Izumo

Introduction

Izumo is a city in Shimane Prefecture, Japan. It sits within a total area of roughly 624 square kilometers, and its residents are spread across the city's many households at a modest population density.

Before you go

Izumo has two tourist information sites run by the local tourist association: a Japanese-only guide and an English-language guide. The two sites carry different sets of contents, so it is worth checking both before you plan your trip, even if you read only one language.

Getting there

Izumo Airport (IZO) receives flights from Tokyo's Haneda Airport, with the flight taking about 80 minutes, followed by a 30-minute bus ride to Izumo Station. By rail, Izumo-shi Station is the city's main station, located on the JR San'in Main Line. The Yakumo limited express runs hourly to Okayama, where it connects with the San'yo Shinkansen. From Hakata Station in Fukuoka, take the Shinkansen to Shin-Yamaguchi and change to the Super Oki, which runs to Izumo three times per day. An overnight train, the Sunrise Izumo, leaves Tokyo Station every night and reaches Izumo twelve hours later; Japan Rail Pass holders can book a carpeted floor space at no charge, while compartments and rooms require the applicable room fee and surcharges.

Highway buses are the budget option, with services from a wide variety of locations stopping in Izumo. From Hiroshima, Ichibata Bus and Chugoku JR Bus run eight round-trips per day from Hiroshima Station and the Hiroshima Bus Center. From Okayama, several companies operate the joint Momotaro Express, with six daily round-trips. JR Bus runs the Port Lake service from Kobe's Sannomiya Bus Terminal, while Hankyu Bus and Ichibata Bus run the Kunibiki service from Osaka and JR Bus operates the Izumo Express from Kyoto. An overnight service from Tokyo, the Susanoo, takes longer than the train but costs less. By car, Izumo is about a one-hour drive from Matsue on Route 9, the main road along the Sea of Japan side of western Japan.

Getting around

Two train companies serve Izumo: JR West's San'in Main Line, which handles long-distance arrivals and connections toward Matsue, and the Ichibata Electric Railway, known locally as "Bataden," which forms the backbone of local public transport. JR Izumoshi Station and Ichibata's Dentetsu Izumo Station sit right next to each other, so switching between the two networks is a short walk. Ichibata runs two lines: the Kita-Matsue Line from Dentetsu Izumo Station along the north shore of Lake Shinji to Matsue Shinjiko-onsen Station, and the Taisha Line, which branches off at Kawato Station and runs to Izumo Taisha-mae Station by the shrine. You can ride from central Izumo all the way to Izumo Taisha-mae, but you will need to change trains at Kawato; the same network links Izumo Taisha-mae with Matsue Shinjiko-onsen, again with a transfer at Kawato. Ichibata has no ticket gates or IC card readers, so do not expect to tap in and out. At unmanned stations you take a numbered ticket when you board and pay in cash at a manned gate or to the driver when you get off; the major sightseeing stations have ticket machines and accept credit cards, e-money and QR payments. The Ichibata 1-Day Free Pass gives unlimited rides on all Ichibata lines on the day of purchase and pays off on a simple round trip. The smartphone-only Matsue/Izumo Tabi PASS 2Days covers all Ichibata Railway sections, all Ichibata Bus lines excluding highway and temporary buses, and all Matsue City Transportation Bureau lines including the Lake Line, plus admission discounts at sightseeing facilities. Note that the En-musubi Perfect Ticket has been discontinued, so older articles recommending it are out of date.

Trains will get you to Izumo Taisha or out of the city, but for most other journeys your options are bus, taxi or a rental car. Buses fill the gaps the railway leaves and are often the only practical option: the key sightseeing route runs between the Izumoshi Station area and Izumo Taisha, taking roughly 25 minutes and running a couple of times an hour, and buses and trains also connect the station area to Hinomisaki, with English-language schedules available. Payment is not uniform — from Izumo Airport you buy your ticket at a machine in the arrival lobby and drop it in the fare box on exit, while from Tamatsukuri Onsen or Izumo Taisha there are no ticket machines and you pay cash in the fare box as you leave. Cash, digital tickets and credit-card contactless payment are accepted, but transportation IC cards are not. If you base yourself in Matsue as well, the Gurutto Matsue Lake Line loops from JR Matsue Station every 20 to 30 minutes, covering Matsue Castle, Shiomi Nawate, Matsue-shinjiko-onsen Station, the Shinji-ko Ohashi Bridge, the Shimane Art Museum and the Lake Shinji sightseeing boat pier; it does not run at night, so use a municipal bus from JR Matsue Station for evening events. Highway buses are a competitive option into Izumo from Hiroshima, Okayama, Kobe, Osaka, Kyoto and, overnight, Tokyo — but the Japan Rail Pass is not valid on JR Highway Buses between cities, with the exception of limited JR buses between Hiroshima and Izumo, so check whether the operator is JR or Ichibata when booking. Shimane Prefecture subsidises discounted bus fares for foreign visitors on some routes, so it is worth asking. Taxis are one of the three main ways to get around outside the rail network, alongside buses and rental cars; plan on conventional taxis rather than assuming a ride-hailing app will work here.

Walking works well in specific places rather than as a general strategy. Izumo Taisha-mae Station is the nearest station to Izumo Taisha, and from there you walk up Shinmon-dori Street toward the shrine, entering from the front. The Shimane Museum of Ancient Izumo is a short walk from the station, though it has been closed since April 2025 and is scheduled to reopen on 1 October 2026, so check before planning a visit. Beyond the shrine area and the station districts, attractions are spread out and walking between them is not realistic. Rental bicycles are available at several locations — the JR Izumo Station East Bicycle Parking Lot, Ichibata Railway Unshu Hirata Station, Susano-o Hall near the Susa Branch of Izumo City Office, and Sonoyama Rinten on Shinmon-dori Shopping Street near Izumo Taisha, where the service is called "Enchari." Regular and electric-assist bikes are available in limited numbers, and rental hours vary by location and day. Bicycles are allowed on Ichibata Railway trains but not on JR, with a surcharge on top of your regular fare. For a car-free trip, stay within walking distance of a station or a major bus stop; Matsue Shinjiko Onsen, a terminal-station area, is a good example of this kind of base.

Where to stay

Budget travellers can find a few low-priced minshuku and ryokan throughout the city; pick up an English map at Izumo Station to help you locate them. For something mid-range, Izumo Green Hotel Morris is a business hotel just south of Izumo Station, while Izumo Royal Hotel sits in town a short taxi ride from the JR Station and includes parking and wireless Internet.

At the top end, Marine Thalasso Izumo is a hotel and spa in Taki that practises thalassotherapy, drawing on the resources of the sea to rejuvenate and improve your health.

Food & drink

Izumo soba is the region's signature dish, and Shimane wagyu is another local specialty worth seeking out. For a meal beyond the noodles, Hara sits just past the Toyoko Inn on the right after you leave the north exit of JR Izumo station — look for the purple banner. It serves a good selection of small dishes alongside soba, and draws a mixed local crowd ranging from construction workers to groups of young women out for a party.

• Shimane Winery — try the yakiniku (barbecue); it also runs free tours and wine tastings, though connoisseurs are likely to be unimpressed.

For drinking, head to Daikancho, the district just northeast of Izumo Station. It's mostly "snacks" and hostess bars catering to an older crowd, with a few venues for younger people mixed in.

What to see and do

Izumo's chief draw is Izumo Taisha, counted among the oldest shrines in Japan. According to the Kojiki, it was built for Ōkuninushi, the god of marriage, who became its patron deity — which is why couples come here to pray for happy unions. The present shrine stands about 25 metres tall, though records suggest it was once twice that size. Each October, Shinto gods from across the country are said to gather inside for a week. If you pray here, clap four times rather than the usual two, since you are praying for yourself and your partner (or future partner). Outside the main shrine, watch people try to lodge small change in a large rice-straw rope; getting ¥45 stuck there is said to bring good luck.

Near the shrine, the Shimane Museum of Ancient Izumo displays speculative reconstructions of the original Izumo Taisha, material on the history of nearby Iwami Ginzan, and a collection of ceremonial bronze bells and swords. Further afield, Hinomisaki Lighthouse is reached by a bus ride that passes through a fishing village, and Hinomisaki Shrine sits in the same area. South of the city, Tachikue Gorge offers a hike that ends among hundreds of stone figures wearing red hats, with an onsen and youth hostel on hand. Other options include Shimane Flower Village, Gakuen-ji, Ichibata Yakushi and Susa Shrine. At Inasa Beach, a rock marks the spot where gods are said to gather; stay for the sunset.

Three days in Izumo

Day one: Arrive at Izumo Airport (IZO), which is served by flights from Tokyo's Haneda Airport, or come in by train to Izumo Station on the JR San-in Main Line. The Yakumo connects from Okayama, where the San'yō Shinkansen stops, and from Hakata Station in Fukuoka you can take the Shin-Yamaguchi route or the Super Oki; an overnight option is the Sunrise Izumo from Tokyo Station. A Japan Rail Pass covers much of this. By highway bus, Ichibata Bus and Chugoku JR Bus run from Hiroshima Station and the Hiroshima Bus Center, and from Okayama the Momotaro Express JR Bus. Once settled, spend your first hours getting your bearings around Izumo Station and the surrounding streets.

Day two: Give the day to Izumo itself, moving between its neighbourhoods and sights at an easy pace. Japanese and English signage and information are generally available, so you can plan as you go. Keep the day unhurried and let the town's character set the rhythm rather than rushing between stops.

Day three: Use your last day for anything you missed, then make your onward connections. If you are heading back toward the Kansai or Chugoku regions, the Yakumo to Okayama links with the San'yō Shinkansen; toward Kyushu, the Super Oki and the route via Shin-Yamaguchi reach Hakata Station in Fukuoka. Buses from Hiroshima Station, the Hiroshima Bus Center, and Okayama, along with services touching Port Lake and Kobe, offer alternatives if you prefer the highway. Allow extra time for the trip to Izumo Airport if you are flying out.