Matsuyama Transportation

The Shinkansen is by far the most convenient way to travel around Japan. Unfortunately it isn't very cheap! Luckily there is a Japan JR Rail Pass available to foreign travellers. See the JR East website for details:

It must be bought abroad and stamped in Japan before you can use it. There are several options including one week (unlimited JR travel except for the super fast Nozomi service), two week, JR East and JR West passes. Check with your local travel agent for the best option or click on the link to see for yourself!

Here is a link to a very cool page that lets you see the routing between cities/stations/ports within Japan. It will tell you the route and includes the cost and time. http://www.jorudan.co.jp/english/norikae/.

I took a ferry from Kokura (Kitakyushu) to Matsuyama. It was an overnight ferry and the cheapest way to get there from Kitakyushu where I was living. The ferry was run byu the Kansai Kisen Ferry Line, who also run ferries between Oita and Beppu in Kyushu to Matsuyama and then on to Kobe and Osaka.
A second class A ticket (sleeping on the floor in a large communal room) will cost 3,700 Yen.

The Shikoku 3 day train pass was well worth the money we spent on it. It gave us free travel on any JR transportation all over Shikoku and we got our money's worth. Took Limited Express trains between Matsuyama and Takamatsu and Kochi also. We also took local trains back up to Kompira san and Oboke Gorge. The JR bus offers a service between Kochi and Matsuyama which is included in the ticket. Ask at the green counter at any Shikoku JR station.

This train is running center line along the roads only around the city center. The reason why the train have orange color is that Ehime prefecture is the home of Orange!! If you can transfer inside Matsuyama city, this train is useful.

I believe there is an airport with flights to and from Osaka but I think it's more fun to take the train. The Shinkansen (bullet train) has service to Okayama where to need to transfer to an express train to Matsuyama. This lets you see the sights along the way. You can also take a ferry from Hiroshima if you enjoy the open sea.
There is train service and taxi service although from the main station (shi-eki not the JR station) a lot of the fun stuff to do is within walking distance.