peace Cycling Tour with Local Guide

The bicycle feels light as you set off, the tyres humming on smooth paths. The guide leads you past the river, trees leaning over the banks, their leaves moving in the wind. You stop often. At the Atomic Dome, at bridges that seem ordinary until their stories are told, at small corners of the park where stone markers stand quietly. The guide speaks, then lets the silence sit. You pedal again, the air cool against your face, the weight of what you have heard still with you.

• Where: Tours usually begin near Peace Memorial Park
• Pricing: Around INR 4,500 to INR 6,000 per person, bike included
• Timing: Offered daily in morning slots at 9:00 AM and afternoon slots at 1:30 PM.
• When to Visit: Best in spring or autumn, when the air is cool and the trees full of colour

Hiroshima Walking Tour: Why a Bomb was Dropped to Hiroshima

This walk moves slowly. You follow the guide across the park, the river on one side, memorials on the other. Explanations come in short pieces, clear but never rushed. The story of decisions made far away, the reasons given, the weight left behind. People walk in near silence, some writing notes, others just watching the ground beneath their feet. The air feels heavy, though it is only the sound of birds and water around you. When the tour ends, no one hurries off. It takes a while to leave.

• Where: Peace Memorial Park, central Hiroshima
• Pricing: Around INR 3,500 to INR 5,000 per person
• Timing: Most departures are in the morning at 9:00 AM. Occasional afternoon starts at 1:00 PM are also listed.
• When to Visit: Any season, though mornings are quieter and easier to reflect in

Top Attractions

Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park

The river bends wide here, and the park stretches along its banks. Pathways are shaded with trees, the air quieter than the streets nearby. You notice small things first — a bell hung low enough to ring, paper cranes folded in bright colours, the flame that burns steadily in the open air. People walk slowly, some speaking softly, others silent. The Atomic Dome stands at one end, its shell of stone and steel a reminder that pulls every glance back to it.

• Where: Central Hiroshima, along the river
• Pricing: Free to enter
• Timing: Open to the public all day, though the quietest hours are early morning from 7:00 AM to 9:00 AM.
• When to Visit: Any season, though spring with its blossoms softens the atmosphere

Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum

Inside the museum the light is dim, the halls long. Displays carry clothing, photographs, watches stopped at the same moment. The quiet is striking. Visitors move slowly from one case to another, some pausing longer than others. Guides do not rush you, and it feels less like a gallery than a place of listening. Walking out into daylight again, the noise of the city feels different, sharper against the memory of what you just saw.

• Where: Inside Peace Memorial Park, Hiroshima
• Pricing: Around INR 500 to INR 800 per person
• Timing: Open daily from 8:30 AM until 6:00 PM. In August, hours extend until 7:00 PM, with last entry 30 minutes before closing.
• When to Visit: All year, with mornings offering smaller crowds

Miyajima Island Itsukushima Shrine

The ferry ride is quiet. Only the slap of water against the hull, gulls circling, a line of mountains in the distance. On the island deer wander freely near the port, nudging at bags, pausing in doorways. The shrine sits low against the sea, wood darkened by years of salt and sun. At high tide the great gate seems to float, its reflection trembling on the surface. The floorboards creak when you walk across them. Lanterns hang still in the air. As the sun falls, the colours shift, red deepening to something closer to fire. Locals pass through on their way home while travellers linger, trying to hold on to the view a little longer.

• Where: Miyajima Island, south of Hiroshima
• Pricing: Expect INR 1,200 to INR 2,000 per person including ferry and entry
• Timing: Shrine gates usually open from 6:30 AM to 6:00 PM. Ferries to the island run every 15–30 minutes from 6:30 AM until 10:00 PM.
• When to Visit: Spring and autumn bring the clearest air, but each season offers its own mood

Sightseeing Tours

Hiroshima City 4hr Private Walking Tour with Licensed Guide

You meet the guide near the station and begin on foot. The pace is gentle, not hurried. Streets open into small shrines, narrow lanes, then back again to busy squares. The guide shifts between history and daily life, pointing out a carving on a gate, the best place for lunch, the story behind a monument you might have walked past. It feels personal, shaped by the guide’s own rhythm. Four hours slip by, not with a rush of sights but with the sense of the city breathing around you.

• Where: Starting points near Hiroshima Station or Peace Memorial Park
• Pricing: Around INR 6,000 to INR 8,000 per person
• Timing: Shrine gates usually open from 6:30 AM to 6:00 PM. Ferries to the island run every 15–30 minutes from 6:30 AM until 10:00 PM.
• When to Visit: All year, though spring blossoms and autumn leaves add colour to the walk

Hiroshima in a Nutshell Morning Bike Adventure

The bicycle clicks as you set off, a small group weaving through wide streets and along the river. Early morning air is cool, the city not fully awake. You pause often — to step into a shrine, to look across the river at the Dome, to buy a snack from a street stall just opening. The guide rides easily, waiting when someone lags, adding stories that stretch from history into the present. By the end of the ride, the city feels smaller, closer, like a place you already know how to move through.

• Where: Departures from central Hiroshima
• Pricing: INR 4,000 to INR 6,000 per person including bike rental
• Timing: Runs in the morning only, starting around 9:00 AM, lasting about three hours.
• When to Visit: Best in spring and autumn, though mornings in summer can still be pleasant

Day Trips

Peaceful Hiroshima and Miyajima UNESCO 1 Day Bus Tour

The bus pulls out of the city and the windows frame the river, the streets, then the open bay. The ride is steady, carrying you first through Peace Memorial Park, where guides pause to explain each corner in more depth, then across to the island of Miyajima. On the ferry the wind lifts, the water flecked with light. Deer wander the shore, unbothered by the crowds. At Itsukushima Shrine the red gate rises from the tide, and people fall quiet as the sun shifts behind the mountains. It is a full day, a balance of reflection and calm beauty.

• Where: Departures from central Hiroshima
• Pricing: INR 8,000 to INR 11,000 per person
• Timing: Departs in the morning around 9:00 AM, returning to Hiroshima by 6:00 PM or 7:00 PM.
• When to Visit: Best from March to May or October to November, when skies are clear and air is mild

Rabbit Island Private Tour from Hiroshima with Local Guide

The ferry ride is short, but the change is instant. Stepping onto Okunoshima, rabbits scatter at your feet, ears twitching, eyes bright. They come close quickly, some bold, some cautious. The guide explains the island’s past — once a site of wartime factories, now better known for its soft, curious residents. You walk the paths with rabbits following along, pausing to feed them, pausing again at small memorials hidden in the trees. The island feels playful, yet carries memory too.

• Where: Okunoshima (Rabbit Island), ferries from Tadanoumi Port
• Pricing: INR 9,000 to INR 12,000 per person including guide and ferry
• Timing: Tours begin around 9:00 AM. Depending on the pace, you return to the city by 3:00 PM or 4:00 PM.
• When to Visit: All year, though spring and autumn make the walks most comfortable

Boat or Cruise Tours

Hiroshima and Miyajima 1 Day Cruise Tour

Morning light falls across the harbour. You step on board and the city seems to slip back almost at once. The sound of the motor is low, steady, a hum you stop noticing after a while. The water carries the smell of salt and seaweed. A gull circles close, then drifts away toward the cranes in the distance. Out in the bay the pace slows. Oyster rafts float in long rows. The wood is weathered, wet from spray. A fisherman waves from a smaller boat. Passengers lean against the rail, some talking softly, others just watching the horizon. Then the gate comes into view. Bright red, standing in the tide. From the water it looks taller, lonelier, as though it belongs more to the sea than to the shore. People fall quiet without anyone asking them to. The shrine rises behind it, the mountains behind that, one layer folding into the next.

On the island you wander at your own speed. Deer wander too, nosing at food stalls, unafraid. The smell of grilling oysters drifts across the street near the port. Later, when you board the boat again, the air has cooled. The city lights wait far ahead, flickering on the edge of the water.

• Where: Boats leave from Hiroshima harbour
• Pricing: INR 7,000 to INR 10,000 per person
• Timing: Departs in the morning around 9:00 AM and returns by 5:00 PM or 6:00 PM.
• When to Visit: Spring and autumn for the clearest skies and calmest seas

Itsukushima Shrine by Sea and Oyster Raft Tour

The boat sits low in the water. Close enough that you can hear the slap of small waves against the side. It pulls away slowly, weaving between wooden rafts. The smell changes — sharp salt, damp wood, a trace of seaweed. A man on one raft lifts a basket, oysters dripping, the sound of water hitting wood louder than the motor. The guide talks. Families, traditions, how the bay has fed them for centuries. You half listen, half drift. Eyes following the rafts stretching on and on, broken only by gulls crying overhead. Then the shrine appears. The red gate stands in the tide, taller than it looks from shore. Its reflection shivers with each ripple. People lean forward against the rail. No one says much. Just the sound of water and wind filling the pause.

• Where: Tours leave from ports around Hiroshima Bay
• Pricing: INR 5,000 to INR 7,000 per person
• Timing: Multiple departures daily, with slots usually from 10:00 AM through 2:00 PM. Each sailing lasts about two to three hours.
• When to Visit: Autumn and winter bring the richest oyster harvests, though the shrine has a presence in every season

Getting Around

Hiroshima is not difficult to cross. The city feels wide at first, but trams run steady through the centre, bells ringing as they pull into stops.

On Foot

Peace Memorial Park and the streets around it are easy to walk. Side lanes hold small shrines, shops, and cafés where the smell of batter and sauce drifts out. Walking keeps the city close.

By Tram

The trams are part of Hiroshima’s rhythm. Old green cars rattle slowly, newer ones glide, but both reach most of the city’s main sights. Sitting by the window you see bridges, rivers, and the mix of old houses and modern glass.

By Bicycle

Flat streets and long riverbanks make cycling natural here. In spring the paths bloom with cherry blossoms, in autumn the leaves fall into the water. The air feels open, less crowded than Tokyo or Osaka.

By Ferry

The bay ties the city to its islands. Boats leave regularly for Miyajima, a short trip that feels longer as the shrine gate rises out of the tide.

Moving around is not only transport. Each way of travel shifts the pace. A tram bell, the steady push of pedals, the sound of a ferry engine — all part of how Hiroshima shows itself.

Traveller Tips

• Start at the Park Peace Memorial Park is the heart of the city. Go early. The air is cooler, the paths quiet, and the Atomic Dome stands without the press of crowds.
• Carry Small Change Trams and small shops often run smoother with coins or small bills. Larger stores take cards, but pockets of cash make life easier.
• Taste the Local Dish Okonomiyaki is not just food here, it is part of the city’s character. Try it at a small shop or join a class. The flavour feels richer when you see how it is made.
• Plan for the Seasons Spring brings blossoms, autumn turns the parks red and gold. Summer is hot and humid, better for early walks and ferry rides. Winter is crisp, and the museums carry more weight in the quiet.
• Evenings are Gentle For travellers wondering about things to do in Hiroshima at night, the answer is simple. Lanterns light the river, trams keep running, and food stalls open late. The mood is calm rather than loud.
• Take a Ferry Miyajima is close, but the ride makes it feel further. The view of the shrine gate from the water stays with you.
• Leave Time to Listen Guides tell stories, but so do taxi drivers, shop owners, and strangers on the tram. A pause to listen often gives more than rushing to the next stop.