When comparing Aomori vs Onomichi, the Slant community recommends Onomichi for most people. In the question“What are the best cities to visit in Japan besides Tokyo and Kyoto?” Onomichi is ranked 1st while Aomori is ranked 13th. The most important reason people chose Onomichi is:
There are several walking paths that take you through the hills, past many interesting sites and nice views of the city.
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Pros
Pro Nebuta festival
Pro Friendly, affordable restaurants
Since Aomori is a small coastal city, the restaurants carry an air of local pubs, where everyone knows everyone else, and they're very friendly and welcoming to foreigners.
Pro Aomori apples
Aomori ships the majority of the apples that get consumed around Japan, including the expensive $10+ per apple gifts that get presented in special occasions. Thus, Aomori is the prime location to try these apples at a more affordable price.
Pro Nice walking paths
There are several walking paths that take you through the hills, past many interesting sites and nice views of the city.
Pro Friendly street cats
Pro Easily accessible by train
Cons
Con Is a tourist town, but for locals and not foreigners
Onomichi has lots of locals living in it, but it's definitely a popular place for Japanese locals to visit. From that perspective, it's still interesting for a foreigner, but has some of the same drawbacks as the standard touristy cities.
Con Very little English communication
Most signs are Japanese-only, and very few locals speak any English at all.