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Major tourist sites

The coastal area of the Seto Inland Sea is one of the most famous tourist destinations in Japan. Even before Japan opened to foreigners in the middle of the 19th century, the sea's beauty was praised and introduced to the Western world by those who visited Japan, including Philipp Franz von Siebold, and after the country's opening, Ferdinand von Richthofen and Thomas Cook.

Its coastal area, except for Osaka Prefecture and a part of Wakayama Prefecture, was appointed the Setonaikai National Park (瀬戸内海国立公園, Setonaikai Kokuritsu kōen) on March 16, 1934, as one of three oldest national parks in Japan.

Itsukushima Shrine, on the island of Itsukushima in the city of Hatsukaichi, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the most famous Japanese sites outside Tokyo and Kyoto. Shōdoshima, nicknamed the "island of olives", and the Naruto whirlpools are two other well-known tourist sites. Neighboring locations like Kotohira and Okayama are often combined with the tour of the Setouchi region. Some historic sites, including Yashima in Takamatsu and Kurashiki, also attract many visitors. Hiroshima is the neighbor city to Itsukushima Shrine and another UNESCO World Heritage Site because of atomic bomb damage in 1945. Idol Unit STU48 operate on a cruise on the Setuchi.

The eastern end of the Sea is now famous for the Setouchi Triennale set up in 2010 with the next event happening in 2022. Some of this takes place on the island of Naoshima, known colloquially as the art island, and the home of several permanent museums.

At the far eastern extremity, as the Sea meets the Pacific Ocean, are the Naruto whirlpools that can be reached by sight-seeing boats.

The Shiwaku Islands are a defined group numbering 28 that can be reached by ferry boat from Marugame. Here Richard Henry Brunton built one of his lighthouses that can still be seen, and the grave of Frank Toovey Lake, a young midshipman in his survey party has become famous.

In the central area of Seto Inland Sea is Mount Ishizuchi on Shikoku. It is the highest mountain in western Japan and the highest mountain in Shikoku.

In the western end of the Sea is Mimosusogawa Park (ja:みもすそ川公園) in Shimonoseki. It commemorates the final stage of the Genpei war between the feudal Taira clan and Minamoto clan (1180–1185).