{Shikoku Hachijūhachikasho Meguri}

--PLANNING--
--HOW TO GET THERE--

From Kansai International Airport (KIX)
• You can take a bus directly from the airport to Tokushima Eki Mae ("In Front of Tokushima Station"), the bus station directly in front of the Tokushima JR train station in downtown Tokushima City.

• Depart from the International Arrival Lobby on the first floor.
• Buses run fairly regulary, starting at 8:30 am, with the last bus leaving the airport at 9:20pm.
• One way service costs ¥4,100 and takes 2 hrs, 45 min.
• Departure from outside Terminal 1.
• Tickets can be purchased from vending machines located near the bus stop.
• Timetable
• Location of bus stop at KIX

• If you want to spend the night in Ōsaka before heading to Tokushima:

• Here is the schedule for the bus going from Ōsaka International Airport (KIX) to downtown Ōsaka. It departs from Boarding Area #5 and costs ¥1,550.
• You can take the JR West train for just a little less (if you take the Rapid Express and not the Limited Express) and trains run every 20 minutes.
• The Nankai line also has a service from the airport with two trains an hour and is by far the cheapest price, costing only ¥920 to Nanba Station. (This is what i always use. It's fast and it's cheap)

• In Umeda Station, look for, and follow, signs to Sakurabashiguchi. This is an area at the very back of the station. You'll actually go outside as the bus station is in it's own very small lot just behind the train station.
• In Nanba Station, the bus center is on the third floor above the Swissotel Nankai Osaka.
  Map & Station Information
• Timetable & Fares

• The bus will take you directly to Tokushima City, where the final stop will be at the Tokushima Bus Center directly in front of JR Tokushima Station.

• The trip costs ¥3,700 if you depart from Nanba Station and takes two and a half hours.

Train:
• Take the Bullet Train to the Shin-Ōsaka Station.

• Bullet trains leave from Tōkyō Station.
• Bullet trains are expensive and the trip will cost about ¥14,000, one-way.
• It takes about 3 hours to get to Shin-Ōsaka.

• Trains leave every 10 minutes, or so.
• The cost is ¥230.
• It takes about 10 minutes.

• Then as from Ōsaka (above).

Bus
I'll add information on this when i get the time to dig it up. Sorry.

Ferry:
Tōkyū Ocean Ferry departs Tōkyō Port every night. Get to the port by bus from Kokusai Tenjijo Station on the Rinkai train line. The ferry departs at 19:10 and arrives in Tokushima at 13:10 the next day. It arrives at Tsuda Port and from there it is a 15 min bus ride to Tokushima Station. If you don't waste time, there is a bus at 13:20 headed to the station.

The fare for a Standard ferry is ¥8,450. For the Casual ferry, where everyone sleeps in bunks in cabins instead of on carpeted floor, is ¥11,350. There is a discount for henro (except during Golden Week and O-bon). Reservations for the ferry are required.

The Standard (larger ferry) has a restaurant, the Casual has vending machines and they give you cards to get up to five items free. Not that the food is anything you'd want to eat on a regular basis. The only drawback I've been told about is the air conditioning on the ferrys makes it as dry as an airplane and cabins are often overheated. If this is an issue, you should be able to get around it by wearing a mask and drinking a lot of water.

• The train station is in the airport so you don't have to go out to find it.
• The price in 2005 was ¥850.
• The trip takes about 50 minutes.

• An Express train (Kyūkō) will take over three hours and costs ¥2,300.
• A Special Express train (Tokkyū) will take 2 hours, but costs the original ¥2,300 plus an additional fee of ¥1,850. The advantage, however, is that all seats are reserved and you get an actual seat, instead of a bench seat along the side wall of the train that you share with all the other passengers. I.E., it is a much more comfortable ride.

• Then as from Ōsaka (above).

Train & Bus:
Get back to Ōsaka by reversing the way you got here. Once in Ōsaka, take the high speed bus to Tokushima Station as explained above.

Train-Ferry-Bus:
• Take the cable car back down the mountain to Gokurakubashi Station.
• Take the Nankai Train Line to Hashimoto Station.
• Transfer at Hashimoto to the JR Line and go to Wakayama City Station.
• Transfer in Wakayama City, if necessary, to another JR Train and go to Wakayama Port.

• It costs ¥1,900 to go all the way from Mt. Kōya to Wakayama Port.
• The trip should take about 2.5 hours, but depends on how long you have to wait each time you transfer.

• The ferry terminal in Wakayama Port is right across from the train station.
• The ferry costs ¥1,800.
• The trip takes about 2 hours.
• Wakayama-Tokushima Timetable (Last 2 columns on right; top table)
• Tokushima-Wakayama Timetable (Columns 2 and 3; second table)

• The bus stop is right in front of the ferry terminal building.
  
• The bus costs ¥210 (I think. I forgot to write it down)
• It takes about a half hour to get into the city center.
• The bus will drop you off at the bus center directly in front of Tokushima Station.

"As for the trip from Nankai ferry port to Kōyasan, I would say it's a toss up between Nankai Express via Nanba and JR via Wakayama. The latter is a few hundred yen cheaper. It's an incredibly bad connection between the ferry port and JR Wakayama Station, which tries your patience. It seems everyone (that is henro) finds out the best way is to take the bus to Nanba and then Nankai Railway to Kōyasan only after he tries the seemingly logical way by using the ferry."

There you go — to get to Kōyasan from Tokushima, take the bus to Ōsaka and then the train to Kōyasan from there.

(This is where it all begins......)

Once you get to Tokushima City
Once you get to Tokushima CIty, if you need English help finding lodging, the henro michi, information about the local area (or the prefecure, for that matter), transportation, or anything else, stop by the offices of the Tokushima Prefectural International Exchange Association (TOPIA). There is almost always someone there who speaks English during the week. During the weekend, it sounds like it is hit or miss, but definitely worth a try.

TOPIA offices are located on the 6th floor of the Clement Plaza building, the same building that serves as the JR Tokushima train station, and right next to the bus terminal. Once there, besides information, you'll find internet access, a great place to relax, and friendly people.

Clement Plaza, 6F
1-61 Terashima Honcho Nishi
Tokushima City 770-0831

Phone: 088-656-3303
FAX: 088-652-0616

Office Hours
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM Monday - Sunday

e-mail: topia@fm.nmt.ne.jp
web: https://www.topia.ne.jp/english

(Click To Enlarge)

TOPIA has provided this nice map of some of the hotels located in the Tokushima JR train station area (located at the top center of the map). Since TOPIA is located on the 6th floor of the train station, feel free to go up and ask about it if you have any questions or want help making a reservation.

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From Tokushima City To Ryōzenji (Temple 1)
Once you are in Tokushima City, you have two options:

• Take a local bus to the Ryōzenji Mae bus stop.
  • The cost will be ¥390.
  • Pay on the bus as you get off — you don't buy a ticket before boarding.
  • The bus will leave from boarding area #6 at the Tokushima Bus Center.
  • It takes about 45 minutes to get there.
  • As the bus stop name implies, you will get off right in front of the temple.

• Or, take the JR Train to Bandō Station
  • The cost should be ¥260.
  • It will take about 30 minutes to get there.
  • From Bandō Station, it is about a 15 minute walk to Ryōzenji.

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