Originally Posted by evergrn

... Anyways, I would recommend Okayama. It's a big city that offers plenty to do/eat, but it's certainly not Tokyo or even Kyoto. It is amazingly well-connected by trains to so many attractions that are both prime (Kyoto, Himeji Castle, Hiroshima Peace Park, Miyajima) and second-tier (Kurashiki, Onomichi, Matsue, Matsuyama / Dogo Onsen, Shodojima).