New Iya Valley to Kobe Direct Bus!
A new bus route links Iya & Oboke to Kobe & Naruto!
Starting October 8th, the Shikoku Kotsu Bus Company, which provides the local buses of Miyoshi City and the Iya Valley, will begin a new long-distance bus route that connects the Iya Valley and Oboke Gorge directly with Kobe City!
The Kobe - Iya bus will operate on Saturdays, Sundays and National Holidays, and will be the first regularly scheduled bus to ever link the remote Iya Valley with Honshu and the Kansai area. No need to transfer!
The bus will stop in the Iya Valley at the Kazurabashi Yumebutai (Vine Bridge Parking Area) and in Oboke Gorge at the Mannaka Service Area (for the Oboke Gorge Pleasure Boats). It is possible to connect to other local buses from either location (check out Local Bus Timetables for schedules).
In Kobe, the bus stops in the city center at Sannomiya Bus Terminal 神戸三宮 (next to JR Sannomiya Station) and at the Maiko Expressway Bus Stop 高速舞子 (next to JR Maiko Station)
This new route will also go via Naruto City with a stop at the Otsuka Museum of Art which houses an amazing collection of full-scale and finely detailed replicas of over 1000 world famous art pieces.
This bus also stops at several other places along the way in Tokushima Prefecture (including Awa-Ikeda Bus Terminal), but a basic timetable for the Iya Valley and Oboke stops is as follows:
| Kobe City | Kobe City | Naruto City | Oboke Gorge | Iya Valley |
| Sannomiya 神戸三宮 |
Maiko Expressway 高速舞子 |
Otsuka Art Museum |
Mannaka Service Area |
Kazurabashi Yumebutai |
| 7:25 | 7:55 | 9:06 | 11:28 | 11:53 |
| Iya Valley | Oboke Gorge | Naruto City | Kobe City | Kobe City |
| Kazurabashi Yumebutai |
Mannaka Service Area |
Otsuka Art Museum |
Maiko Expressway 高速舞子 |
Sannomiya 神戸三宮 |
| 16:00 | 16:25 | 19:00 | 19:58 | 20:28 |
*if traveling to Iya or Oboke, you can only get on this bus at the two Kobe stops and at the Otsuka Art Museum in Naruto. You can not get on the bus at Awa-Ikeda or any other stop between Awa-Ikeda and Naruto for travel to Oboke or Iya. Use the local buses instead.
**In the reverse direction, if boarding this bus from Iya or Oboke, tickets are sold only for going to Naruto or Kobe. If you get off the bus at an earlier stop, there is no refund.
For bus travel between Oboke or Iya going to Awa-Ikeda, use a regular local bus. Check our Local Bus Timetables for schedules.
For a full timetable of the Kobe - Iya bus, check the Shikoku Kotsu website (Japanese only) here:
https://yonkoh.co.jp/archives/info/highway20220913
The Shikoku Kotsu Bus Company also has other long-distance buses to/from the Awa-Ikeda Bus Terminal which travel at other times and operate every day of the week, including other buses for Kobe (which don't go to Iya) and buses for Osaka. Check their website for details about these buses and how to buy tickets here:
