Hiroshima with a toddler (2–3) 4 spots
Hiroshima sits on a calm inland sea. Miyajima's shrine gate stands in the water, afloat at high tide and walkable at low tide, and the okonomiyaki is built up with noodles on a griddle in front of you.
Hiroshima City Asa Zoological Park
A zoo of eight zones, with one of the world's best black rhino breeding rates.
Stroller OK · Nursing room · Changing table · checked Aug ’26
Miyajima Public Aquarium (Miyajima Marine)
An aquarium built around the Seto Inland Sea, with 380 species in its tanks.
Stroller OK · Nursing room · Changing table · checked Aug ’26
A hilltop garden between Hiroshima and Miyajima, where 10,000 kinds of plant grow.
Stroller OK · Nursing room · Changing table · checked Aug ’26
An oyster restaurant on Miyajima's main street that claims Japan's first grilled oysters.
checked Aug ’26
At the viewpoint called Tug of War with the Baboons, an Anubis baboon pulls a rope and beans roll out for it. Pull, and something comes out — the cause and the effect happen right in front of you, so a child too young for an explanation still sees exactly what happened.The borrowed strollers are guided at seven months to two years, so past two, bring your own. The park is walked through eight zones, and the stretch from Peachiku Park to the West Garden is hilly, with the electric cart that used to cover it currently suspended. The park opens at 9:00, last entry is 16:00 and it closes at 16:30, so arrive in the morning to leave time for the walking. Closed on Thursdays, except public holidays. Admission is free for infants and for elementary and junior high students. The Bakubaku restaurant and the shops inside take cash only.
At Penguin Touch Time, in the ground-floor Fureai Hiroba, a child touches a Humboldt penguin directly. At Seal Touch Time, in front of the ground-floor Hireashi Pool, they feel a seal's coat. Not just looking through glass — there are set times in the day for touching with your hands.Penguin Touch Time is at 11:30 and 14:00 on weekdays, 10:45 and 14:15 at weekends and on public holidays — time your entry around it. In summer, 1 May to 30 September, Splash Time runs at the ground-floor Fureai-no-Iso, where children step into the touch pool to look at shoreline creatures, so bring a change of clothes and a towel if you plan to join (in winter the same spot runs Stroke Time instead). Reckon on about an hour and a half for the exhibits, about two hours with events and the shop. You may bring food and drink, but eating while viewing is discouraged: eat on the rooftop plaza or at the Live Pool, outside sea lion show times, and on a wet day the roofed seating at the Live Pool is available. The aquarium is closed from 1 December 2026 to 31 March 2027.
Tricycles with a push bar at the back, the kind a parent can steer, are allowed inside the garden. There are two lawn areas to run around on, with play equipment. And the oversized models of carnivorous plants and cacti are built big enough for a child to walk inside and be photographed there.Bicycles cannot be used inside, but a tricycle with a push bar can. In the hot months there is a Water Play Area, which doubles as watering the lawn, so pack a change of clothes on the assumption of getting wet. You may bring a packed lunch and take your rubbish home. On a wet day the eating spots are under Mori-no-Restaurant and the big tent in front of the Great Greenhouse, and neither can be reserved. Small free-standing tents that do not damage the ground — pop-up and tarp types — may be put up in two places, the Event Plaza and the Lawn Plaza. Insect collecting is not allowed, and nets and insect cages may not be brought in. Last entry 16:00, closing 16:30.
For a child who eats neither oysters nor conger eel there is curry rice at 1,000 yen, french fries at 700, and two rice balls at 650. Dessert is one thing only: ice cream, 600 yen.Hours are 10:30 to 17:00 with last orders at 16:30 — a lunchtime restaurant only, nothing in the evening. It closes on Wednesdays, so if your Miyajima day is a Wednesday you cannot count on it. Those hours shift with the season, so on a day you would arrive close to the 16:30 cutoff, call 0829-44-0335 and check. Unscheduled closures are announced on their official LINE. Between 15 minutes in the queue and 15 minutes of grilling, expect about 30 minutes of waiting.