My Shikoku Pilgrimage Diary, Day 1: A Shaky Start

After returning from Japan, and with the pressures of work and life weighing a bit heavily on me, I fell into a bit of a lull with my posting here. Instead of not writing anything, I decided to write a few diary-style posts on my pilgrimage in parts rather than the practical posts you will usually find on this blog.

Of course, I will not omit any practical aspects of this trip, but a planning post, partially written before I left for Japan, can be found here. I am just trying out the “travelogue” style posts a bit, since I read so many blog posts from walking pilgrims… I feel like I want to contribute! Finding the majority of blog posts I come across a bit commercial, I wanted to crank down a bit and remember why I got into blogging… quite funnily, now that I am actually earning a small amount of money with this blog – definitely enough to fund running costs for the last few years and a bit on top of that, which will go into a dedicated travel fund.

These posts will also be quite picture-heavy – there is only so much one can write about one single day. As always, feel free to ask me anything about this journey, especially if you want to know more about cycling, or going on the pilgrimage with limited mobility.

How I did my Pilgrimage

My Shikoku Pilgrimage is “kugiri-uchi”, meaning in parts, and still ongoing. I only completed the Tokushima/Awa section of the pilgrimage so far. This stage is called “Awakening” and comprises 23 Temples and around 220 kilometres if you follow the official pilgrimage route. I cycled most of it, adding a few kilometres, I guess, and used public transport twice and a taxi twice.

I stayed in relatively simple accommodations I booked through either Booking.com or directly. A lot of the direct booking were for smaller guesthouses that cater mostly but not exclusively to pilgrims, I found these in Oliver Dunskus’ book “The 88 Temples of Shikoku”.

I am not a big fan of Facebook in general, but the Shikoku 88 OHenro Facebook Group was great for resources and tips. They also maintain a list of accommodations suitable for pilgrims. I was under the impression that most people in the group were walking or planning to walk the entire pilgrimage, so it is a great resource for walking pilgrims.

A shaky start

The first day of my Shikoku pilgrimage started around 3.30am in a hotel room near Wakayama Station. I had arrived the night before, very tired from a long full flight and a boring 7-hour late night Istanbul layover. But I always get jetlag, no matter how tired I am. I made a coffee, relaxed in my comfy bed a bit then gathered my luggage and headed to 7-11 for another coffee and a rice ball. A comfy private room on my first night makes a great soft landing.

But really, while the journey was a little uncomfortable, over twenty-four hours including a long and boring evening Istanbul layover, it was a breeze compared to the uncertainties and worries before I even thought this journey was possible, and which popped up again once I had booked my ticket. In short, things stayed uncertain right until the day before my departure, and many times did I consider canceling everything and just staying at home to be available in case of any unfortunate events.

So it was with deep gratitude but also a heck of a lot of anxiety, yes, much more than my base level of anxiety, which is plenty already, that I set off on this trip. But this morning, despite the tiredness, I felt elated and almost care-free.

Instead of waiting for the bus, I had so much time on my hands, I sat on the platform at Wakayama Station for a while and watched the trains, then did the same again at Wakayamashi, where you transfer to the private Nankai Railway. Since it was past 6am now, there was a lot more to look at – gleaming trains departing for Osaka with impressive regularity, a themed train, and the calming order of a Japanese train station. Japan is turning me into a trainspotter, I believe. I sat on a bench with my coffee watching the Osaka-bound trains while waiting for mine, which runs very irregularly.

The journey to Wakayamako only takes a few minutes, and pretty much every passenger was heading towards the passenger ferry on the covered walkway. Of course, barely in Japan, I managed to put my foot in, not following them but dragging my case down two flights of stairs to the ticket office to patiently wait for my turn, only to be told that foot passengers buy tickets at the vending machine by the boarding gate. Of course, much more sensible.

Tokushima

The ferry, half-empty, offered more opportunity to rest and to drink coffee and fizzy drinks. There were free bunk rooms for lorry drivers and at least five different types of seating for the few passengers on board. I opted for the “Women Only” carpeted area, stretched out and tried to catch up on two nights of sleep deprivation but couldn’t. Upon arrival in Tokushima, a city bus was waiting by the exit. Japan, runs like clockwork, what else did I expect.

I took the opportunity to finally buy the cute snow bunny 2 Yen-stamps at the Post Office. Yes, start a pilgrimage shopping, and get your quirky souvenirs early. But honestly, Japanese stamps rock.

I bagged my precious stamps, left my bag at my hostel, and headed to Tokushima Station. A medium-sized city like many I have seen in Japan, but at about 250k inhabitants definitely smaller than Nagasaki or Sendai. Actually, it has roughly the same number of inhabitants as Yamagata, a city I liked very much. Of cours,e dawdling a bit here and there, looking into the Tourist Information and soaking up that happy feeling of being in Japan again, I missed a train before realising that trains only run roughly every hour.

I headed into the station which was surprisingly compact, but had two shopping centers flanking it, and in the basement of one of them I walked into the lunch special of a local sushi bar. No idea what I ate there, but it was good.

There was a very attractive looking stall next to the local omiyage shop, like-frying a bean-filled concoction looking like a cross between a taiyaki and a fluffy pancake. I scarfed down three while waiting for my train. Fuelled up for today’s walking, one might say.

So, yes, I would start my pilgrimage walking. The first seventeen temples are mostly centered around Tokushima and distances between them are not huge. On the train, mostly school kids and one Western family. Just 15km on, Bando Station was deserted but with crocheted cushions and a bit of ikebana in the waiting area.

Temple 1, so anticlimactic

With me, about three or four people from my local train started walking towards the first Temple, Ryozen-ji, following a green line on the road. It was a bit like walking home from shopping, slightly unkempt area with a few abandoned, overgrown houses, then, a busy road and a Lawson convenience store In the distance, I could see the sign for Ryozenji. Were it not for the Lawson and the obvious Japanese style of the houses, it would have felt like walking in a Midwestern US suburb.

The first place I saw from the road was the souvenir shop of Ryozenji. Very keen to start my pilgrimage as soon as possible and a bit worried about the 7km walk ahead on my untrained feet, I walked into the somewhat ramshackle shop, which also doubles as the temple’s stamp office. I have since learned there are actually two shops. So you have options. The shop was run by older people and I felt could do with a good dusting, but the people were kind. I hurriedly bought a Nokyocho the stamp book to collect my pilgrims stamps, from a decent selection, incense and a lighter. I would buy more pilgrim items near Temple 10, an area with the highest selection of pilgrim shops.

I ended up on the path from the stamp office/shop and entered the temple through a back route. Oh, dear… did I start on the wrong foot? I hurriedly left through the Niomon, did the selfie in front, and bowed. Then entered through the Niomon, hoping the gods didn’t mind me slipping in through the back entrance.

I immediately heard people speaking German. Oh dear, oh dear… I guess people travelling all the way here from Germany must be quite interested in the culture but they were noisy and rambuctious. There is a former German settlement and museum here, resulting from a Prisoner of War Camp, but these guys didn’t look like your cultural museumgoers, either. Temple Etiquette may not be my strong point yet, but at least I shut up while in the temple.

I fled to the Hondo, the Main Hall, a particularly nice one hung with many beautiful lanterns. At last, some peace. I stood in the Hondo a bit, trying to collect my thoughts. Nothing very meaningful would come, just, “Will I make it to my destination before 17.00?” “How is my husband doing, all on his own?” “Do I go to Loft or head straight to the okonomiyaki restaurant?” Let’s face it, I was far away from grand thoughts or Zen-like calm while sitting there, and then, wandering around the modest temple grounds.

Ryozen-ji is dedicated to Shaka Nyorai, the “Original Buddha”, and lies closest to Koya-san and the Mausoleum of Kobo Daishi. Ryozen-ji was founded during the Tenpyo Era, which lasted a mere two decades, and can be classified under the Nara period, when the capital was mostly today’s Nara.

Kobo Daishi’s life (774 to 835 CE) and teachings can be attributed to the early Heian period, and following his studies in China, Kobo Daishi visited Ryozen-ji around 815 on one of his early pilgrim visits to Shikoku, seeking to establish a ritual and places to purify from the 88 earthly desires. The temple buildings burned down several times, with the last devastating fire being in the late Meiji Period, so nothing you see here is particularly ancient.

Temple 2, not much better

With my mind not pilgrimating just yet, I moved on. The Chinese proverb 千里之行始于足下 in mind. A journey of a Thousand miles begins with a single step, ascribed to Laozi. A kilometre and a half to the next temple Gokuraku-ji, a very realistic target. Along a busy road – not so philosophical or how so see it in Youtube videos. At least, I could move my legs and keep moving on. All I remember from the second temple is a fairly pretty red Sanmon and too many steps. The Hondo and the Daishido, the two principal halls of worship, were barred with a wooden grid so tight you could barely look inside.

Honestly I wasn’t expecting the elegance of Kyoto temples, but not being able to see the beautiful statues and decorations of these old temples annoyed me already. Why would one have to pray in front of a grid? I guess I wasn’t really getting in to the spirit of the pilgrimage yet, partially in pain, annoyed at climbing a long flight of steps and then be faced with a rather plain, shuttered up wooden building, while at the same time by back protested a lot, with some pretty intense pain which I took to be Sciatic pain, anyway, pretty debilitating until I managed to hobble down, guzzle a sports drink and dig out a Brufen, wondering whether I could take one more step like this.

Thankfully, the pain subsided with some gentle stretching and then I observed a couple, emerging from their tiny van fresh as a daisy in their all white gear, chanting beautifully. They weren’t bothered about the steps, or the distances -they probably had another five temples to see today.

Gokuraku-ji was founded by the priest Gyoki in the Tenpyo Era, too, so both No.1 and No.2 temples are quite close in location and history. Its main deity is Amida Nyorai, one of the most revered Buddhas in Mahayana Buddhism, the Buddha who is said to establish his Pure Land, a transcendent realm where entry could be granted easily. Hence Amida Nyorai (Amitabha) is extremely popular – to the point that it sprouted, simply speaking, a couple “new” schools of Buddhism called Jodu-shu and Jodo.Shinshu.

Anyway… Kobo Daishi visited this temple in middle age, and as he chanted the Amitabha Sutras, Amida Nyorai themselves appeared. there are also some very old trees, one said to be a 1200 year old cedar that Kobo Daishi himself planted, and if you visit, please touch it, and be granted (perhaps) safety in your home, protection from diseases and a long life. The buildings are a bit older, having last burned down in the 1500’s and rebuilt during the early Edo Period.

Temple 3, a ray of hope

I can be pretty stubborn, so I set off for the third temple, just 3.5 kilometres down the road. Hey Laozi, about 6 kilometres done. Not taking into account dragging my suitcase along staircases, through stations and to my hostel this morning. The closer I got to Konsen-ji, Temple No.3, the easier the walk seemed. Like my legs knew there would be another very cold Aquarius waiting on a shaded bench before any sightseeing, and there would be enough time to rest and see the temple.

Never ever have I in my life touched sports drinks, so it was strange to feel strangely drawn to them here – and, very cleverly, the vending machines along the route always have a nice selection of sports drinks and vitamin drinks. Until now, it was just water or Calpis Soda for me in the heat of the cities. So I tried a few, and I must admit, although I don’t like to buy from big mega corporations, fizzy Aquarius was the most palatable – carbonation helps, and it tastes like an inoffensive lemonade, only has about 75kcal per can, and contains mostly sodium and potassium and chloride (AKA: salt), so far from any magic water here. I tried Pocari Sweat which claims to contain some extra Calcium and Magnesium, but as much as I prefer a Japanese brand, it is not fizzy and had a very icky ORS taste to it. But yes, I would probably drink that if depleted in electrolytes, or go straight for an ORS (OS-1 is the most well-known but you will have to visit the drug store for that)

Anyway, replenishing drinks guzzled, and with over an hour on my hands, I could take a nice slow walk around Konsen-ji. I went to get my Tempelstempel first, just to be safe. The middle-aged lady took it with both hands, held it to her forehead with a prayer-like gesture, then in an elegant sweep placed the calligraphy in it. Well, the prize for the best calligrapher so far foes to… the lady in Konsen-ji. To be honest, I think the older lady calligraphers are the best. Very skilled, friendly, and often conversant in English. They strike me as well-educated empty nesters doing meaningful fun things with their spare time.

The temple also had an excellent gardener, for it looked tidy and showcased some very pleasant buildings in different styles. A freshly lacquered red two-storey pagoda, a small strolling garden with a pond, and it didn’t matter so much that the Main hall and the Daishido offered peek-a-boo views of their interior only, being barred in the typical Shikoku pilgrim temple style. Having not read my guidebook properly, I missed the “Golden Well” whose water helps you to stay disease-free, and the Benkei Power Stone. Not that I was fit to lift any stones – still stepping around very gingerly after that sciatic nerve gave me a bit of a jumpy surprise earlier on. So, it might be worth to seek these out. Konsen-ji was the first temple where I felt calm and more like a starter pilgrim rather than on another touristy trip.

Konsen-ji was also funded by Gyoki (busy man) and is dedicated to Shaka Nyorai, like Temple 1. Visiting in times of a great drought, it is said Kobo Daishi dug a well here, the aforementioned “golden well”. It hosted an emperor-turned monk Kamyama during the Kamakura Period, and had a hall which was modelled on Kyoto’s Sanjusangendo, with hundreds of Kannon Statues enshrined there. The whole temple was destroyed (burned, what else) during the Sengoku Period by one of Shikoku’s Samurai Clans, the Chosokabe, and rebuilt in the Edo Period so, again, most of what you see here is at least a few hundred years old.

A stroll in the Suburbs

Although the first three temples hadn’t knocked my socks off, I was very glad to have managed walking about 6 kilometres, a laughable distance for some, but a great achievement for me.

If I were to walk 6-8 kilometres every day, it would take me roughly five months to walk the entire pilgrimage, not considering some stretches where there would be no food or accommodation. Therefore, a different mode of transport was needed for me to complete this pilgrimage, and, trying to stay in true spirit of a pilgrimage where you power yourself, of course, this would be a bicycle! This was all pre-arranged, so I would pick up a bicycle the next morning and continue from where I stopped today.

For now, all that was left for me to do was to have another electrolyte drink and slowly walk to Itano Station. This iwas an interesting, walk, since the area looked fairly well-to do, not quite as rural as between Temples 2 and 3, but rather tightly packed detached suburban houses in some interesting styles. One was the colour of traditional wooden Swedish houses, but in the boxy shape of new Japanese houses. Another, a 1960’s throwback. By th etime I arrived at Itano Staiton and bought yet another cold drink from the vending machine, there wasn’t so much time to wait, and thankfully, the train was already there.

What you do, jetlagged and tired…

Of course, you go shopping. I was knackered, but the Loft by the station lured me in, and to be honest, hauling my stuff in a plastic bag for my cycling tour wasn’t going to hack it. So I had the perfect excuse to buy another Shupatto bag. The Loft was a rather small one, but they had a nice selection of Shupatto bags, and some pretty B-Side Label stickers with a cat sitting in a box of Yuzu – what more do you need?

Quite knackered then, I dragged myself to the Sunroute Hotel across the road, and sat in their onsen for an hour or so. One of a few hotels in Tokushima with an onsen, the Sunroute opens theirs for day visitors, and it was relatively fancy but small.

Who cares. Nothing better since I was in so much pain, not being used to walking. I dragged my hurty feet to a very cheap okonomiyaki restaurant which was cheap, half the price of Osaka restaurants, and then returned to my hostel.

Where I stayed

I stayed in a private single room at Hostel PAQ near Tokushima Station. This is the ideal pilgrim’s hostel for various reasons: Firstly, they are friendly and welcoming, and quite a few pilgrims stay there, appreciating peace and quiet and a good rest. All other guests were friendly and really very considerate. They will also keep any luggage for you while you are on the pilgrimage, and help with booking and information on the pilgrimage, free literature and a recycling corner for unwanted pilgrim’s items.

They are staffed throughout the day and the communal area, though small is welcoming and has a small kitchen. Free tea and coffee are available throughout the day, and you can even take a small breakfast, all included in your stay. There is ample indoor parking for bicycles (and the odd motorbike).

My single room was quite a decent size for a Japanese single room. Bath was tiny. Bed was comfy There was a small desk, a working air conditioner and really, that was all I wanted to get some good rest. I actually returned to Hostel PAQ twice during my pilgrimage.

If you prefer to stay in a hotel, I would recommend Hotel Sunroute Tokushima because of the natural spring onsen. There are several hotels around Tokushima Station, all three-to-four star business hotels, and Sunroute is one of them, but the nice onsen sets it apart.

I stayed at the Hotel Granvia Wakayama on my first night before arriving in Tokushima. Arriving at Kansai Airport relatively late, I took a very relaxe train ride to Wakayama, where this hotel is next to the station. No crowds, no roaming around huge Osaka stations… I simply went to the convenience, store, bathed, ans straight to bed. The hotel is officially classified five stars, and some of the photos on the website look very fancy, but my single room was like a standard business hotel room – but very compfortable. And I paid under 45 Euro for it, so I am not complaining.

A much cheaper option in the same building is the S3 Wakayama Station, a very nice modern cabin hotel. I stayed there in 2024, and this was my first introduction to capsule hotels! Aside from the usual jetlag, I really rested very well there, it is super clean, convenient, and very cheap.

The Small Print

I visited Japan in June 2026, where I spent most of my two-week trip cycling the Tokushima section of the Shikoku 88-Temple Pilgrimage. This trip was entirely self-funded.

Nothing you see here was sponsored, and I did not receive compensation, discounts, or special treatment in exchange for writing it. All my own honest and unbiased opinion. This post does contain affiliate links to accommodation I stayed at as well as some good accommodation in the area which I researched and would consider staying at. If you book a hotel using my affiliate links, I may make a small commission at no extra cost to you. Please refer to my blog’s Terms and Conditions for further information.

This post (well, my entire blog, except this) is free from generative Artificial Intelligence. 

I am not going to make pins for this and pin them on Pinterest, because this is just a story/travelogue post and frankly, I can’t be bothered with Canva. I may or may not post a separate post with some “glossary” I encountered on the pilgrimage explained, in addition to another practical post. Considering this post is already at over 4000 words, I better stop it here, haha. For any advice on planning, please refer to this post.