Hikone Castle

I'm going to Japan in a couple of weeks and will be spending one day travelling by Shinkansen between Hiroshima and Tokyo.

I was wondering if there is somewhere interesting to stop for a couple of hours on the way? I will already have been to Kyoto and Nara.

Hikone sounds interesting for the original castle but would it be worth stopping at if I only have a short time there? I did also think of Osaka but again wasn't sure how much I could see in a couple of hours.

Any advice or other recommendations would be very welcome, thanks!

I recommend 3 hours or more to see Hikone Castle from Maibara Station.

Other possibilities are Okayama's Korakuen:
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e5700.html

Himeji:
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3500.html

Kobe:
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2157.html

Nagoya:
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2155.html

Shizuoka:
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e6350.html

Of course, you won't be able to see an entire city in a couple of hours, but you can see one or two sights.

I would prefer to have more than a couple of hours for Hikone castle but you could see it and the museum if you are a fast paced traveller.

Okayama doesn't break up the journey quite so much but the gardens with their 'borrowed scenery' of the castle across the river are also lovely.

Thanks for all the suggestions.

I am looking at them all now and struggling to pick which one looks nicest!

There are so many great things to see, but if you're short on time you should go with something that you can easily reach within the Shinkansen route.

I second Okayama. If you just go to the garden and the castle, then 3h should be enough. You can walk there in about 20-30min. from Okayama Station, but there are also buses.

Fukuyama has a nice, huge castle. You can even see it from within the Shinkansen when you pass by. You could do that in a very short time! :D

Fukuyama is between Hiroshima and Okayama, but not every Shinkansen will stop there!