Hiroshima shops in layers: 577 metres of covered Hondōri arcade, the paper-lantern alleys of Ebisu-chō, and craft counters selling Kumano brushes, Miyajima rice scoops and Otafuku sauce. Three days of arcades, boutiques and workshop-direct buys.
Hiroshima's 577 m glass-roofed pedestrian arcade runs from Kamiyachō to Fukuromachi with roughly 200 shops. Most open 10:00, though bakeries and drugstores start at 09:00. Andersen's flagship bakery at the east end sells the city's original anpan-style loaves from ¥250.
The city's fish and produce market in Kusatsu handles Setouchi oysters, conger eel and small horse mackerel. Public entry runs on designated open days; the on-site restaurant block serves market breakfasts from 06:00 and stays busy through noon with donburi around ¥1,200.
Kumano town produces about 80 percent of Japan's calligraphy and cosmetic brushes. This brush museum-workshop displays the world's largest writing brush (3.7 m, 400 kg) and sells maker-direct kits; makeup brushes start near ¥1,500 and go past ¥30,000 for goat-hair sets.
Seven working sake breweries sit within a few hundred metres of Saijō Station in Higashi-Hiroshima, marked by red-brick chimneys and namako-wall storehouses. Kamotsuru, Hakubotan and Kamoizumi run tasting counters and sell brewery-only bottles alongside sake-lees skincare.
Hiroshima's homegrown department store, founded 1929, anchors Hatchōbori across ten floors. The basement depachika is the best single stop for regional food gifts — momiji manjū from Nishiki-dō, Otafuku okonomi sauce sets and Setouchi lemon confections. Open 10:00-19:30.
Behind the main arcade, the lanes toward Tatemachi hold small select shops, vintage denim dealers and record stores. Edion's flagship electronics tower sits on the corner with a duty-free floor for cameras and rice cookers rated for 220 V export use.
Shareo is Hiroshima's underground shopping street beneath Kamiyachō crossing — roughly 80 shops of Japanese fashion labels, accessories and cafés, connected directly to Pacela tower above. Climate-controlled, which matters in the delta's humid summer. Shops run 10:00-20:00.
East of Chūō-dōri, Ebisu-chō and Nagarekawa fill with izakaya, standing bars and late-opening boutiques under neon. Small shops here sell Hiroshima Carp merchandise, hand-thrown ceramics and secondhand kimono well past 21:00, when arcades have already shuttered.
The 350 m covered street from the ferry pier to Itsukushima is where shakushi rice scoops were invented in 1800 by the monk Seishin. Workshops carve them on-site from cherry wood, ¥500 for a plain paddle to ¥5,000 for lacquered pairs; the giant 7.7 m scoop hangs midway.
Maple-leaf cakes were created on Miyajima around 1906 and are still baked fresh along Omotesandō. Nishiki-dō and Yamada-ya let you watch the iron moulds turn; a warm just-baked one costs about ¥120, boxes of ten from ¥1,100 in red bean, custard and cheese.
Miyajima-bori woodcarving and rokuro-turned trays are demonstrated at the crafts hall near the pier, with makers selling direct. Bowls turned from local zelkova start near ¥3,000; carved trays with wave motifs run ¥8,000-25,000 and take a maker several days each.
The station's ekie complex gathers regional makers in one hall — Kumano brushes, Kure navy curry, Otafuku sauce, Setouchi lemon goods and every momiji manjū brand under one roof. Open until 21:00, later than the arcades, and steps from the Shinkansen gates.