Hiroshima In Autumn: September To November

Rainfall falls from about 162.7 mm in September to about 109.2 mm in October and about 69.3 mm in November, while average daily highs drop from about 29.1 °C to about 17.7 C. The colour season is short and back-loaded: the city parks turn through November, and Momijidani Park on Miyajima holds roughly 700 maple trees that typically peak between November 10 and 30. This guide walks through the weather month by month, where the colour is, what the autumn festivals are, and what transport and admission cost in the season.

What Is The Weather Like In Hiroshima In Autumn?

Autumn weather in Hiroshima cools steadily from about a 29.1 °C average high in September to about 23.7 °C in October and about 17.7 °C in November, with rain falling from about 162.7 mm to about 69.3 mm across the same months, per the Japan Meteorological Agency station normals for 1991-2020.

September still carries summer heat, with an average low of about 21.1 °C, but the rain total of about 162.7 mm is well down from the July peak of about 279.8 mm. By November the average low is about 8.9 °C, so evenings want a coat even when afternoons are comfortable. Layering is the practical answer: mornings in late November can start near single figures and afternoons still reach the high teens.

For how this season compares with the rest of the year, the season-by-season breakdown at best time to visit Hiroshima and the detailed figures at Hiroshima weather carry the full twelve-month picture.

When Do The Autumn Leaves Peak In Hiroshima?

Autumn colour across Hiroshima Prefecture typically peaks from mid- to late November, and Momijidani Park on Miyajima, which holds roughly 700 maple trees, peaks around November 10 to 30 in 2026. The city gardens turn through the same window, and the illumination events at Momijidani run November 13 to December 6, which makes the second half of November the colour window for a single visit.

Momijidani Park is the anchor of the season. Of its roughly 700 maples, about 560 are iroha-momiji, about 100 are o-momiji and about 40 are other varieties such as yama-momiji, which is why the colour in the park spreads over weeks rather than arriving at once. Entry is free and the park is open all year. On the mainland, Shukkeien Garden runs its Momiji Festival during the peak foliage week, extending hours to 21:00 with illuminations. Further out, Sandankyo Gorge peaks around mid-November and closes its facilities from December to April, and the peak forecast for Kosanji Temple falls on November 27.

The dedicated page on autumn leaves at Momijidani and around Hiroshima covers the island colour, the illuminations and the ropeway reservation dates in full detail. One planning fact worth flagging early: the Miyajima ropeway requires an advance online reservation for the uphill ride on November 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22, 23, 28 and 29 in 2026, which are exactly the peak colour weekends.

What Is Hiroshima Like In September?

September in Hiroshima is the tail of summer, with an average high of about 29.1 °C, an average low of about 21.1 °C and about 162.7 mm of rain, per the JMA 1991-2020 station normals. The Peace Memorial Museum runs its long season hours, 7:30 to 19:00, and the month is warm enough for everything in the city to be done at an easy pace.

The museum hours matter for planning: from March to July and again from September to November the Peace Memorial Museum is open 7:30 to 19:00, with the extended 7:30 to 8:30 and evening slots requiring an online reservation. Admission is 200 yen for adults, 100 yen for high school students and free for junior high and younger, with 100 yen for visitors 65 and over showing a passport. Shukkeien Garden, at 350 yen for adults, keeps hours of 9:00 to 18:00 until September 15 and 9:00 to 17:00 from September 16, with last entry 30 minutes before closing in both cases.

The Hiroden streetcar is the everyday transport in this heat: a flat 240 yen for adults and 120 yen for children on all lines including the Miyajima line, a fare in force since February 2025. A one-day pass at 700 yen covers unlimited rides once the day has enough trips in it. The full system is explained at getting around Hiroshima.

What Is Hiroshima Like In October?

October in Hiroshima is festival month, with the Hiroshima Food Festival on October 24 and 25, 2026 and the Autumn Green Fair at the Hiroshima City Botanical Garden from October 24 to November 3, 2026, both with free entry. The average high is about 23.7 °C with about 109.2 mm of rain, per the JMA normals, which makes it a comfortable month for walking the city.

The food festival runs 10:00 to 17:00, with the Hiroshima Castle plaza staying open until 20:00 on the 24th. The botanical garden fair runs 9:00 to 16:30 with entry until 16:00. Both are reported on city pages as free-entry events, and the castle plaza venue is a reminder that the castle grounds, not the keep, are the public space here: the keep itself has been closed to visitors since 22 March 2026, with a Sannomaru history museum planned for 1 June 2027.

The Hiroshima okonomiyaki and what to eat in Hiroshima pages cover the food side of the city in depth, and the food festival is a reasonable preview of it.

A guided walk in October needs no special gear: for the related walk on this page, the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park Historical Walking Tour, Check availability covers live dates for the season.

What Is Hiroshima Like In November?

November in Hiroshima is the colour month, with maple colour peaking mid- to late November across the prefecture, Momijidani illumination from November 13 to December 6 and the Daisho-in illumination from November 17 to 29, 2026. November also carries the season's free events. The Kenmin Bunka-sai Wadaiko Festival is reported for November 1, 2026 at JMS Aster Plaza Grand Hall, doors 10:00, start 11:00, free admission.

The Mizube no Gassho Festival, a waterfront choir event, is reported for November 3 from 11:00 to 14:20 at the Genbaku Dome riverside terrace, with a rain date of November 7. A free A-bombed trees walking tour, the Be-baku Jumoku Meguri, is reported for November 7, 10:00 to noon, starting at Futabanosato Daini Park, about 4 km over about 2 hours. A World Heritage 30th anniversary panel exhibit is reported at the Atomic Bomb Dome north side from November 1, 2026 to January 31, 2027.

The etiquette of visiting the Peace Park in a festival month is worth reading ahead of time; the peace park etiquette page sets out what the official pages state.

How Do You Get To Miyajima For The Autumn Colour?

Miyajima is reached by the JR Sanyo Line from Hiroshima Station to Miyajimaguchi in about 25 to 30 minutes, then a 10-minute ferry to the island, with the Miyajima Visitor Tax of 100 yen charged on entry. Momijidani Park sits near the ferry pier and close to Itsukushima Shrine, and the ropeway costs 2,000 yen return for an adult.

To let someone else handle the island logistics, book a guided Miyajima tour here.

The JR ferry crossing takes about 10 minutes, and the Japan Rail Pass and JR-West rail passes are valid on it, which makes the train-plus-ferry chain the natural route for pass holders. The one-day streetcar and ferry pass at 1,000 yen for adults covers Hiroden trams plus the Miyajima Matsudai ferry and the 100 yen visitor tax, which is the arithmetic to check against a day of four or more tram rides.

In November the ropeway runs uphill 9:00 to 16:00, with the last descent at 16:30, and the advance-reservation dates listed above apply to the uphill ride on the peak weekends. The last JR ferry back to Miyajimaguchi during the illumination events is reported at 10:14 p.m., which is the fact that makes an evening illumination visit workable. The full route is detailed at Hiroshima to Miyajima.

What Should You Pack For Hiroshima In Autumn?

Packing for Hiroshima in autumn means layering across a season whose average highs fall from about 29.1 °C in September to about 17.7 °C in November and whose average lows fall from about 21.1 °C to about 8.9 °C, per the JMA normals, with comfortable shoes for the shrine corridors, whose floorboards have deliberate gaps for high-tide pressure. November evenings want a proper coat; September wants summer clothes.

The shoe point comes from the shrine's own admission page: the Itsukushima Shrine corridor floorboards have gaps that allow high-tide water pressure to pass, and the page advises comfortable shoes. Everything else follows the numbers: a September itinerary is a summer itinerary with an umbrella, since about 162.7 mm of rain falls on average, while a late-November one wants warm layers for mornings that average about 8.9 °C at the low end.

Where Should You Stay In Hiroshima In Autumn?

Autumn accommodation in Hiroshima splits between the station area and the Peace Park side, with the Hiroden streetcar connecting them in about 15 minutes on lines 1, 2 or 6 at a flat 240 yen fare, so the choice is about evening atmosphere rather than access. Hotels near the park include Hotel Mystays Hiroshima Peace Park at 3-3-1 Otemachi, reported as a 4-minute walk from the park.

Grand Base Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park is a 5-minute walk from the park at 1-7-9 Sakaimachi, Naka-ku, and Hotel Park Side Hiroshima Peace Park is a 5-minute walk from the Atomic Bomb Dome and a 15-minute walk from Hiroshima Castle. Streetcars run at 10 to 15 minute intervals on main lines, and the last departures from the station area are typically around 22:00 to 23:00 depending on line and direction, which sets the practical boundary on late evenings downtown. The full neighbourhood-by-neighbourhood breakdown, including the Hondori arcade's roughly 577 metres of covered shopping street, is at where to stay in Hiroshima.

For anyone planning to stay on the island for the illuminations, the Miyajima overnight page covers the case for sleeping on Miyajima, which is the cleanest way to see Momijidani lit up without racing the 10:14 p.m. ferry.

What Does An Autumn Day In Hiroshima Cost?

A day in Hiroshima in autumn costs from about 240 yen per Hiroden trip or 700 yen for a one-day pass, plus 200 yen Peace Memorial Museum entry, 350 yen Shukkeien entry and 300 yen Itsukushima Shrine entry, with the Miyajima day adding the 100 yen visitor tax and a 2,000 yen return ropeway fare, all figures from the venues' own pages.

The arithmetic of a Miyajima day is the clearest: the one-day streetcar and ferry pass at 1,000 yen covers the trams, the Matsudai ferry and the visitor tax, so it pays for itself against about four separate 240 yen tram rides before the ferry is counted. The 1-Day Visit Hiroshima Tourist Pass at 1,000 yen is an alternative covering Hiroden trams, select buses and both Miyajima ferries, per the Hiroshima Travel Guide and the city pass pages.

The broader budget picture, including food and lodging planning ranges, sits at Hiroshima trip cost. Senjokaku on Miyajima charges 100 yen entry and its ginkgo trees peak in late November to early December, which is one of the cheapest colour stops on the island.

What Day Trips Work In Autumn Around Hiroshima?

Autumn day trips from Hiroshima that the season directly serves are Sandankyo Gorge, which peaks around mid-November before its facilities close from December to April, Saijo's sake brewery street, which pairs with Kure on a full-day all-inclusive tour, and Buttsuji Temple, served by seasonal shuttle buses from Mihara Station November 13 to 23 at 630 yen adult one-way.

Sandankyo is the purest autumn trip: a gorge whose leaves peak around mid-November and whose facilities then close for winter, so the season is not decorative but definitional. The Saijo sake district is covered at Saijo sake district, and the Seto Inland Sea islands, including the art-island route, at Seto Inland Sea islands.

How Does Autumn Compare With Spring In Hiroshima?

Autumn in Hiroshima is drier than spring on the JMA normals, with November bringing about 69.3 mm of rain against April's about 141.0 mm, and cooler, with November averaging about 17.7 °C highs against April's about 19.8 C. Cherry blossom in Hiroshima averages first bloom on March 25 and full bloom on April 4 on 30-year JMA specimen tree data, while maple colour peaks mid- to late November.

The two seasons mirror each other: spring's colour arrives over about ten days from late March, while autumn's runs for weeks across successive species and altitudes. Spring carries more rain in every month from March to June than November does. The Hiroshima cherry blossom page covers the spring side, and the seasonal pages for Hiroshima in spring, summer and winter complete the year.

What Are The Free Things To Do In Hiroshima In Autumn?

Free autumn entries in Hiroshima include Momijidani Park, which is open all year with no admission fee, the A-Bomb Dome viewable from outside its fence at no charge, the Hiroshima Food Festival on October 24 and 25, 2026 and the Autumn Green Fair at the botanical garden from October 24 to November 3, 2026, both reported with free entry, plus the November 1 wadaiko festival and November 3 riverside choir event.

Momijidani Park being free is what makes a Miyajima colour day affordable: the ferry tax and the shrine entry are the only fixed costs of a foliage visit that skips the ropeway. More free options across the year are listed at free things to do in Hiroshima.

Common Questions About Hiroshima In Autumn

Autumn in Hiroshima rewards a late-calendar visit more than an early one: September is warm and the festivals have not started, October brings the food festival and the fair, and November delivers the colour, the illuminations and dry weather, with the Momijidani maples holding their peak for most of the month.