Japan's smallest prefecture punches far above its size: it's nicknamed "Udon Prefecture" for its chewy Sanuki udon served at hundreds of shops, and its capital fronts the island-dotted Seto Inland Sea, gateway to world-famous contemporary-art islands.
Kagawa (香川) is Japan's smallest prefecture, long famous for sanuki udon (讃岐うどん). Since 2010 the Setouchi Triennale has turned its Inland Sea islands, led by Naoshima (直島), into a global art destination.
Photos: Ritsurin Garden — T-KIMURA via FIND/47, CC BY 4.0 · Naoshima Art Island — variationblogr via Flickr, CC BY 2.0 · Kotohira-gu — FIND/47 contributor via FIND/47, CC BY 4.0
Takamatsu is ~50 min from Okayama by train over the Seto-Ōhashi bridge.
Top pick
Top pick
Must-eatSanuki Udon (讃岐うどん)
Kagawa's signature dish and reason it calls itself 'Udon Prefecture' — thick, square, chewy wheat noodles served in hundreds of local shops, often with iriko…
Must-eatHonetsukidori (骨付鳥 / bone-in chicken)
A whole roasted chicken leg seasoned simply with salt, pepper and garlic, served on the bone. Created in Marugame in 1952; comes as tender 'wakadori' (young)…
Olive-fed Wagyu Beef & Olive Yellowtail (オリーブ牛・オリーブ鰤)
Premium Japanese Black wagyu and farmed yellowtail raised on Shodoshima Island using olive-based feed/leaves, a Setouchi specialty prized for…
Kagawa at a glance
Next door
Links marked PR are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Photos: Naoshima — RG in TLV via Flickr, CC BY 2.0 · Ritsurin Garden — T-KIMURA via FIND/47, CC BY 4.0 · Naoshima Art Island — variationblogr via Flickr, CC BY 2.0 · Kotohira-gu — FIND/47 contributor via FIND/47, CC BY 4.0 · Ritsurin Garden — FIND/47 contributor via FIND/47, CC BY 4.0 · Naoshima Art Island — variationblogr via Flickr, CC BY 2.0 · Kotohira-gu — bryan... via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Sanuki Udon — Ozchin via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Honetsukidori — shinji_w via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0. Map: Geolonia (MIT).
