I live in Nagoya and I’m planning a trip to Matsuyama on Shikoku in the new year. I’ve never been west of Kansai so I’m really looking forward to it.
When looking up directions on Google Maps, the suggested route seems to be take the Shinkansen to Okayama, then transfer to the JR Yosan line, for a total trip time of nearly 5 hours and almost 18,000円. I guess that’s Shikoku for you, even though it’s an express train! Meanwhile, Yahoo! Transit suggests I just fly to get there fastest… or I could transfer in Fukuyama instead to a Chugoku Bus highway bus if I want to save 2–3万円 for about 20 minutes more travel time. NAVITIMR gives even more potential itineraries.
For anyone who’s gone there before from Honshu, what’s your recommended (and cheapest) route, anything I should be wary of or that would be good to know regarding travel to/from there around that time of year – or what should I look into? Thanks!
7 comments
Are you going solo or with someone? Can you drive? A car rental might be cheaper at this rate
The JR Yosan line is a bit slow but it’s a very scenic route. I went to Matsuyama twice.
The first one I took a speed boat from Hiroshima port and the other one from Okoyama with the rapid train (don’t expect a shinkansen). I couldn’t tell for the buses.
Cheapest would be a direct weekend only Meitetsu bus (8.000-9,000 JPY). The most sensible option would still be shinkansen to Okayama and Shiokaze to Matsuyama (also because it’s multiple Nozomis + 1 Shiokaze/hour to choose from versus a few direct trains to Fukuyama and a somewhat irregular bus schedule).
As others have said, the least hassle by public transport is shinkansen to Okayama and then the Yosan Limited Express to Matsuyama. The scenery can be quite lovely, especially on the Seto-Ohashi where you can see lots of the Inland Sea.
A car is not such a silly idea. The highway is pretty good and the drive in Shikoku is generally quite straightforward in my experience. If you don’t want to pay toll, the main (standard) road in Shikoku is not bad either. This is not like going down to Kochi where things get more difficult in the mountains.
One day, you should consider a trip to Kagawa. It is small and very much less famous or touristy, but it has its charms.
There are daily flights from NGO to MYJ. Honestly the most straightforward and by far the fastest
We went also went from Nagoya to Matsuyama for our holiday and took a domestic flight! Price is around the same but much faster
Slow as it is, you should take the train at least one way. The scenery from the Seto Ohashi is on another level.