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Add to SafariWhen comparing Onomichi vs Ise, 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 Ise is ranked 6th. 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.
Question Ranking
Pros
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
Pro Home of the highest ranking Shinto shrine
The Ise Grand Shrine is unique in Japan as being the top of the hierarchy of Shinto shrines connecting to Japan's imperial house. It is taken down and completely rebuilt every 20 years.
Pro Ise lobster
Despite being a small town, Ise is home to the Ise lobster, which is well-known throughout Japan for its culinary applications. There are entire traditional course meals using the Ise lobster at Ise's traditional inns.
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.
Con Not a lot to do after a few days
Ise is a small town, so there's a fairly finite number of attractions in Ise. Ise is best for 2-day-1-night trips.
Con No direct bullet train to Ise
If traveling from Tokyo, travelers must transfer from Nagoya onto the local rail system to get to Ise.
