88 Temple Pilgrimage Voyage Tips and guide

The 88 Temple Pilgrimage (八十八ヶ所巡り hachijūhakkasho-meguri) is Japan's most famous pilgrimage route, a 1,200-km loop around the island of Shikoku. It is also known as the Shikoku Henro (四国遍路).

Many of the temples are said to have been founded or restored by the revered monk and scholar Kūkai (空海), better known by his posthumous title Kōbō Daishi (弘法大師). Among his many achievements, he is said to have created the kana syllabary, brought the tantric teachings of Esoteric Buddhism from China, developed it into the uniquely Japanese Shingon sect, and founded Shingon's headquarters on Mount Koya near Osaka. The number 88 is symbolic of the 88 earthly desires believed to cause human suffering, with each temple representing a step toward purification.

While most modern-day pilgrims (an estimated 150,000 yearly, mostly Japanese) travel by tour bus, a small minority still set out the old-fashioned way on foot, a journey which takes about six weeks to complete. Pilgrims, known as o-henro-san (お遍路さん), can be spotted in the temples and roadsides of Shikoku clad in a white jacket emblazoned with the characters Dōgyō Ninin (同行二人), meaning "two traveling together"—the other traveler being the spirit of Kobo Daishi.

This pilgrimage is not prescriptive; it can be done in installments, it can be done via public transport, cycling, driving, tour groups, or any combination of those. Many pilgrims also split up their journey over multiple visits, completing a section of the pilgrimage each time. None of these methods are "better" or "more authentic" than any other. Understanding that everybody goes about the journey in their own way is the first step towards developing true pilgrim spirit.

That said, completing the course the traditional way on foot has an undeniable appeal and old-world charm. It is however a strenuous journey that can take 40-60 days, depending on your fitness, pace, detours, and how many (if any) of the 20 'optional temples' (bekakku, 別格) you visit. Good physical fitness and stamina are required to endure the stress of constant walking up and down the hills of Shikoku, in the burning sun and the pouring rain.

Many pilgrims choose to dress up in traditional white attire:

• byakue – the white coat of a pilgrim
• wagesa – scarf worn around the neck, usually purple, to indicate that you are on a religious pilgrimage
• sugegasa – conical straw hat
• kongōtsue – walking stick, and the one indispensable sign that identifies you as a pilgrim

In addition, most pilgrims carry a book called nōkyōchō or shuincho, to collect a red ink stamp (shu-in) by each temple you visit, and hundreds of osame fuda (long slips of paper with your name and explanation of your pilgrimmage, to be left at each temple and given to each person who helps you; for your first trip, the paper should be white). All of these items can be purchased (in a formal sense) at Mount Kōya or at Ryozenji, the first temple.

Many pilgrims who begin the pilgrimage on foot do not finish it. It is common to hear of people giving up in Kochi Prefecture, traditionally known as "devil's land" because of its hot, rainy climate and infrequent contact with civilization. (This means you must either camp, sleep in a rest stop, or precisely time your journey to only hit towns and be willing to pay for a hotel room.) Pilgrims who intend to walk the pilgrimage should ensure they have packed adequate supplies, such as rain gear, in addition to pilgrimage gear.

It is also important to factor costs. Costs include larger expenses, such as nightly lodging, as well as frequent smaller expenses, like the small charge at each temple to stamp your record book. Former pilgrims that have walked the Shikoku Pilgrimage have shared their cost calculators:

• Newest information as of 2025
• Following the Arrows itemised costs from 2014

• Grace, "Henro 2009" (2009). A walking pilgrim from Singapore
• Jasbir Sandhu, 「四国八十八ヶ所巡り」 (2011/2015) A walking pilgrim from India.
• Kat Davis, "Followingthearrows" (2013) A self-confessed walking pilgrimage fanatic from Australia.
• 澤村よし, "A pilgrimage trail to 88 temples in Shikoku, Japan" Useful information for pilgrimage.
• Cheng Chen-Hsin, "Cycling in Shikoku Henro" (2015) A cycling pilgrim from Taiwan.
• Athena Lam, "The Cup and the Road" (2015) A walking pilgrim from Canada.

• Neon Pilgrim by Lisa Dempster (2009). Republished in 2017, this is the story of an unfit Australian woman's pilgrimage to help her through her quarter-life crisis.
• A Sense of Direction: Pilgrimage for the restless and the hopeful by Gideon Lewis-Kraus (2012). Republished in 2014, this is more of a literary exploration of the concept of pilgrimages, their intentions, and the people who embark upon them. The author undertakes three of them in this book, including the Shikoku Henro.

It is traditional to prepare by visiting the temple town of Mount Kōya, but the route itself starts at Ryōzenji, near Tokushima, and you have to return here in order to complete your pilgrimage. It is not necessary to start at temple #1 as long as you visit them all, but this is by far the most popular starting point for pilgrims from outside Shikoku, because it is also the nearest temple to Mount Kōya.

Each of the capitals of the island's four prefectures has an airport: Takamatsu Airport (Kagawa), Tokushima Awaodori Airport (Tokushima), Matsuyama Airport (Ehime), and Kochi Ryoma Airport (Kochi). These airports are mainly domestic but have a handful of short-haul international routes too. Tigerair Taiwan flies from Taipei to Kochi. Matsuyama has flights from Busan, Seoul and Taipei. Takamatsu has flights from those three cities too, as well as Hong Kong, Shanghai and Taichung. Finally, Tokushima has flights from Seoul.

From elsewhere in Japan, aspiring pilgrims can fly to any of the four airports mentioned. If you enter the country by the much larger and more common entry point of Kansai International Airport (Osaka), a bus from the airport to Tokushima costs about 5,000 yen.

There are ferries from Hiroshima to Matsuyama, from Osaka to Toyo (Ehime Prefecture, night ferry), and from Beppu and Usuki to Yawatahama (Ehime Prefecture).

If all else fails, you can rely on Japan's excellent rail network to get you to your preferred start point for the Shikoku Henro.

Most pilgrims walking on foot average around 25 km daily and complete the trip in five to seven weeks.

The canonical list of temples is as follows:

The temples are usually visited in clockwise order, although this too, is just a convention—in practice, as all signs are oriented for pilgrims going clockwise, it's easier to get lost if you go against the flow. However it isn't unheard of for experienced pilgrims to travel anti-clockwise; this is known as gyaku-uchi (逆うち).

There are also 20 optional "unnumbered" (番外 bangai) temples.

The free Henro Helper app provides guidance for navigation and accommodation.

Besides standard hotels and AirBnbs which can be booked online as usual, there are a number of options for your overnight accommodation as a Henro. Many of these will add considerably to your appreciation of Japanese culture and of your pilgrimage, as you are likely to meet other pilgrims at many of these places. Most of these accommodations are the same as what are available to members of the general public.

Minshuku (民宿) are family-operated, traditional Japanese-style bed and breakfasts. They typically have a handful of rooms, prices are per person, not per room, and are cash only. To sleep, you roll out your own futon on the tatami mat floor. For an additional charge, they are also able to provide dinner and breakfast (一泊二食 ippaku-nishoku). Knowing their clientelle are mostly exhausted pilgrims, meals are generally huge and home-cooked. Cooking is a labour-intensive process which begins early in the day so if you want dinner, you'll need to call ahead and book. Meals are served communally at set times, usually 18:00-19:00 for dinner, and 06:00-07:00 for breakfast, since pilgrims like to get an early start. Since these are family operations, travellers arriving late can't be fed. Meals are prepared hours in advance so late cancellations are very rude and may not be refunded. If you need to cancel, call ahead before 12:00. The word for 'cancel' is easy: kanseru.

Pension (ペンション penshon) means accommodation similar to minshuku, with Western-style amenities, usually on the cheaper side and situated in rural areas.

Ryokan (旅館) are like more upmarket minshuku which operate on a larger scale. Because you don't eat communally, you can select your own mealtimes. Guests also generally get nicer facilities and do not have to roll out their own futon.

Shukubō (宿坊) offer immersive cultural and spiritual experiences; visitors stay overnight within a working temple complex. Temples offering this accommodation (as of 2024) are listed in the Go section above. The accommodation is traditional Japanese style - similar to minshuku.

Henro houses are a network of lodging designed for pilgrims, and offer rooms (and sometimes food) to walking henro for a nominal fee—or sometimes for free. They usually have paid laundry facilities and WiFi.

Camping and Glamping: there are a few dozen campgrounds (kyanpu-jo (キャンプ場) along the route, mostly outside the cities. The map on Henro.org lists many of them. Facilities vary.

Walking in peak season and everything is booked out? Never fear! The following accommodation options are useful as a last resort:

Zenkonyado: free accommodation for pilgrims in the community and maintained by the community as a good deed (zenkon). A donation of 1000 yen is expected. When in a private home these are called zenninyado.

Tsuyadō: free accommodation for pilgrims at the temple and maintained by temple staff. Usually just one empty tatami room with no facilities except for an outdoor toilet block. Many have vending machines but some do not even have electricity. Arrive before 17:00 and ask temple staff. A donation of 1000 yen is expected. Most tsuyadō do not allow mixed gender lodgings.

Zenkonyado and tsuyadō were once the primary lodgings for walking henro; however, the island's culture has changed in the last 50 years, and the number of these lodgings have been reduced to just a handful. There is a zenkonyado near Zentsuji which is said to be haunted!

Henro huts (へんろ小屋 henro goya) are semi-enclosed huts made for the use of pilgrims. Sleeping inside is permitted. There are over 50 on the route; facilities vary.

Daishidō (大師堂) are tatami-floored shrines used for the veneration of Kōbō Daishi. Pilgrims can obtain the key (if needed, otherwise ask permission to sleep there) from a nearby home after 17:00.

Michi no eki (道の駅) are official roadside stations found alongside roads and highways in Japan. Some of them are suitable for sleeping, while many are not. Signs will guide you.

• 
  A minshuku
• 
  A typical room in a ryokan
• 
  Muryōkō-in temple shukubo
• 
  A typical vegetarian shukubo meal
• 
  A michi no eki. Not great for sleeping in
• 
  A standard ryokan breakfast
• 
  Camping in Shikoku's Iya Valley

Lists of cheap or free accommodation:

• A user-created Google Map listing various accommodation types as selectable categories.
• Following the Arrows
• Henrogoya lists free accommodation and was last updated in 2024. Japanese only - use Google Translate.
• The excellent, mobile-friendly map on Henro.org shows all types of accommodation. Select the categories you want to see on the map.
• This user-created Google Map shows free (green) wild (blue) low-cost (yellow) and regular-cost (red) campsites all over Japan

	Notes on etiquette: In Japanese, sleeping outdoors (nojuku, 野宿) is a legal grey area. Some older online resources state that sleeping outdoors in places like train stations, parks, and on public land is acceptable. It is not, especially in light of Japan's growing homelessness problems. The locals are far less tolerant now than they once were, owing to foreign pilgrims behaving disrespectfully. Police may move you on. Regarding accommodation, tsuyado, zenkonyado, daishido and henro huts should be your sleeping options of last resort. You are of course free to use them, but please consider only doing so if you're in a tricky situation. Do not depend on them. If you do stay there, stay only one night and take your rubbish with you.
	(Information last updated 23 Feb 2026)

Traveling in Shikoku is very safe, especially when you wear the traditional henro robes. People will be very helpful if they recognize you as a pilgrim, and will try to participate in your journey by giving you small gifts (osettai), which you must always accept.

The weather can be perilous at times; even during the optimal seasons of spring and fall, it may rain for days—particularly in the south. Proper preparation and staying up to date with weather reports is a must. You are, however, never far from civilization in case of emergency.

Kochi Prefecture is the most difficult for walkers, as it is the least populated. The major towns are far apart, and the coast is lined with small fishing towns that tend to shut down by eight or nine in the evening, making it difficult to find accommodation.

Shikoku is home to many snakes, including deadly pit vipers. When walking through brush or grass, stomping or otherwise making noise will divert most snakes from your path.

July and August are very hot, and attempting to walk the pilgrimage at the peak of summer is asking for a bad case of heatstroke. But for the brave, it can mean small crowds and almost guaranteed space at the henro houses. April and October are the best times to go, though accommodations will be particularly crowded.

In one tradition you aren't done when you reach the 88th temple—some believe you still have to trek back to the 1st to complete your pilgrimage! Another tradition suggests that closing the circle is not necessary and it is better to leave it open ended. However it is more common nowadays to return to the 1st temple.

Also if you've made it this far, it's only good manners to return to Mount Koya to give your thanks to Kobo Daishi.

• Chugoku 33 Kannon Temple Pilgrimage - If you have the energy, you can easily begin this pilgrimage right after the Shikoku pilgrimage
• Narrow Road to the Deep North - Trace the steps of the famous poet Matsuo Basho