Shikoku Mura is an outdoor museum in Takamatsu city where old traditional houses from various places in Shikoku have been restructured/restored. Since it is located at the base of a mountain, the museum is coloured with the sight of trees and flowers each season.
About Shikoku Mura
The area of Shikoku Mura is very wide at 50,000㎡ and within the grounds, there are around 30 historical structures including Important Cultural Assets. The types of structures are private houses, traditional industrial facilities, guardhouses, lighthouses, and various folk tools are also exhibited. Furthermore, if you follow the set route from the entrance to the exit while checking the buildings and exploring nature, you can see everything in about 2 hours.
Things to see and do in Shikoku Mura
At Shikoku Mura, you can do activities other than observing the traditional buildings such as private houses, you can also appreciate the artwork, take a nature stroll and eat and drink at dining areas. There are many appealing activities, but we will introduce the ones we recommend the most.
Historical Buildings such as Traditional Industrial Facilities like Shoyu-gura and private houses
At Shikoku Mura, people can learn about how people lived in the last through historical buildings and tools. Out of all of these, we would like you to see the private houses and traditional industrial buildings.
First, there are 12 houses from the 17th-20th century inside. You can see the different characteristics depending on the time period and area in buildings like traditional style, old, farmhouses with thatched roofs called Hirayadate, fishermen’s houses surrounded by stone walls to keep out the powerful, ocean winds.
There are 8 facilities relating to the traditional production of sugar and soy sauce. At Shoyugura Kojimuro, in the room that smells slightly of soy sauce, there are impressively large mixing tubs and other tools.
Appreciate Art at the “Shikoku Mura Gallery”, Designed by Architect Tadao Ando
A big appeal point of Shikoku Mura is that artwork can be appreciated. First, “Shikoku Mura Gallery” was designed by famous Japanese architect Tadao Ando. It’s a very unique gallery made out of concrete. In the gallery, there are paintings by European artists such as Auguste Renoir, and artwork such as Buddhist statues and bronze ware that can be appreciated.
Furthermore, in Takamatsu City where Shikoku Mura is located is famous as being the location for granite called Ajiishi, and there are many pieces of stone artwork in the park. For example, artwork like the stair shaped wall with a waterfall, and a stone Jizo Bosatsu all made by sculptor Masayuki Nagare.
The scenery with flowers and trees interweaved with the traditional buildings every season
At Shikoku Mura has lushly green trees such as a bamboo thicket and various flowers bloom year-round. For example, Tulips bloom in spring, green trees, and flowers that float on water such as lotus and water lilies bloom in summer, trees with orange leaves and roses bloom in fall, and daffodils and camellia bloom in winter, so in every area of the museum colourful plants can be seen. So every in the season the scenery is extremely beautiful with trees, flowers and traditional buildings
Shikoku Mura Opening Times / Ticket Prices
Shikoku Mura is open year-round, so people can visit anytime. The opening times vary depending on the season, April-October 8:30-18:00, November-March 8:30-17:30. Last entry is one hour before closing time in all seasons. Admission into Shikoku Mura costs 1000 yen per adult. The price may vary when they have exhibitions in the Shikoku Mura gallery. (Prices accurate in July 2019.
Access to Shikoku Mura
To access Shikoku Mura, there are two ways you can get there, either the JR or Kotohira Electric Railway.
First, if you use the JR line, take the train from JR Takamatsu station for about 20 minutes to Shikoku Mura’s nearest station which is JR Yajima station. From JR Yajima station it takes about 10 minutes on foot.
Spot information
- Spot name: Shikoku Mura
- Street Address: 91 Nakacho, Yajima, Takamatsu City, Kagawa Prefecture. 761-0112
- Access: Takamatsu station →(JR) about 20 minutes→Yajima station and walk for 10 minutes. / Kawaramachi station → (Kotohira electric railway) 15 minutes → Kotohira Electric Railway Yajima station and walk for 5 minutes.
- Wi-Fi：Unavailable
- Language：Only Japanese
- Ticket Purchase：At acceptance
- Credit cards：No credit cards accepted
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