When to Go to Shikoku

Shikoku's unspoiled scenery offers some perfect locations in which to bask in the fleeting glories of springtime cherry blossoms and autumn foliage without the usual Honshu crowds. Summer is festival time throughout the country, but Shikoku has the best of the bunch: the epic dance festivals Yosakoi in Kochi, held August 9-12, and Tokushima's Awa Odori, held August 12-15. Winter is mild on the island, but the roads in to Iya can ice up, and the early autumn typhoons that batter Kochi and southern Ehime can disrupt transport.