The ¥100 visitor tax
nobody tells you about.
Miyajima has charged a ¥100 visitor tax per person since 1 October 2023, collected on the outbound leg only. It is normally bundled into your ferry ticket, so most people never notice it — unless they hold a rail pass, in which case they have to buy it separately at the terminal and nobody warns them.
¥100 ($0.63) per person, charged on the outbound leg only, since 1 October 2023 — so a same-day return is ¥300 out and ¥200 back, not ¥300 each way. Island residents, commuters and students at island schools are outside the tax; preschool children, school-trip groups and holders of a Japanese disability handbook are exempt. Rail-pass holders are the trap: the JR Pass covers the JR ferry but not the tax, so you pay the ¥100 separately at the terminal. There is a ¥500 one-year option, but it needs a Japanese-language application at a city office or through the city's LINE account with a My Number card, and only breaks even at five visits — just pay the ¥100.
What the tax is, and why you probably will not see it
The fee itselfMiyajima has charged a ¥100 visitor tax per person since 1 October 2023, collected with your ferry ticket on the outbound leg only. Rail-pass holders are the trap: the pass covers the JR ferry but not the tax, so you still have to buy a separate ¥100 ticket at the terminal.
Formally it is a statutory non-standard local tax on people entering the island by boat, introduced by Hatsukaichi city and in force since 1 October 2023. It is ¥100 per person and it is charged on the outbound leg only — you pay to go, not to come back — and the money is earmarked for maintaining the island under the pressure of several million visitors a year.
In practice it is invisible to most visitors because both ferry operators collect it with the fare: a ticket from the machine or counter has the ¥100 added, and the IC-card gates at both operators deduct fare and tax together. Unless you are counting you never learn why the outbound costs ¥300 instead of ¥200. A same-day return is therefore ¥500 ($3.17) per adult in total, and ¥300 ($1.90) for a child aged 6–12 — the ¥100 child fare each way plus the tax, which only preschoolers escape.
There is a ¥500 one-year option, and our advice is to ignore it. It only breaks even at five visits, and it means a Japanese-language application at Hatsukaichi City Hall or its Miyajima or Ōno branch offices, or through the city's LINE account with a My Number card — not something a visitor is set up for. Just pay the ¥100. The one product that genuinely changes the sum is Hiroden's ¥1,000 Streetcar & Ferry 1-day pass: it includes the visitor tax, covers the trams and the Matsudai ferry, and offers a discounted ropeway coupon as an add-on (Hiroden does not publish its price on the ticket page). Its limit is that it is Matsudai-only, so it cannot be used on the JR sailings that detour past the torii. ⚠ Other passes and tour vouchers vary: the city says some include the tax and some do not, so check when you buy.
Here is the thing that makes this page necessary: not one of the ten pages ranking on Google's first page for this island mentions the tax at all. That includes both of the results dedicated entirely to Miyajima. It is a small amount of money and a completely avoidable surprise at a ticket window in a language you may not read.
The ¥100 tax, in full
Who paysFrom Hatsukaichi city's own tax pages and the two ferry operators' fare tables, checked 5 October 2026. Amounts are per person.
| Case | You pay | How it is collected |
|---|---|---|
| Ordinary visitor, one trip to the island | ¥100 | Bundled into the ¥300 outbound ferry ticket at the counter |
| Ordinary visitor, same-day return | ¥100 total | Outbound leg only — ¥300 out, ¥200 back, ¥500 per adult |
| Frequent visitor | ¥500 for one year | Breaks even at 5 visits; apply in Japanese at a city office or via the city's LINE account — skip it |
| Holder of Hiroden's ¥1,000 Streetcar & Ferry 1-day pass | Included | Covers the tax and the Matsudai ferry; a ropeway discount coupon is an add-on |
| Holder of another pass or a tour voucher | Usually ¥100, separately | Show it at the ferry counter and pay the tax — the city notes some passes already include it |
| JR Pass or rail-pass holder | ¥100, separately | The pass covers the JR ferry, not the tax — buy the tax ticket at the terminal |
| Island residents | Not taxed | City-issued certificate |
| People working on the island (48+ hours a month) | Not taxed | City-issued certificate |
| Students attending a school on the island | Not taxed | City-issued certificate |
| Preschool children | Exempt | — |
| Holders of a Japanese disability handbook | Exempt | Show the handbook; a carer still pays |
| Pupils on a school trip, with teachers | Exempt | School certificate handed to the ferry company |
Categories as published by Hatsukaichi city. A college or university trip, or a teacher's advance visit, is not exempt. Child-age travellers aged 6 and over pay the tax like adults.
Rather book it?Ferry tickets and transport passes on GetYourGuide ↗
Three ways this catches people out
The trapsThe JR Pass and the JR West regional passes cover the JR West Miyajima ferry in full. They do not cover the visitor tax, which is a municipal levy and not a transport fare. You walk to the gate with a pass in your hand and still owe ¥100. Pay it at the terminal before you board.
¥100 per person, outbound onlyBoth operators charge ¥200 for the crossing itself. If your ticket says ¥300, the extra ¥100 is the visitor tax, not a price rise and not a foreigner surcharge. The fare is identical for everyone and identical between the two companies.
¥200 fare + ¥100 taxYou do not. The tax is on the outbound leg only, so a family of four pays ¥400 going over and nothing coming back. Two separate island days in a week is ¥200 per person — nowhere near the five visits at which the ¥500 one-year option, with its Japanese-language application, would pay.
¥500 one-year option breaks even at 5 visitsMiyajima visitor tax at a glance
The numbersBeing surprised by it
at a counter is not.
The tax is bought at the pier, not online, so there is nothing to reserve in advance — this page exists so the number is not a surprise. If you are pricing the wider trip, the ferry, the streetcar day pass and the regional rail passes are the lines that actually move a Hiroshima budget. Transport tickets and passes for the region are listed on GetYourGuide; we do not publish their prices here because we could not verify them.
See transport ticketsVisitor tax questions
Straight answersIs there an entrance fee for Miyajima?
There is a ¥100 ($0.63) visitor tax per person on the way over, in force since 1 October 2023, but no admission charge for the island itself. Walking the streets, the promenade, Momijidani Park and Mount Misen all cost nothing; the ticketed things are Itsukushima Shrine at ¥300, Senjōkaku at ¥100, the Treasure Hall at ¥300 and the ropeway.
Does the JR Pass cover the Miyajima visitor tax?
No. The JR Pass covers the JR West Miyajima ferry crossing in full, but the ¥100 tax is a municipal levy and sits outside it — JR's own fare page says the tax is charged separately. You pay the ¥100 at the ferry terminal. This is the single most common way visitors get caught out, and almost nobody publishes it.
How do I pay the Miyajima visitor tax?
In most cases you already have: both ferry operators collect it with the fare, which is why a one-way ticket costs ¥300 rather than ¥200, and their IC-card gates deduct the fare and the tax together. If you are travelling on a rail pass or a tour voucher, pay the ¥100 at the terminal counter before boarding.
Is the Miyajima visitor tax charged both ways?
No — outbound only. You pay ¥100 to go to the island and nothing to come back, so a same-day return costs ¥500 per adult in total including the two ¥200 ferry legs. Two separate island days means two payments of ¥100.
Is there a pass that includes the visitor tax?
One: Hiroden's ¥1,000 Streetcar & Ferry 1-day pass, which also covers the trams and the Matsudai ferry, with a discounted ropeway coupon as an add-on. It does not cover JR, so you lose the 09:10–16:10 torii detour. Other passes and tour vouchers vary — the city notes that some include the tax, so check when you buy.
Who is exempt from the Miyajima visitor tax?
Island residents, people who work on the island at least 48 hours a month and students at island schools are outside the tax, with a city-issued certificate. Preschool children are exempt, as are pupils on a school trip with their teachers (the school gives the ferry company a certificate) and holders of a Japanese disability handbook (show it; a carer still pays). Everyone else pays the ¥100, including children of school age.
How much is the ferry to Miyajima with the tax?
¥300 ($1.90) outbound — ¥200 for the crossing plus the ¥100 tax — and ¥200 coming back, so ¥500 per adult for a same-day return. Children aged 6–12 are ¥100 each way plus the ¥100 tax outbound, ¥300 in all; preschoolers ride free and pay no tax. Budget ¥500 per adult and you will not be short.
Why does Miyajima charge a visitor tax?
The island receives several million visitors a year against a small resident population, and the levy funds the upkeep that follows — waste, facilities and conservation. The city lists toilets and visitor facilities, upkeep of the Misen observatory and trails, heritage conservation and eco-tourism among its uses. It has been in force since 1 October 2023 at ¥100.
Sources
Where these facts come from- Hatsukaichi City — Miyajima visitor tax overview and exemptions (Japanese) city.hatsukaichi.hiroshima.jp
- Hatsukaichi City — for visitors: how the tax is paid (Japanese) city.hatsukaichi.hiroshima.jp
- Hatsukaichi City — one-year payment application (Japanese) city.hatsukaichi.hiroshima.jp
- JR West Miyajima Ferry — fares and the tax jr-miyajimaferry.co.jp
- Miyajima Matsudai Kisen — fares and the tax (Japanese) miyajima-matsudai.co.jp
- Hiroden — 1 Day Streetcar and Ferry Pass hiroden.co.jp
The prices, dates and rules on this page that come from these sources were checked against them on . Operators change prices without notice — the official page wins if it disagrees with us. Spotted something out of date? Tell us — it gets fixed.