Setouchi has gained a name for itself in recent years as the home of Naoshima ‘art island’. But the charming Seto Sea region is, in fact, a vast inland sea that stretches from Honshu to Kyushu, touching on the prefectures of Yamaguchi, Hiroshima, Okayama, Hyogo, Osaka, Kagawa, Ehime, Fukuoka and Oita.
The area is known for its pristine nature and clean air, and producer of excellent seafood and sake. Sample these first-hand at the three-day Setouchi Festival in Ueno Park mid-January. There’ll be a bounty of food covering all the classics from the region – Hiroshima tsukemen, Kobe beef sukiyaki, Awaji beef burger, fried sardines, Onomichi ramen, oysters in the peak of their season, and a huge pot (2m in diameter) of oyster broth, featuring no less than 40,000 oysters from Setouchi. To wash all this down, try some of the 35 brands of sake hailing from the area.