Izumo

Izumo (出雲市) is a city in Shimane Prefecture with a population of around 150,000 people and a land area of 543.43km². It's located near Matsue.

Tourist information sites
The local tourist association has a Japanese-only guide site and an English-language guide site with different sets of contents.

By train


Izumo is served hourly by the Yakumo (やくも) limited express train, which runs to Okayama station and provides direct connections to the San'yo Shinkansen (3 hours, &yen;6,700). Connecting with the Yakumo, the trip to Izumo is 4 hours from Osaka (&yen;10,800), 4 hr 15 min from Kyoto (&yen;12,300), 5 hours from Nagoya (&yen;15300) and 6½ hours from Tokyo (&yen;19,700).

From Hiroshima, the four-hour trip to Izumo via Okayama is best left to holders of the Japan Rail Pass, since taking the bus will be faster and cheaper (see below).

From Hakata station in Fukuoka, take the Shinkansen to Shin-Yamaguchi and change to the Super Oki (スーパーおき) which runs to Izumo three times per day (4 hours, &yen;10,600).

There is also an overnight train that runs from Tokyo to Izumo called the Sunrise Izumo (サンライズ出雲). The train leaves from Tokyo Station every night at 22:00, reaching Izumo twelve hours later. If you have a Japan Rail Pass, you can book a carpeted floor space on the overnight service at no charge. Otherwise you can travel in a compartment or room by paying the applicable room fee and surcharges.

By bus
Those wishing to save money on transportation should consider highway buses. Izumo is easily accessible by bus, because buses from a wide variety of locations stop at Izumo.

From Hiroshima, going by bus is the best option. Ichibata Bus and Chugoku JR Bus operate eight round-trips per day from Hiroshima Station and the Hiroshima Bus Center. (3½ hours, &yen;4000 one way, &yen;7200 round trip)

From Okayama, several companies operate joint service to Izumo on a bus called the Momotaro Express, named after the famous Japanese folklore hero. Six daily round-trips (4 hours, &yen;3900 one way).

JR Bus runs the Port Lake service from Kobe's Sannomiya Bus Terminal (4 round-trips daily, 5 hr 15 min, &yen;5000). Hankyu Bus and Ichibata Bus run the Kunibiki service from Osaka (8 round-trips daily, 5½ hours, &yen;5650), while JR Bus operates the Izumo Express bus service from Kyoto (4 round-trips daily, 6 hours, &yen;6000).

The overnight service that runs from Tokyo is strangely called the Susanoo and gets to Izumo in 12 hr 15 min at a cost of &yen;12070 each way, which means twice longer than train but twice cheaper.

By car
Izumo is about a one-hour drive from Matsue on Route 9, the main road through the Sea of Japan side of western Japan from Northern Kyoto to Shimonoseki.

Get around
Trains will get you to Izumo Taisha or out of the city, but otherwise bus, taxi or rental car will be your only option.

There are 2 train companies in Izumo. The JR West Sanin Main Line and the Ichibata Electric Railway (一畑電車株式会社). The JR West Izumo Station is next to the Ichibata's Dentetsu Izumo Station. Ichibata has 2 lines, the Kita Matsue Line which runs for 33.9 km from Dentetsu Izumo Station to Matsue Shinji-ko Onsen Station in Matsue, and the Taisha Line which runs 8.3 km from Kawato Station (on the Kita Matsue Line) to Izumo Taisha-mae Station, near Izumo Taisha.

Eat
Izumo soba (出雲そば), the local variety of noodles, is the region's most famous food, but the Shimane wagyu (beef) is good as well.



Drink
Just northeast of Izumo Station is Daikancho, Izumo's drinking district. It's mostly "snacks" and hostess bars aimed at the older crowd, but there are a few venues for young people.

Budget
There are a few low-priced minshuku and ryokan throughout the city. Pick up an English map at Izumo Station.

Go next

 * Matsue &mdash; Capital of Shimane. Authentic 16th century castle, samurai district, Japanese confectionery.
 * Oda &mdash; Home to Iwami Ginzan, a World Heritage Site.
 * Daisen &mdash; Home to Mount Daisen, the "Fuji of West Japan". Hiking and skiing.
 * Hikawa
 * Unnan
 * Iinan
 * Hamada
 * Yonago
 * Niimi