Hi Elizabeth. You could do the ropeway up and the Daisho-in course back but there are other ways to get a view and as the ropeway only goes halfway up the mountain I'd probably recommend continuing the walk on up from there if can you only pick one option and take the ropeway back then exploring from below. From memory either from within the Daisho-in temple itself or the start of the walking trail next to it we got pretty good views towards the tori and shrine. If you want a close view from above then taking the steps up to the Pagoda next to the shrine is also worthwhile. I find the tide makes the biggest impact to planning out a day at Miyajima, if possible seeing both the tori and shrine itself 'float' briefly at high tide from down around the shrine is very special, it's very flat seabed there and the tide goes quickly so there's only a short period at the turn of the tide that you get that real magic view of walking in the shrine surrounded by water.

Thanks Miia. I started the site because I love to do my research in advance too and back then there wasn't so much available. I'm really happy for you getting a clear day for the views from up the mountain, it's so beautiful out there.

We had a great time and managed to see Hiroshima and Miyajima - so beautiful! Thanks for the tips! Yes, when it rains in Fukuoka, it pours! The weather in May and the first part of June has been perfect. I'm not sure if this is normal or not because we got here last August. November/December is also a good time to visit because it's not that cold and those months are pretty dry. Let me know if you plan to be in the area - we expect to be here until at least next spring.

Hi Stephanie, have a fabulous day! We've only made a day trip to Fukuoka so far and it was the only day in all our travels in Japan that was completely rained out so we mostly saw the inside of cafes, restaurants and Canal City - we're going to try again next time as from the research we'd done I'm sure we'll love it.

Have a great trip back Mandy. We hope to hike two different paths next time. It depends a bit on what the days high tide time is as we'd want to see the shrine and tori floating again too and have enough time to get up and back without rushing. My Japan list never gets any shorter 🙂

Thanks Duke, we had people say to us on our way that up the views wouldn't be good but we didn't have another day available in the area so we weren't too worried. It wasn't as photogenic as some pictures we've seen by others but the sea fog was actually quite interesting, you could still see a hint of the islands and mainland, it was a bit like a magical fantasy seascape.