Naoshima
The drawcard of little Inujima island is this copper refinery converted into an eco-building, displaying artist Yanagi Yukinori's surreal take on the natural world. This is more an interactive experience than a traditional gallery: you enter through a dark maze of mirrors with the burning sun at its end, and continue past floating furniture and walls that seem to disappear. It's a short walk along the coast from the ferry terminal.
Ferries connect Inujima to Teshima and Naoshima.
12.14 MILES
Kōraku-en draws the crowds with its reputation as one of the three most beautiful gardens in Japan. It has expansive lawns broken up by ponds, teahouses…
16.49 MILES
One of the most beautiful gardens in the country, Ritsurin-kōen dates from the mid-1600s and took more than a century to complete. Designed as a walking…
9.59 MILES
In Honmura, half a dozen traditional buildings have been turned over to contemporary artists to use as the setting for creative installations, often…
29.95 MILES
Zentsū-ji, Temple 75 of the sacred 88, is the largest of the temples – most of the other 87 could fit in its car park. This is where Kōbō Daishi was born,…
5.17 MILES
Teshima's art 'museum' impresses for its architecture – a monumental concrete shell, forming a low teardrop-shaped dome on the hillside, designed by Tokyo…
15.16 MILES
About 500m north of Yashima station, Shikoku-mura is an excellent village museum that houses old buildings transported here from all over Shikoku and…
25.92 MILES
This small castle dates from 1597. It took five years to build and is one of only 12 castles in Japan to have its original wooden donjon intact. It's…
26.33 MILES
The last of the Shikoku pilgrimage's 88 Temples sits in the mountains in the southeast of Kagawa Prefecture and is well worth a visit. It's fitting that…
5.17 MILES
Teshima's art 'museum' impresses for its architecture – a monumental concrete shell, forming a low teardrop-shaped dome on the hillside, designed by Tokyo…
5.23 MILES
For an oddly fascinating and unique museum experience, visit this 'heartbeat archive' on a small bay near the Karato Port area. There are tens of…
5.93 MILES
Close to Ieura Port, an old house has been converted into exhibition spaces, with a colourful take on a traditional Japanese rock garden outside (which…
7.59 MILES
Legend (or marketing) says if you stroll this sandbar dubbed 'Angel Road' with your loved one, your heart's desire will come true. In reality it's three…
8.94 MILES
About 4km inland from the Ikeda ferry terminal are Nakayama's 'thousand rice fields'. The terraces are pretty in any season, but especially picturesque…
9.45 MILES
One of the sites in the Art House Project collection, this is Hiroshi Sugimoto's play on the traditional Go'o Shrine, with a glass staircase and a very…
9.57 MILES
Minamidera, one of the sites within the Art House Project, is a James Turrell experiment with light. Queue up to enter in total darkness…and wait…
9.59 MILES
In Honmura, half a dozen traditional buildings have been turned over to contemporary artists to use as the setting for creative installations, often…