Shopping in Hiroshima

I will be making a day trip to Hiroshima with my family members next March.

While some love cultural stuff and sightseeing, and some would simply love to shop. I'm trying to accommdate everyone's needs during the trip. I'm planning to spend half day at the A-Bomb and peace museum area and the rest of the day shopping. Could anyone advise roughly how big Hiroshima's shopping belt / district is? Big enough to kill half a day?
If the shopping area is small then I could probably use the afternoon to visit Miyajima and only do shopping in the city from late afternoon to early evening. Would apprediate any advice. Many thanks.

You can walk to shopping from Hiroshima station in about 10 or 15 min. Or you will see it along the way if you take one of the streetcar lines to the A Bomb museum and Peace Park. Lots of big department stores and arcades.
Miyajima, however should not be missed and I would plan an entire day there. If you like to walk there is a trail up to the top of the mountain or you can save time by taking the ropeway. The shrine there is really beautiful as it sits out in the water of the Inland Sea. The tori gate is surrounded by water at high tide but at low tide you can walk out under it. The deer run free there like in Nara. If it is a clear day the views will be impressive and it will be one of the highlights of your trip.

When you take the tram along from the station to the Peace Park, you will see to your left down side streets a colourful mall called Hondori. It's marked on the tourist map that you can get at the station.

So you can go see the Peace Park, perhaps walk up and see the Castle, and then down for an afternoon's worth of shopping.

But yeah, go to Miyajima. It's the coolest part of Hiroshima.
Peace Park is historically significant, but apart from that it's just a nice neat, even slightly dull, park as you'll see anywhere in the world.

Hi Steve and emjoi. Thanks a lot for the advice from both of you! I think most probably we will be in Miyajima from morning till mid afternoon, and after that visiting Peace Park and shopping in the city from late afternoon to the evening. Yep, shouldn't miss Miyajima. Would love to see the temple and have deer run free around us. If I'm not wrong Japanese believe these deer are messengers from the Gods. = )

I don't think I will take the streetcar to Miyajima from Hiroshima station cause it is too slow. I'll be arriving by Shinkansen train from Kyoto and then I'll transfer to the JR Sanyo Line at Hiroshima station to Miyajima.

you didn't say where you will be staying before and after your trip to Hiroshima. This is important as if you are staying in a big town (Osaka, Kyoto, Tokyo etc. or even Kobe, Yokohama, Nagoya etc. etc.) they have oodles of big department stores, covered streets, underground malls, small shops etc. so I WOUlDN'T WASTE time shopping in Hiroshima. Miyajima is really worth it. I even enjoyed walking around the village, well away from the 2 streets where 99% of the tourists are found (we saw a small deer all by itself and he followed us along a couple of back streets!). My friend and I were planning to only go to the shrine and back as quickly as possible but there was something very magical and we actually stayed there 7 hours..

Thanks Sensei 2, for adding in your advice and experience.

Guess Miyajima is a really magical and fun place worth far more time to be spent on than I thought. I'm really getting excited about it! Especially about the small deer that followed you guys around and to the streets. = ) My first stop of my one-day Hiroshima trip should be Miyajima then, guess will have to visit the peace park and city (if still have time) only in the late afternoon or evening provided we want to get back to the city by then, if not guess the entire day will be in Miyajima. This is where the benefit of free-and-easy travel gets magnified. = )

hi im sachi from hiroshima! welcome to hiroshima.
i hope you enjoy staying here!
the big shopping center and the underground shopping center in the city will close by 8 or 9pm. but small shops at the Hondori might be close a little bit earlier than it.
and nomaly most of shops might not be open on Wednesday.
the restaurant are open till late night time.
i hope you enjoy staying here!

Good English Sachi! =)

My friend travels from Shimane to Hiroshima just to do shopping, so I bet they have some good stores. If I were you, i would try going on the weekend perhaps when things are open later so you get the most out of your day.

Does anyone know if Japan is the same as America, where Sunday is a very relaxed day? Or is Sunday a religious day for going to church (not Christian church, but like Budhist church.. if there is such a thing. I've head of a Budhist church in California)

Dear Sachi, thank you for your kind advice! I'm sure I'll have a great time in Hiroshima. I will be there on 28th March 2008, which falls on a Friday. Guess it will be more happening since it is weekend. = ) Since you live in Hiroshima I'd like to ask you some questions regarding using public transport in Hiroshima. How should we catch a bus or tram in the city? What I mean is that do we need to get any pre-paid card before boarding any of them or we could just pay coins when getting off the bus / tram? Would it be more expensive if we pay cash on public transport? I will be holding a JR Rail Pass but it does not cover Hiroshima's buses and trams.

Many thanks.

Hi! your welcome. Happy to do it :)
I think catching tram is useful. It's easy to find the tram stop more than the bus stop.
Nomaly you don't need to get ticket before boarding. You can pay coins when getting off the tram.(bus,too) It's uniform 150yen in the city. You can buy the 1 day or 2 days ticket at hiroshima tram station or hotel desk...etc. It will be cheaper than that you pay each time. Also they have
tickets that is like including cost for tram to miyajima, ship to miyajima and ropeway at miyajima. I think a JR Rail Pass will cover ship to miyajima, so you better to ask them which one is best when you buy it. If you go to miyajima from the city, it will take more than 1hour by tram without transfer. The other way is taking a train that will take about 45mins from city. You want to go to Hiroshima station by tram and then transfet to a train.

Thank you Sachi san for your help! The information given by you is very clear and useful. = )