If you’ve spent any time on Japanese social media, you’ve likely seen Kagawa Prefecture’s picturesque shrine. Located in the city of Kan-onji, this Shinto sanctum is well known for its so-called “torii in the sky” that can be seen pictured above. Perched high atop Mt. Inazumi, this gate sits 404 meters above sea level and offers sweeping panoramic views of the beautiful Seto Inland Sea far below. Though one of many hidden gems on Kagawa’s roster, Takaya Shrine may very well be one of its most photogenic, thereby making it a popular spot for locals.
Beyond the stunning scenery that is perfect for the ‘Gram, Takaya Shrine is also a place of deep spiritual importance. The site has a history stretching back more than a millennium, with mentions going all the way back to the Engi-shiki, a compilation of court regulations and procedures completed in 927. Likely, the shrine predates the 900s too, but alas, this is as far back as the paper trail takes us. Among Takaya Shrine’s enshrined kami is Ukemochi-no-Kami and the shrine is dedicated to promoting luck for abundant rice harvests and business prosperity.
While I can’t confidently say that Takaya Shrine is the kind of trip anchor that you’d plan your entire itinerary around, this stop in Kan-onji City is also one you wouldn’t want to miss should you ever find yourself in this part of Setouchi. Beyond the obvious photo opportunity from the top of the mountain, this ancient shrine and the surrounding area have enough meat on the proverbial bones to fill out the better part of half a day. Thus, it is the perfect spot for anyone looking for a solid add-on to a Kagawa Prefecture itinerary.
How to Get There
At the risk of stating the obvious, getting to the top of the mountain where Takaya Shrine’s iconic torii gate resides is a bit of a challenge. The entire shrine complex actually spans Mt. Inazumi, with the lower shrine buildings sitting at the foot of the peak. We’ll get to how to access the steep stone stairs that will take you all the way up to the top for those who want to walk their way to the summit later on in this article. For most visitors though, using a modern means of transportation like a rental car or shuttle bus will be a lot more expedient.
To begin with though, you’re going to need to get to Kan-onji City. Assuming that you don’t have your own set of wheels, this will mean taking the Yosan Line or a Shiokaze Limited Express over to JR Kan-onji Station (refer to a service like Jorudan for schedules). From there, you’ll need to walk your way over to Kotohiki Park where you can buy a ticket for the shuttle bus service that the city runs. These depart every 30 minutes or so and will take you up the steep and narrow road to Takaya Shrine’s uppermost reaches.
One thing not to forget is that the city’s shuttle bus service only runs on Saturdays, Sundays, and national holidays, from 10:00 AM until 5:30 PM. As a result, anyone planning to explore Takaya Shrine’s upper altitudes on weekdays will need to schlep their sorry behind up the 270 stone stairs to the top or arrange alternative transportation. Especially when the sun is out and the weather is warm, it’s best to time your outing to Takaya Shrine on weekends so you can skip the arduous hiking and enjoy the views.
Additionally, it’s also important to note that during the weekend, the city closes off access to the road that leads up to the torii gate during the hours the shuttle bus operates. Simply put, there is just not enough room on that narrow lane for two cars to pass, so to avoid issues and ensure that the micro buses can complete their journeys unimpeded, public access is restricted from morning until early evening. So, if you want to see the spectacular view on a weekend, you need to use Kan-onji City’s buses.
Takaya Shrine’s “Torii in the Sky”
Assuming that you take the taxi bus up, you’ll be let off at a small parking lot on the back side of the main shrine buildings atop Mt. Inazumi. From there, you’ll still need to hoof it up a rather steep incline to reach the famous torii in the sky. While nothing compared to what you’d experience trying to ascend the 270 stone stairs, you should expect to feel a little out of breath. Luckily, you’ll be greeted by the epic views of the torii gate and the Seto Inland Sea the moment you reach the top, where you can pause, catch your breath, and enjoy a delicious cold drink.
Now, I think it is worth pausing for a second and noting that everyone up here will be clamoring to get the same photo of the famed torii with the spectacular view of the Seto Inland Sea in the background. Please don’t give other tourists a bad rap and be on your best behavior when it comes to sharing the gate with others—foreigner fatigue is already on the rise here in Japan. There is enough time for everyone who can fit on the shuttle buses to snap their shots before the fixed departure time, which you won’t want to miss if you don’t want to climb back down from the summit.
Once you’ve got your photo of the torii, move aside so everyone else can take theirs and explore a little more of the main shrine’s grounds. There is, of course, the main hall itself (which is known as the Hongu in Japanese) as well as a unique vending machine that sells goods specific to the shrine, such as protective charms and other local souvenirs from this part of Shikoku. Especially for the ones related to Takaya Shrine, these can only be purchased at this vending machine up here at the main shrine, thereby making them proof of your pilgrimage.
If you want to watch the mind-blowing sunset from the main shrine area, know that you are essentially committing to a dangerous and dark descent down the slopes of Mt. Inazumi, and I cannot recommend it. The steps are uneven and covered in loose pebbles. If you make even one small misstep halfway down the mountain, it could ruin your entire visit to Japan. What’s more, no taxi is going to come up here after sundown, so take this as your sign to skip the hiking and play it safe.
Also, lest you think you can follow Google Maps and take the same path that the shuttle taxi service does down Mt. Inazumi, well, let’s just say I got news for you. I too believed this when I visited and I originally planned to descend to JR Takuma Station. Unfortunately, I learned thereafter that this route to and from the main shrine’s parking lot is only open to cars, so I had to take the bus back. Luckily, there is a better alternative that I’ll cover later for seeing the sunset.
The Stone Steps from the Lower Shrine
If you truly want the full experience, you’re going to need to ascend to the main shrine on foot. This journey begins at the lower shrine and will take you up 270 gruelingly uneven stone steps. It’s not for the faint of heart, especially during the warmer months when Kagawa’s humidity is doing its level best to remind you that the human body is mostly water and poor decisions. That said, there is something fitting about earning the view the old-fashioned way via the 40–60 minute-long hike instead of just being deposited near the summit by a shuttle bus.
All told, you should budget around an hour or so to make your way from the lower shrine up to the torii in the sky. Going up is tiring, but going down is where you really need to be careful. As mentioned earlier, the steps are uneven, loose pebbles are everywhere, and one careless misstep can turn your scenic little pilgrimage into a very stupid travel disaster. Truth be told, the prospect of picking my way down these in the fading light is exactly why I gave the on-foot descent a hard pass. Do yourself a favor and wear real shoes here, not flimsy convenience-store sandals.
Know that this route also matters for anyone visiting on Saturdays, Sundays, or national holidays. During the hours that Kan-onji City’s shuttle taxi service is running, the road up to the main shrine is closed to ordinary traffic, meaning you cannot simply drive yourself to the top. If you do not secure a bus ticket, these stone steps are going to be your only real option, so plan accordingly. In other words, do not treat the shuttle ticket as some optional little convenience unless you are genuinely prepared to suffer for your panorama.
Breathtaking Views at Chichibugahama Beach
Unless you’re driving up to Takaya Shrine on a weekday and have your own set of wheels, it’s usually best to get back down from Mt. Inazumi before sunset. This is doubly true if you’re relying on Kan-onji’s shuttle bus or planning to walk back down the mountain on your own two legs. The view from the torii in the sky is spectacular, no doubt, but descending those uneven stone steps in the dark is not the kind of adventure you want to add to your Japan itinerary. Should you want a safer sunset play in this neck of the woods, the far better move is to head over to Chichibugahama.
Located over in neighboring Mitoyo City, Chichibugahama is a kilometer-long stretch of coastline that has become one of Kagawa’s most famous sunset spots. When low tide lines up with dusk, shallow tide pools form across the sand and create the mirror-like reflections that have earned the beach comparisons to Bolivia’s Uyuni Salt Flats. Naturally, this means Chichibugahama is also wildly popular with the exact same photo-hunting crowd that makes the pilgrimage up to Takaya Shrine. Still, unlike trying to milk the last light out of Mt. Inazumi, you can enjoy the sunset here without committing yourself to a sketchy mountain descent afterward.
Chichibugahama works best as a follow-up stop rather than a separate trip anchor. Drivers can simply head over after coming down from the mountain, while everyone else will need to plan the connection more carefully via taxi or public transportation. The beach is generally accessed from JR Takuma Station, with buses and taxis covering the final leg, so do not assume you can casually wing this one after dark. Pair the two correctly, though, and you get Takaya Shrine’s “torii in the sky” during the day and Chichibugahama’s reflected Setouchi sunset in the evening, which is a pretty damn good day.
Killing Time in Kan-onji’s Kotohiki Park
Seeing as the few spots on the Takaya Shrine shuttle buses can be extremely competitive, there is a very real chance that you could end up waiting several hours for your ascent to the torii in the sky. Luckily, the ticket office and bus boarding area are located right by Kotohiki Park, which means you are not stuck twiddling your thumbs in some random municipal parking lot. This stretch of Kan-onji has enough going on to keep you busy for a while, so treat any extra wait time as an excuse to poke around rather than dead space in the itinerary.
The most important stop here is the temple complex of Jinne-in and Kan’non-ji, which together serve as temples 68 and 69 on the Shikoku 88 Temple Pilgrimage. This is one of the stranger little quirks of the pilgrimage, as the two temples share the same grounds and function almost like a two-for-one sacred site. Nearby, you will also find Kotohiki Hachimangu, which sits up on Mt. Kotohiki and adds a bit more Shinto weight to an area that already has plenty of Buddhist pedigree. In other words, this is not just a park with a bus stop — it is a compact little knot of pilgrimage history, shrine worship, and scenery.
The other big draw is the Zenigata Sand Coin. This massive sand artwork is shaped like a Kan’ei Tsuho coin from the Edo period (1603–1868) and measures roughly 122 meters across, 90 meters tall, and 345 meters around. Local lore says that anyone who sees it will enjoy long life and good fortune with money, which is exactly the sort of claim one should never test by skipping a perfectly good sightseeing stop. The best view is from the observation point above the park, where the whole coin shape finally makes sense instead of just looking like someone got very ambitious with a beach rake.
Other Nearby Attractions
Yo dawg, I herd you like stairs, so I put some stairs in your adjacent recommendations so you can climb after you climb. Early internet memes aside, if you’re feeling ambitious (and have the calves to prove it), one suggestion that you can add to your time in Kagawa Prefecture is the venerable Kotohira-gu. This sprawling and expansive shrine complex also sits atop a mountain in western Kagawa and boasts a whopping 1,368 steps if you go as far as the innermost sanctum. That said, you’d need to be crazy like me to do it in the same day as Takaya Shrine.
Also nearby in the plains of former Sanuki Province is Marugame Castle. Looking out over the Seto Inland Sea, this structure is one of the 12 remaining original castle keeps in Japan and is definitely worth checking out if you have the time. While you’re there, you’ll also have the opportunity to take a ferry out to the Shiwaku Islands. This cluster sits just offshore from Marugame Castle and has long been a base from which fishermen and other seafarers have operated for centuries.
Finally, if you continue onwards west, you’ll come across the city of Imabari. Though mostly known as the terminus point of the Shimanami Kaido, Imabari is actually a bit of a fascinating place, especially when you get out of the city center and explore some of the islands. In the days of yesteryear, these isles used to be the seat of power of the Murakami Suigun — basically a band of pirates that controlled the Seto Inland Sea during Japan’s years of civil strife.
Until next time travelers…
