32°N // 130°E // 110 VOLCANOES // THE BURNING SOUTH
ESTABLISHING CONNECTION ████████████ 100%
KYUSHU|32.7843°N 130.7420°E|36,782 KM²
FUKUOKA LOCAL TIME:--:--:--|JST UTC+9
JAPAN.GG|2026 EDITION
🔥 EMBERS
🐊
⚠️ WARNING // LIVE ANIMALS // READ BEFORE VISITING
Kyushu is home to active crocodile and alligator attractions — most notably Kagoshima's Hirakawa Zoological Park (saltwater crocodiles), Miyazaki's Uminonatsu Gator Farm, and Aburatsu Crocodile Ranch in Nichinan. These are working reptile facilities. Follow all posted safety instructions. Do not lean over barriers. Do not feed animals. Keep children supervised at all times. Crocodiles can reach speeds of 17km/h on land. You have been warned.
Fukuoka is Kyushu's capital and Japan's fastest-growing major city — a port metropolis that faces Korea across the Japan Sea, with a history of international trade stretching back to the Silk Road era. Hakata, Fukuoka's historic merchant core, gave Japan its defining ramen: tonkotsu, a twelve-hour boiled pork bone broth so rich it coats the back of a spoon and turns opaque white like volcanic steam. The city's yatai — open-air food stalls lining the riverbanks — are Japan's most atmospheric dining experience. At night, hundreds of red lanterns reflect in the Naka River as locals crowd tiny stools eating ramen, gyoza and grilled skewers under a warm south-Japan sky.
🍜HAKATA TONKOTSU RAMEN — THE ORIGINMilky pork-bone broth simmered 12+ hours until it turns creamy white. Thin straight noodles. Chashu pork. Red ginger. Sesame. The benchmark is Ichiran — but the real experience is a tiny 8-seat yatai on Nakasu island at midnight. Kaedama (extra noodles, ¥100) is expected and honoured.
⛩️DAZAIFU TENMANGU — PLUM BLOSSOM SHRINEOne of Japan's most important Shinto shrines, dedicated to Sugawara no Michizane, Japan's god of learning and scholarship. 6,000 plum trees bloom in February. Exam season sends millions of students here for prayer ema. The Starbucks at the entrance is designed by Kengo Kuma — bamboo lattice over 2,000 pieces.
🏯HAKATA GION YAMAKASA — JULY RACE FESTIVALThe most feverish festival in Kyushu: teams of bare-chested men in fundoshi carry 1-tonne floats at a dead sprint through the city streets at 4:59am on July 15. The culminating race — Ōiyama — has run every year since 1241 without interruption. Spectators line the streets by 3am.
02
熊本
KUMAMOTO
くまもと // THE FIRE PROVINCE
🌋 World's Largest Active Caldera. Samurai Castle. Kumamon Country.
Kumamoto sits at the volcanic heart of Kyushu, defined by Mt. Aso — the world's largest active volcanic caldera, stretching 25km across with five active peaks still smoking. The prefecture is also home to one of Japan's three great original castles, Kumamoto-jo, a masterpiece of samurai military architecture whose massive stone ramparts survived a 2016 earthquake that devastated the surrounding city — and whose restoration is ongoing, a testament to Japanese perseverance. Kumamoto is also the birthplace of Kumamon, Japan's most commercially successful mascot — a bear with wide dead eyes and scarlet cheeks who earns the prefecture approximately ¥130 billion per year.
🌋MT. ASO — WORLD'S LARGEST ACTIVE CALDERA25km wide, 128km circumference. The caldera floor contains farms, towns, golf courses and a railway line — all inside an active volcano. The Nakadake crater rim smoking above the green caldera plain is one of Asia's most dramatic landscapes. Access depends on eruption level — check the JMA alert before visiting.
🏯KUMAMOTO CASTLE — THE SAMURAI FORTRESSBuilt 1607 by the warlord Katō Kiyomasa. The castle's concave stone walls (musha-gaeshi) were designed to be unclimbable. Partially damaged in the 2016 earthquake, the main keep reopened in 2021. The surrounding park's cherry blossoms make it arguably Japan's finest castle sakura setting.
💧SUIZENJI JOJUEN — GARDEN OF EDO LANDSCAPESA 400-year-old garden that recreates the 53 stations of the Tōkaidō highway in miniature — rolling hills, a tiny Mt. Fuji, a jade lake. Also notable: Kumamoto's water. The city draws its tap water entirely from underground Aso volcanic aquifers — rated Japan's cleanest water, and consumed proudly straight from the tap.
03
長崎
NAGASAKI
ながさき // WHERE THE WORLD MET JAPAN
⛩️ Portugal. The Bomb. China. The Sea. The Most Layered City in Japan.
Nagasaki is Japan's most internationally haunted city — the only port permitted to trade with the West during Japan's 265-year isolation (via the Dutch trading post on the island of Dejima), the site of the second atomic bomb on August 9, 1945, and a city where Chinese, Dutch, Portuguese and Japanese architecture exists in the same neighbourhood block. The Nagasaki Lantern Festival — China's Lunar New Year transformed into a Kyushu spectacle — floods the city with 15,000 lanterns for two weeks each February. Champon noodles, the city's defining dish, were invented by a Chinese restaurant owner as cheap sustenance for the foreign population.
☮️ATOMIC BOMB MUSEUM & PEACE PARKOn August 9, 1945, the Fat Man bomb detonated 500m above Urakami Cathedral. The Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum tells the story with singular historical honesty. The Peace Statue in Nagasaki Peace Park — right arm pointing skyward at the threat, left arm extended in peace — is Japan's most powerful public sculpture. The hypocenter is marked by a black monolith in a quiet park.
🏮NAGASAKI LANTERN FESTIVAL — FEBRUARY15,000 lanterns. Chinese dragons. Lion dances. The streets of Shinchi Chinatown and Hamanomachi arcade glow orange-red for 15 nights. The largest lantern festival in Japan. Crowds and colour unmatched anywhere in the country outside of Kyoto's major festivals.
🏝️HUIS TEN BOSCH — DUTCH THEME PARK, SASEBOA 1:1 recreation of a Dutch town — windmills, canals, gabled townhouses — built on Omura Bay in Sasebo, Nagasaki. Japan's most visited theme park by area. The winter Illumination festival (November–March) lights 13 million bulbs over the water and is legitimately stunning.
04
鹿児島
KAGOSHIMA
かごしま // THE ASH CITY
🌋 A Volcano in the Bay. Naples of the East. Ash Falls Like Snow.
Kagoshima is the only major city in the world where citizens carry umbrellas against volcanic ash — Sakurajima, a live Strombolian volcano, erupts on average once every two days, showering the city with grey volcanic ash that residents brush from their cars, clothes and shop awnings as casually as snow. The city sits in a bay that is itself the remnant of the Aira Caldera — a supervolcanic eruption 22,000 years ago so large it formed the entire southern Kyushu coastline. Despite this, Kagoshima is among Japan's sunniest, warmest cities: a subtropical southern capital of sweet potato shochu, the birthplace of the Meiji samurai reformers, and home to Ibusuki's black sand baths — where natural geothermal heat buries you alive in pleasure.
🌋SAKURAJIMA — THE BREATHING VOLCANO1,117m above sea level. 1,000+ eruptions per year. A 15-minute ferry from Kagoshima city delivers you to a volcanic island with lava trails, onsen foot baths carved into the shore, giant daikon radishes grown in volcanic soil, and the Karakami lookout where the Pacific, the bay and the smoking crater align in a view that resets your perspective on human scale.
♨️IBUSUKI SAND BATHS — SUNAMUSHI ONSENNatural geothermal heat warms the black sand beaches of Ibusuki to 50°C. Attendants bury you up to the neck and you lie there for 10–15 minutes sweating in natural earth. Japan's most surreal spa experience. A yukata is provided; bring your own towel. The sand is naturally filtered by the sea at high tide.
⚔️MEIJI SAMURAI CAPITALKagoshima's Shimazu clan produced the key figures of the Meiji Restoration: Saigō Takamori (the last samurai, immortalised in bronze), Ōkubo Toshimichi, and the architects of modern Japan. The Reimeikan prefectural museum and the Sengan-en garden (clan villa overlooking Sakurajima) are extraordinary.
05
大分
OITA
おおいた // ONSEN PREFECTURE
♨️ 2,800 Hot Springs. 8 Hells of Beppu. Yufuin Valley Mist.
Oita is Japan's onsen prefecture — a landscape so geothermally active that steam vents from the ground across mountain valleys, roadside gutters, and even the middle of shopping streets. Beppu, the city with the highest concentration of hot spring output anywhere on Earth, produces 130,000 litres of steaming water every minute from 2,800+ individual springs, across eight dramatically different geothermal zones known as the "Eight Hells" — pools of boiling red, blue, grey and yellow water that you observe rather than bathe in. Inland, the valley resort town of Yufuin offers Japan's most refined onsen ryokan experience, wrapped in morning mountain mist and surrounded by craft galleries and breakfast cafés.
🔴BEPPU'S EIGHT HELLS (JIGOKU MEGURI)Eight dramatic geothermal pools, each a different composition: Umi Jigoku (cobalt blue, 98°C), Chi no Ike Jigoku (blood red, iron oxide), Tatsumaki Jigoku (geyser erupting every 30 minutes), Shiraike Jigoku (milky white), and four others. Buy a combined pass for all eight. Not for bathing — for witnessing.
🌸YUFUIN — VALLEY OF MORNING MISTOne of Japan's most refined rural onsen resort towns. The valley floor at dawn fills with geothermal mist, rising against the twin peaks of Yufu-dake. Luxury ryokan with private open-air baths (rotenburo). Craft galleries. Tofu kaiseki. The Yufuin Film Festival (August) makes it the Sundance of Japanese independent cinema.
🗿USUKI STONE BUDDHAS — UNESCO SITE61 stone-carved Buddhist images cut into volcanic tuff cliffs in the 12th century, deep in a bamboo-shaded gorge. Among Japan's finest examples of medieval stone carving. A UNESCO National Treasure. Serene and completely uncrowded.
Miyazaki Prefecture is where Japan's creation myth begins. According to the Kojiki — Japan's oldest chronicle — the gods Izanagi and Izanami descended to the Miyazaki coast to stir the ocean into land with a jewelled spear. The Takachiho Gorge, carved by ancient lava flows into a series of cathedral basalt columns, is the site of Japan's most dramatic seasonal mythology: the winter Yokagura festival, where masked gods perform sacred dances through the night. On the coast, Miyazaki is also Japan's surf capital — warm subtropical Pacific swells at Kisakihama and Ito-zaki attract Australian and Japanese surfers year-round. And yes — this is also the prefecture of crocodile farms.
🏞️TAKACHIHO GORGE — BASALT MYTH COUNTRYAncient lava flows cooled into perfect hexagonal basalt columns that line a narrow river gorge. Rent a rowboat at the base and paddle under Manai Falls, which drops 17m straight into the river above you. At dawn, the gorge fills with mist. The Amano Iwato Shrine nearby marks where the sun goddess Amaterasu hid inside a cave, plunging the world into darkness.
🐊⚠️ GATOR & CROC ATTRACTIONSMiyazaki is home to the Uminonatsu Gator Farm (alligator feeding shows, gator wrestling demonstrations) and Nichinan's Aburatsu Crocodile Ranch. Tickets from ¥1,200. Feed crocodiles from a safe platform. Absolutely do not reach over the barrier — these animals are not domesticated. A genuine, only-in-Kyushu spectacle.
🌊NICHINAN COAST — SUBTROPICAL PACIFIC DRIVEJapan's best coastal road trip. The Nichinan coast combines subtropical rock formations, surfing beaches, floating torii gates, and the remarkable Udo Shrine — built entirely inside a sea cave, where pregnant women come to pray and couples throw lucky clay balls at a stone target. Access requires a cliff-hugging descent by rope chain.
07
佐賀
SAGA
さが // PORCELAIN AND SKY
🏺 Arita Porcelain 400 Years Old. Balloon Festival. The Quiet Kingdom.
Saga is Kyushu's most underrated prefecture — small, rural and pastoral, tucked between Fukuoka and Nagasaki, yet home to one of Japan's most important artistic legacies: Arita porcelain, a 400-year-old tradition of fine ceramics that changed the aesthetic vocabulary of Baroque Europe. Arita ware — delicate blue-and-white porcelain first created when Korean potters, brought to Japan after the invasions of 1592–98, discovered local kaolin clay — was exported by the Dutch East India Company in the millions and is visible in every grand European palace collection. Today, kiln walking tours wind through Arita's mountainous ceramic town past live studio demonstrations. Each November, the Saga International Balloon Fiesta fills the sky above the Kase River with 100 hot air balloons at dawn — Japan's most photogenic autumn event.
🏺ARITA PORCELAIN — 400 YEARS OF FIRE AND CLAYArita, Imari and Karatsu are Saga's three porcelain towns, each with a distinct aesthetic: Arita (blue-and-white, Kakiemon red), Imari (export-grade Baroque), Karatsu (rustic tea-ceremony ware). The Arita Porcelain Fair (Golden Week, May) draws collectors from across Asia. The Kyushu Ceramic Museum tells the full story from Korean potters to Meissen.
🎈SAGA INTERNATIONAL BALLOON FIESTA — NOVEMBER100 hot air balloons launched from the Kase River flats at dawn each October/November. The Nite Glow event (balloons tethered, burners fired at night) reflects in the river as music plays. Free to watch from the riverbank. Arrival by 5am strongly recommended for balloon launch photos.
🏯YOSHINOGARI HISTORICAL PARKJapan's largest archaeological site — a reconstructed Yayoi-period settlement (100 BC–250 AD) on 117 hectares, including watchtowers, storehouses, burial mounds and ritual halls. The site may be the legendary Yamatai kingdom of Queen Himiko, Japan's first named ruler. Free on certain days; otherwise ¥460 entry.
02
VOLCANOES & FIRE LAND
火山列島 // 110 VOLCANOES // THE GEOLOGICAL FURY BENEATH KYUSHU
KYUSHU VOLCANO GUIDE
九州の火山 // 110 ACTIVE & DORMANT PEAKS // ALWAYS CHECK JMA ALERT LEVELS BEFORE VISITING
Kyushu sits atop the convergence of the Pacific Plate, the Philippine Sea Plate and the Eurasian Plate — one of the most geologically active zones on Earth. The result is an island where active volcanoes, bubbling mud pools, screaming steam vents and natural geothermal baths exist alongside cities, farms and motorways. Sakurajima erupts roughly once every two days. Mt. Aso's Nakadake crater periodically closes to visitors when sulphur dioxide levels rise. Unzen in Nagasaki last erupted catastrophically in 1792 and again in 1991, killing 43 people including volcanologists Maurice and Katia Krafft. The volcanic activity that makes Kyushu dangerous is the same force that makes it the most geothermally rich travel destination on Earth.
The key rule for volcano travel in Kyushu: always check the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) volcanic alert levels before visiting any active site. Level 1: Normal. Level 2: No entry to crater zone. Level 3: No entry to mountain. Level 4–5: Evacuation. Mt. Aso fluctuates between Level 1 and Level 3 multiple times per year.
110
VOLCANOES ON KYUSHU
25KM
ASO CALDERA WIDTH
1,117M
SAKURAJIMA HEIGHT
1,000+
SAKURAJIMA ERUPTIONS/YR
22,000
YEARS AGO — AIRA CALDERA
JMA
ALWAYS CHECK ALERT LEVELS
🌋 MT. ASO
ACTIVE // KUMAMOTO // JMA-MONITORED
World's largest active caldera — 25km wide. Five peaks, with Nakadake still actively venting. The caldera floor contains farms, golf courses and a highway. The rim drive at dusk, with the plain glowing amber below smoking peaks, is Kyushu's defining image.
🌋 SAKURAJIMA
ACTIVE // KAGOSHIMA // ERUPTS DAILY
Japan's most active volcano. 1,000+ eruptions annually. A 15-minute ferry from downtown Kagoshima. Lava fields, enormous daikon radishes grown in ash-rich soil, and shoreline foot-bath onsen carved into old lava flows. Surreally beautiful.
🌋 UNZEN
ACTIVE // NAGASAKI // LAST ERUPTION 1991
The Shimabara Peninsula hides the dramatic Unzen volcanic area — active fumaroles and boiling mud pools at Jigoku (hell) hot spring, a ski resort on the upper slopes, and the Unzen Disaster Memorial Museum documenting the 1991 pyroclastic flow that killed 43 people including renowned volcanologists.
🌋 KIRISHIMA
ACTIVE // KAGOSHIMA-MIYAZAKI BORDER
Volcanic mountain chain on the Kagoshima-Miyazaki border. Shinmoedake erupted spectacularly in 2018. The Kirishima-Kinkowan National Park combines volcanic lake hiking with the Kirishima Jingū shrine — the oldest shrine complex in Japan, where the gods first descended to earth.
JMA Volcano Alert Levels: Check jma.go.jp before all volcano visits. Level 1 = Normal. Level 2 = Entry to crater zone prohibited. Level 3 = No entry to mountain area. Level 4–5 = Evacuate.
Ash Fall Preparedness: In Kagoshima, carry a face mask and umbrella. Volcanic ash irritates eyes and lungs. Hotel lobbies often provide ash umbrellas as a courtesy.
Mt. Aso Access: The crater rim road opens and closes depending on sulphur dioxide levels. No advance booking available — check the Aso Volcano Museum board on arrival day.
Emergency Shelters: The Aso caldera road and Sakurajima visitor routes both have concrete volcano shelters (bunkers) every 500 metres. Know their locations before hiking.
Gas Hazard: Never linger in low-lying volcanic areas in still air. SO2 is heavier than air and accumulates in depressions. Symptoms: eye/throat irritation, headache. Exit immediately if symptoms start.
03
HAKATA RAMEN — SOUL BROTH
博多ラーメン // THE RICHEST BROTH IN JAPAN — BORN IN FUKUOKA, LOVED BY THE WORLD
TONKOTSU RAMEN
豚骨ラーメン // MILKY PORK BONE BROTH // FUKUOKA // SINCE 1940
Hakata tonkotsu is Japan's most globally influential regional ramen — the cloudy white pork-bone broth, boiled at a hard rolling simmer for 12 or more hours until the collagen and marrow emulsify into a milky richness that coats every strand of the thin, straight, al-dente noodles. The noodles cook in 30 seconds. Most serious ramen shops in Fukuoka offer kaedama — a replacement serving of noodles added to your remaining broth for around ¥100. The correct toppings are chashu pork belly, marinated seasoned egg, black mushroom, spring onion, nori, pickled red ginger (beni-shoga), and sesame seeds crushed at the table.
The yatai (outdoor food stalls) along the Naka River in Nakasu and the Tenjin area are the most atmospheric setting — open from sunset until 2am, plastic flaps against the wind, eight stools maximum, a single cook, the Fukuoka skyline reflected in the river behind you.
BROTH BASE
Pork femur bones and fat, boiled 12–18 hours at hard simmer until white and opaque. No chicken. No miso. No soy. Pure pig.
NOODLE TYPE
Thin, straight, low-moisture noodles. Cook time: 30 seconds. Kaedama (extra noodles) available for ¥100. The noodle-to-broth ratio is the chef's pride.
ICONIC SHOPS
Ichiran (solo booth dining, queue system), Ippudo (Hakata classic, now worldwide), Shin-shin (old-school Tenjin yatai style), Ganso Nagahama (the original 1940 stall).
PRICE
¥750–1,200 at standard shops. Yatai price includes obligatory beer. Kaedama ¥100. Open 11am–3am; some yatai open until dawn.
REGIONAL TWIST
Kurume ramen (older, darker, stronger tonkotsu — the original). Nagahama ramen (ultra thin noodles). Hakata kotteri (extra fat). All within Fukuoka Prefecture.
Spicy marinated pollock roe — Fukuoka's most important export after ramen. The fiery, salty, slightly fermented roe is eaten over rice, with sake, inside onigiri, or stirred into pasta (a beloved Japan-Italy fusion). Fukuya, founded 1949, claims to have invented the modern seasoning. The best shops are in the Canal City basement food floor.
FIND IT IN: Fukuoka // Canal City // Hakata Station Food Floor
🍜
CHAMPON NOODLES
ちゃんぽん // NAGASAKI
Nagasaki's defining noodle dish: thick wheat noodles loaded with seafood, pork, vegetables and kamaboko fish cake in a creamy pork-and-chicken broth. Invented in 1899 by Chen Ping-shun, owner of Shikairō restaurant, as affordable nutrition for Chinese students. The restaurant still operates. Champon is the direct ancestor of modern ramen.
FIND IT IN: Nagasaki // Shinchi Chinatown // Shikairō (original)
🐔
JIDORI CHICKEN
地鶏料理 // MIYAZAKI & KAGOSHIMA
Free-range chicken raised in Miyazaki's subtropical climate for over 100 days — double the standard farming period. The result is dense, chewy, intensely flavoured meat, grilled over charcoal and served medium-rare. Miyazaki Jidori is recognized as one of Japan's three great branded chickens (along with Nagoya Cochin and Satsuma Jidori). Mookata-style table grills available in Miyazaki City izakayas.
FIND IT IN: Miyazaki City // Kagoshima // Ebino Plateau area
🍠
SHOCHU & SWEET POTATO
芋焼酎 // KAGOSHIMA
Kagoshima is Japan's shochu capital. Imo-jochu (sweet potato shochu) is distilled from the local Satsuma sweet potato and carries a rich, earthy sweetness utterly unlike sake or whisky. Served imo-wari (potato + warm water, 6:4) in Kagoshima izakayas. Over 100 local distilleries in the prefecture; Kirishima and Satsuma Shiranami are the flagship brands. The volcanic soil that grows Sakurajima radishes also produces Japan's finest shochu potatoes.
FIND IT IN: Kagoshima // All Kyushu izakayas // Distillery tours
🫕
MIZUTAKI HOT POT
水炊き // FUKUOKA
Fukuoka's ceremonial hot pot: chicken (whole pieces, bone-in) simmered for hours in pure water until the collagen creates a natural white broth. Unlike other Japanese nabemono, no dashi, no miso — just the chicken's own flavour concentrated over heat. Vegetables added tableside. The final zōsui rice porridge cooked in the remaining broth is the meal's emotional climax. A Fukuoka winter institution since the Meiji era.
Saga Beef is one of Japan's top three wagyu brands — raised on Kyushu's lush pastures in Saga's temperate lowlands. A5 grade Saga Wagyu served as shabu-shabu in Arita's kaiseki ryokan is one of Japan's finest luxury dining experiences. The contrast between the raw volcanic aesthetics of Kyushu's other prefectures and Saga's serene porcelain-and-beef refinement is one of the island's great pleasures.
FIND IT IN: Saga Prefecture // Arita town kaiseki restaurants
05
BEPPU & THE ONSEN REALM
別府地獄めぐり // 2,800+ SPRINGS // EARTH'S MOST GEOTHERMALLY DENSE CITY
BEPPU — THE 8 HELLS
地獄めぐり // JIGOKU MEGURI // OBSERVATION ONLY
Eight geothermal pools of extraordinary character: Umi Jigoku (Sea Hell — vivid cobalt blue, 98°C), Chi no Ike Jigoku (Blood Pond Hell — deep blood red from iron oxide), Tatsumaki Jigoku (Tornado Hell — a geyser erupting every 30 min), Shiraike Jigoku (White Pond Hell — milky white from dissolved silica), and four others. Not for bathing — for awe. The steam from all eight rises into the Beppu sky simultaneously, visible from approaching trains.
Temperature: 96–98°C (various) // LETHAL — DO NOT TOUCH // Entry: ¥400 per hell, or ¥2,200 combined
BEPPU — BATHING ONSEN
公衆浴場 // PUBLIC COMMUNITY BATHS
Separate from the Hell Tours, Beppu has 8 distinct onsen neighbourhoods (each called a "beach") with over 150 public community baths. Takegawara Onsen (built 1879) offers sand baths buried in naturally heated sand, identical to Ibusuki. Kitahama Onsen pier runs directly into the sea. Kannawa district has stone-piped steam cookers where locals buy food and steam it in natural vents. Price: ¥100–500 at public baths.
Temperature: 42–48°C (bathing pools) // Tattoos: Private baths available — ask at reception
YUFUIN — RYOKAN ONSEN
湯布院 // VALLEY RESORT // LUXURY
Inland from Beppu, the valley town of Yufuin offers Japan's most refined rural onsen experience. Private open-air baths (rotenburo) at luxury ryokan with direct views of Yufu-dake volcano. The town is compact enough to walk in 30 minutes — craft gallery and onsen, gallery and onsen, café and onsen — a meditative loop. Book 2–4 months ahead for high-end ryokan in autumn foliage or spring cherry blossom season.
Geothermal heat warms Ibusuki's black volcanic sand beaches to 50°C naturally. Attendants dig a shallow trench, lay a yukata over the sand, and you lie down — they bury you to the neck. 10–15 minutes of total-body heat immersion, unlike anything else in Japan. You sweat intensely and emerge lighter. The experience is uniquely Kyushu: volcanic geology turned into pleasure by Japanese ingenuity.
The Unzen volcanic area in Nagasaki Prefecture features a dramatic cluster of fumaroles, boiling mud pools and acidic hot spring craters in a mountain valley surrounded by maple forest. The onsen water here is acidic — excellent for skin conditions. In autumn, the maples turn intense scarlet against rising steam. Footbath pools are free. The town of Obama Onsen (Nagasaki) — Japan's longest free outdoor footbath at 105m — is a 30-minute drive away.
Temperature: Up to 120°C (fumaroles) // Bathing onsen: 40–44°C at town hotels
KIRISHIMA ONSEN
霧島温泉 // KAGOSHIMA // VOLCANIC HIGHLAND
Clustered at the foot of the Kirishima volcanic chain (Shinmoedake, Takachihono-mine), these highland onsen sit above the clouds at 600–900m elevation, surrounded by volcanic peaks, crater lakes, and ancient cedar forest. Maruo Onsen is the most remote — a single traditional inn at the end of a mountain road, with a thatched open-air bath above a steam vent. Kirishima's sulphur-rich waters are bright yellow and powerful.
Temperature: 44–50°C (sulphur springs) // Top stay: Maruo Onsen Ryokan (rustic, historic, book early)
06
TOP DESTINATIONS
MUST-SEE // UNMISSABLE KYUSHU EXPERIENCES BY REGION
⛩️
DAZAIFU TENMANGU
FUKUOKA // 40MIN FROM HAKATA
One of Japan's most important Shinto shrines — 6,000 plum trees, a Kengo Kuma-designed Starbucks, and the annual procession of 1 million exam students seeking divine intervention from Sugawara no Michizane, Japan's god of scholarship. The Kyushu National Museum next door is Japan's fourth national museum — excellent ancient trade route collection.
SHINTO SHRINEPLUM BLOSSOMSDAZAIFUDAY TRIP FUKUOKA
🏯
KUMAMOTO CASTLE
KUMAMOTO // CASTLE DISTRICT
One of Japan's three great original castles. Built 1607 by Katō Kiyomasa with unclimbable concave stone walls. Survived the 2016 earthquake with the main keep standing — its restoration, visible from the park, is a genuine spectacle of engineering and perseverance. The cherry blossom season here (late March–early April) is Japan's most dramatically castle-framed sakura.
ORIGINAL CASTLESAKURA SEASONMILITARY ARCHITECTURE
🏞️
TAKACHIHO GORGE
MIYAZAKI // NOBEOKA AREA
Ancient lava flows cooled into perfect hexagonal basalt columns lining a river gorge with emerald water. Rent a rowboat and paddle under Manai Falls — 17m of water crashing into the pool above you. At dawn, mist fills the gorge completely. The attached Amaterasu shrine and the winter Yokagura dance festival (November–February) make this one of Japan's most mythologically dense sites.
BASALT GORGEROWBOATCREATION MYTHMANAI FALLS
🕊️
NAGASAKI PEACE PARK
NAGASAKI // URAKAMI DISTRICT
The hypocenter of the August 9, 1945 atomic bomb — a black monolith marks the precise point 500m above which Fat Man detonated. The Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum and the Peace Statue (right arm raised toward the sky, left arm extended in peace) make this Japan's most profound memorial site. The preserved ruin of the Urakami Cathedral one-tori gate is on the site.
WWII MEMORIALPEACE MUSEUMATOMIC HISTORY
🌋
SAKURAJIMA ISLAND
KAGOSHIMA // 15MIN FERRY
Board a 15-minute ferry from central Kagoshima to an active volcano that erupts daily. Lava field walking trails, the Karakami lookout (Sakurajima, bay, city skyline — one frame), the world's largest daikon radishes growing in volcanic soil, and shoreline onsen foot baths. The Volcanic Science Museum explains Kagoshima's geological reality. Ash umbrellas sold everywhere.
ACTIVE VOLCANOLAVA FIELDSFERRY DAY TRIPONSEN FOOTBATH
🏺
ARITA PORCELAIN TOWN
SAGA // CERAMIC HERITAGE
A mountain town where 400-year-old kilns still fire blue-and-white Arita porcelain that changed European decorative arts history. Walk the kiln-lined streets, enter working studios, and buy directly from the potters. The Kyushu Ceramic Museum is free and exceptional. Golden Week Arita Ceramics Fair draws collectors from across Asia and Europe.
UNESCO HERITAGELIVE KILNS400 YEAR TRADITIONCOLLECTOR'S TOWN
🌊
NICHINAN COAST
Japan's finest subtropical coastal drive. Floating torii gates, sea cave shrines, rock formations and surf beaches along the Pacific coast of Miyazaki. Udo Shrine — inside a sea cave, accessible by rope chains — is a genuinely otherworldly site. 3-hour drive from Miyazaki City, or rent a scooter from Aoshima.
🌿
YAKUSHIMA ISLAND
A UNESCO World Heritage island of Kagoshima Prefecture covered in 7,200-year-old Yakusugi cedar trees so ancient they inspired the Forest Spirit in Studio Ghibli's Princess Mononoke. The island receives 8 metres of rain annually — one of the wettest places in Japan. The Jōmon Sugi ancient cedar trail is a full-day 10km hike into another time.
🏔️
KUJI HIGHLANDS
Aso-Kuju National Park at its finest: wide volcanic grasslands (noyaki burning in March), hiking to the Kuju summit (1,791m), Chojabaru Visitor Center for astronomical stargazing (one of Japan's darkest skies), and the crater lake of Makinoto-toge glowing red at sunset.
🦋
AMAMI ŌSHIMA
A subtropical island of Kagoshima Prefecture, one of Japan's most biodiverse ecosystems — the Amami rabbit (endemic, nocturnal), habu pit vipers, and the Ryūkyū flying fox. UNESCO World Heritage forest of mangrove and primeval subtropical jungle. A wilder, less crowded alternative to Okinawa.
07
FESTIVALS & EVENTS
祭り // MATSURI // FIRE FESTIVALS, DRUM RACES AND ANCIENT GODS
JULY 1–15 (CULMINATES JULY 15)
HAKATA GION YAMAKASA
📍 FUKUOKA CITY // KUSHIDA SHRINE
Japan's most feverish summer festival. Teams of bare-chested men in fundoshi sprint through Hakata's streets carrying 1-tonne floats (kazariyama) in a race (Ōiyama) that begins at exactly 4:59am on July 15. The festival has run uninterrupted since 1241, when the Buddhist priest Shōichi-Kokushi had his palanquin carriers sprint through the city to disperse a plague. The float weigh-in and street decoration period runs July 1–14, with the seven competing teams' floats on public display across Hakata.
SUMMER // FREE TO WATCH
FEBRUARY (LUNAR NEW YEAR // ~15 DAYS)
NAGASAKI LANTERN FESTIVAL
📍 NAGASAKI CITY // SHINCHI CHINATOWN
15,000 lanterns transform Nagasaki's streets into a river of red and gold light for the duration of Chinese Lunar New Year. Chinese dragon parades, lion dances, and elaborate lantern installations in Nagasaki's Chinatown and the Hamanomachi shopping arcade. The Confucian Shrine Nagasaki's yellow lantern tower is the festival's centrepiece — lit each evening at dusk. Japan's largest and most theatrical Lunar New Year celebration, reflecting Nagasaki's four centuries of Chinese cultural exchange.
WINTER // CULTURAL // FREE ENTRY
OCTOBER / NOVEMBER // VARIES ANNUALLY
SAGA INTERNATIONAL BALLOON FIESTA
📍 KASE RIVER, SAGA CITY
100 hot air balloons launched from the Kase River flats at dawn. Japan's largest balloon festival — a spectacle that rewards the early bird absolutely. Arrive by 5am to secure a riverbank position for the mass launch. The Nite Glow evening event (balloons tethered, burners fired in rhythm to music, reflected in the river) is equally spectacular. Multiple competitive events across 4 days. Free to watch from all public areas surrounding the flats.
FREE VIEWING // ARRIVE 5AM
NOVEMBER 1–7 ANNUALLY
KARATSU KUNCHI
📍 KARATSU CITY, SAGA // KARATSU SHRINE
One of Japan's most spectacular float festivals — 14 giant hikiyama (floats), each a different mythological figure (the Red Lion, the Carp, the Samurai helmet), paraded through Karatsu's streets by hundreds of men in happi coats. The floats are 400 years old and designated Important Cultural Properties. The ritual sake-sharing at Karatsu Shrine on the opening day is restricted to participants — but the procession is entirely public and free.
CULTURAL PROPERTY FLOATS
NOVEMBER–FEBRUARY (YOKAGURA NIGHTS)
TAKACHIHO YOKAGURA
📍 TAKACHIHO TOWN, MIYAZAKI // VARIOUS SHRINES
The most ancient ritual performance still practiced in Japan: 33 masked sacred dances (kagura) performed through the night, from dusk to dawn, honoring the gods of the Takachiho creation myth. Local performers wear elaborate lacquered masks representing Amaterasu, Susanoo and other Shinto deities. Held at rotating village shrines from November through February. An abbreviated 4-dance performance runs nightly at Kagura-den hall for tourists (¥1,000, 20:00–21:00).
SHINTO // WINTER // SACRED
AUGUST 9 // ANNUAL
NAGASAKI MEMORIAL DAY
📍 NAGASAKI PEACE PARK
The August 9 memorial ceremony at Nagasaki Peace Park marks the anniversary of the 1945 atomic bomb. The Mayor of Nagasaki delivers the Peace Declaration, a minute of silence at 11:02am (the moment of detonation), bell-ringing across the city, and the release of doves. Open to the public. A deeply moving gathering attended by survivors (hibakusha), diplomats, and visitors from around the world. Evening floating lanterns on the Uragami River follow at dusk.
MEMORIAL // ANNUAL // OPEN
08
SUGGESTED ITINERARIES
FIRE ROUTES — YOUR KYUSHU JOURNEY FROM 3 TO 14 DAYS
01
FUKUOKA — HAKATA RAMEN & NAKAZU YATAI
Arrive at Fukuoka Airport (direct connections from most Asian hubs, 20min subway to city). Afternoon: walk Nakamachi (Hakata historic merchant district), Kushida Shrine (home of the Yamakasa festival floats, on permanent display year-round). Evening: yatai dinner on the Naka River — arrive by 7pm before the stools fill. Ramen, gyoza, grilled skewers, cold Asahi under red lanterns. The postcard Fukuoka evening.
HAKATA STATIONKUSHIDA SHRINENAKAZU YATAI STRIPTONKOTSU RAMEN
02
DAZAIFU & FUKUOKA FOOD DAY
Morning: 40-minute train to Dazaifu Tenmangu shrine (plum grove, the Kengo Kuma Starbucks, Kyushu National Museum). Afternoon back in Fukuoka: Canal City basement food floor for karashi mentaiko, Hakata textile shopping. Ichiran ramen for dinner (solo booths, pure focus, the cleanest ramen ritual in Japan). End the day with Fukuoka's gay-friendly Daimyo district bars.
DAZAIFU TENMANGUKYUSHU NATIONAL MUSEUMCANAL CITY FOODICHIRAN RAMEN
03–04
BEPPU — THE EIGHT HELLS & ONSEN TOWN
Day 3: Shinkansen or highway express to Beppu (2h from Fukuoka). Afternoon: Jigoku Meguri (Eight Hells) — buy the combined pass, allocate 3 hours. Umi Jigoku (cobalt blue, steam rising in columns) and Chi no Ike Jigoku (blood red) are the standouts. Dinner in Kannawa district — eat food steam-cooked in volcanic vents (jigoku mushi — "hell-steamed" vegetables, eggs, crab). Day 4: Early morning public onsen bath at Takegawara (sand bath hall opens 8:30am). Then Yufuin day trip (45min): valley mist, ryokan rotenburo, craft galleries. Return to Fukuoka or continue to Kumamoto.
BEPPU HELLS (JIGOKU)JIGOKU MUSHI COOKINGTAKEGAWARA SAND BATHYUFUIN VALLEY
01–02
FUKUOKA BASE — RAMEN, DAZAIFU & CANAL CITY
Day 1: Arrive Fukuoka. Hakata ward exploration, yatai dinner on the Naka River. Day 2: Dazaifu Tenmangu (plum shrine, Kengo Kuma Starbucks, Kyushu National Museum). Return via Ohori Park's teahouse. Evening mentaiko shopping at Canal City basement.
HAKATA YATAIDAZAIFU TENMANGUOHORI PARKICHIRAN RAMEN
03
KUMAMOTO — THE CASTLE AND THE CALDERA
Shinkansen to Kumamoto (35min from Fukuoka). Morning: Kumamoto Castle — the restored keep, the moat, the cherry blossom park. Afternoon: rent a car and drive up to Mt. Aso (1hr) — Nakadake crater rim road (check JMA alert day of), the caldera plain overlook from Daikanbo, the free outdoor Aso Grassland walk. Overnight in Aso or return to Kumamoto. Dinner: basashi (horse sashimi) at a Kumamoto izakaya — a local speciality, rare elsewhere in Japan.
Drive or train to Beppu via Yamanami Highway (one of Japan's great scenic roads across the Aso-Kuju plateau). Afternoon Jigoku Meguri (combined pass, 3hrs). Evening dinner at Kannawa district with jigoku-mushi cooking. Overnight Beppu — budget ryokan with onsen floors available from ¥6,000/night including 2 onsen sessions.
Early morning in Beppu: Takegawara sand bath (opens 8:30am). Then drive or train to Yufuin (45min): private ryokan rotenburo, gallery-hopping, Kinrinko lake morning mist walk. Afternoon: Usuki Stone Buddhas (30min from Oita) — 61 12th-century stone-carved images in a bamboo gorge. Utterly serene and always empty. Return to Oita for the night or drive south toward Miyazaki.
TAKEGAWARA SAND BATHYUFUIN LAKE WALKUSUKI STONE BUDDHASPRIVATE ROTENBURO
06
TAKACHIHO GORGE & MIYAZAKI — GODS AND GATORS
Drive inland to Takachiho Gorge (2.5hrs from Oita, or 1.5hrs from Nobeoka). Rowboat rental at the gorge base (¥800/30min, arrive early — queue forms by 9am). Manai Falls from the water. Amano Iwato Shrine (15min drive) — the cave where Amaterasu hid. Optional afternoon: Uminonatsu Gator Farm or Aburatsu Crocodile Ranch for the full Kyushu ⚠️ croc experience. Overnight Miyazaki City.
Train or drive to Kagoshima (2.5hrs from Miyazaki). Morning: 15-minute ferry to Sakurajima — lava trail, Karakami lookout, onsen footbath on the shore. Return to Kagoshima City. Afternoon train to Ibusuki (50min): Saraku sand bath (¥1,100, 30min session). Evening return to Kagoshima: dinner of Kagoshima black pork shabu-shabu and imo-jochu shochu. The city faces Sakurajima across the bay — the volcano smokes at dinner. It never gets old.
SAKURAJIMA FERRYLAVA TRAIL WALKIBUSUKI SAND BATHSHOCHU & BLACK PORK
01–02
FUKUOKA — THE RAMEN CAPITAL
Day 1: Arrive, Hakata ward and Nakamachi exploration, Yatai dinner (arrive 7pm). Day 2: Dazaifu Tenmangu, Ohori Park, Fukuoka Art Museum. Evening: Ippudo vs. Ichiran ramen head-to-head taste test — order kaedama at each. Sample Fukuoka's Hakata weave textiles at the Hakata Traditional Craft Centre (free museum, 2nd floor).
HAKATA YATAIDAZAIFU TENMANGURAMEN TASTINGCRAFT CENTRE
03–04
SAGA & NAGASAKI — PORCELAIN AND HISTORY
Day 3: Drive/train to Arita (1.5hrs from Fukuoka). Kiln walks, Kyushu Ceramic Museum, studio purchases. Afternoon: Karatsu Castle and Karatsu beach (one of Japan's 100 finest white sand beaches). Day 4: Drive to Nagasaki (1hr from Karatsu). Atomic Bomb Museum and Peace Park in the morning — allow 3hrs minimum. Afternoon: Glover Garden, Dejima Dutch trading post reconstruction, Shinchi Chinatown champon lunch. Sunset from Mt. Inasa ropeway (panoramic night view of the city's harbour bays).
ARITA PORCELAIN KILNSNAGASAKI PEACE PARKGLOVER GARDENMT. INASA NIGHT VIEW
05–06
UNZEN & KUMAMOTO — LAVA AND THE CASTLE
Day 5: Unzen Jigoku volcanic area (fumaroles, boiling mud pools, autumn maple steam). Obama Onsen footbath (Japan's longest, free). Drive or ferry to Kumamoto (2hrs). Day 6: Kumamoto Castle and Suizenji Jojuen garden. Afternoon car hire: drive up to Mt. Aso caldera (check JMA alert). Nakadake crater if open. Daikanbo overlook for caldera panorama. Overnight in Aso or Kumamoto. Dinner: basashi (horse sashimi) and local sake.
Day 7: Drive Yamanami Highway (Aso to Beppu — 2hrs of volcanic plateau drama). Jigoku Meguri afternoon. Overnight onsen ryokan Beppu (book ahead). Day 8: Morning sand bath at Takegawara (8:30am). Drive to Yufuin: private rotenburo, Kinrinko lake, gallery lunch, Yufuin Film Festival (August). Usuki Stone Buddhas late afternoon. Day 9: Slow morning in Yufuin. Train to Miyazaki via Oita.
YAMANAMI HIGHWAYBEPPU 8 HELLSYUFUIN PRIVATE ONSENUSUKI STONE BUDDHAS
10–11
MIYAZAKI — GORGE, SURF, GODS AND CROCS
Day 10: Takachiho Gorge (early rowboat launch), Amano Iwato Shrine, Amanoyasugahara (the cave mouth in the gorge where Amaterasu hid). Overnight Miyazaki City. Day 11: Nichinan Coastal Drive — Aoshima Island shrine (floating torii), Udo Shrine inside the sea cave (rope-chain descent), Nichinan surf beaches. Afternoon: ⚠️ Uminonatsu Gator Farm or Aburatsu Crocodile Ranch (booking recommended). Jidori chicken yakitori dinner in Miyazaki City.
Day 12: Train to Kagoshima (2.5hrs). Morning Sakurajima ferry — full island loop by car (rentals at the ferry port): lava trail, Karakami lookout, giant daikon field, shoreline onsen. Afternoon: Sengan-en Garden (Shimazu clan villa, Sakurajima directly across the bay). Day 13: Early train to Ibusuki sand baths. Return to Kagoshima: Reimeikan museum, Shiroyama Observatory (city + Sakurajima panorama), shochu tasting at a distillery. Day 14: Optional — early ferry or plane to Yakushima (UNESCO cedar forest island, Jōmon Sugi trail, 7,200-year-old trees). Or depart via Kagoshima Airport (flights to Tokyo, Osaka, Seoul).
SAKURAJIMA FULL ISLANDIBUSUKI SAND BATHSSENGAN-EN GARDENYAKUSHIMA OPTIONAL
09
PRACTICAL INFO
GETTING THERE, GETTING AROUND, STAYING, SPENDING
✈️
GETTING TO KYUSHU
Fukuoka Airport (FUK) — Japan's most convenient airport to city centre: 5 minutes by subway to Hakata Station. Direct flights from Seoul, Hong Kong, Taipei, Bangkok, Shanghai. Domestic connections to Tokyo (1h 40min), Osaka (1h).
Kagoshima Airport (KOJ) — Direct flights from Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, Naha (Okinawa). 40-minute bus to Kagoshima City.
Nagasaki Airport (NGS) — Tokyo, Osaka connections. 50-minute bus to Nagasaki City.
Shinkansen (Kyushu Line) — Fukuoka to Kagoshima in 1h20min via Kumamoto (40min). The Nishikyushu Shinkansen connects Takeo Onsen to Nagasaki (23min, opened 2022).
Ferry — Fukuoka to Busan (South Korea): 3-hour JR Beetle hydrofoil. Kagoshima to Yakushima: 1h40min by Toppy hydrofoil or 4h ferry.
🚗
GETTING AROUND
Rental car: Essential for Mt. Aso, Takachiho Gorge, the Nichinan Coast, Yakushima and anywhere rural. All airports have major rental desks. International driving permit required. Roads well-signed in romaji.
Kyushu Rail Pass: 3-day (¥16,500) or 5-day (¥21,000) unlimited pass covering all JR Kyushu lines including Shinkansen. Worth it if you're moving between 3+ prefectures. Buy outside Japan at JR ticket offices.
Yamanami Highway: The scenic mountain road from Kumamoto (Mt. Aso) to Beppu across the volcanic plateau — one of Japan's great drives. No tolls. Stops at Kuju highlands, Makinoto-toge crater lake, Kokonoe Yume suspension bridge.
Fukuoka subway: 3 subway lines cover the main city. Day pass ¥640. The airport line is the only airport-to-city subway in Japan under 10 minutes.
Highway bus: Connects all major cities cheaply. Fukuoka to Nagasaki ¥2,570 (2hrs). Overnight buses Fukuoka to Kagoshima from ¥4,000.
🏨
WHERE TO STAY
Yufuin luxury ryokan: Japan's most refined rural onsen experience. Sanso Murata and Musubi-yu are the benchmarks. From ¥40,000 per person per night including kaiseki dinner and private bath. Book 2–4 months ahead.
Beppu onsen ryokan: Moderate budget options from ¥8,000–12,000 per night including multiple onsen sessions. The Beppu Kamenoi Hotel is the historic grand dame. Many include dinner.
Nagasaki waterfront hotels: The Nagasaki Marriott and ANA Crown Plaza have direct views of the harbour and Glover Garden. Moderate business hotels cluster around Nagasaki Station from ¥8,000.
Fukuoka city: Hakata Station and Tenjin area saturated with business hotels. Cross Hotel Fukuoka and Dormy Inn chain reliable from ¥7,000. Book ahead for Golden Week and the July Yamakasa festival period.
Sakurajima camping: Volcano-front camping at Furusato Kanko Hotel (also has onsen). The most dramatic overnight in Japan — ash may fall on your tent. ¥3,500/night.
💴
BUDGETING
Budget: ¥8,000–12,000/day. Tonkotsu ramen ¥1,000, convenience store bento ¥500, public onsen ¥200–500, business hotel ¥6,000.
Mid-range: ¥18,000–30,000/day. Business hotel with dinner + izakaya evening + museum admissions + Jigoku Meguri entry.
Luxury: ¥40,000–80,000+/night for Yufuin or Kirishima ryokan with kaiseki dinner, private onsen, and personalized service.
Volcano access: Most volcanic observatories are free. Jigoku Meguri Beppu combined pass ¥2,200. Sakurajima ferry ¥160 return.
Cash: Rural Kyushu is cash-dominant. Carry ¥20,000+ when driving inland. 7-Bank and Japan Post ATMs at convenience stores accept foreign cards.
📅
BEST TIME TO VISIT
Spring (March–April): Cherry blossoms at Kumamoto Castle (the finest in Japan). Mild 14–20°C. Aso grassland noyaki (controlled burns in March — dramatic orange hillsides).
Summer (June–August): Hakata Yamakasa (July 1–15), the most kinetic festival in Japan. Hot and humid 30–35°C but sea breezes. Yakushima is lush and green. Avoid August Golden Week crowds at major sites.
Autumn (October–November): Unzen maple steam (scarlet maple + volcanic steam), Yufuin valley mist, Saga Balloon Fiesta. 16–24°C. Best photography season.
Winter (December–February): Nagasaki Lantern Festival (February), Kirishima ski season. Warm 8–14°C by Japanese standards. Onsen is at its most atmospheric in cold weather. Fewer crowds.
🎒
TIPS & ETIQUETTE
Volcanic ash: In Kagoshima, always carry a fold-up umbrella and a face mask. Ash falls on cars and people without warning. Hotels provide complimentary ash brushes at the entrance.
⚠️ Crocodile farms: Follow ALL posted safety instructions at gator facilities. No feeding by hand without staff supervision. Keep children back from barriers. These are not theme parks — the animals are large, fast, and unpredictable.
Onsen tattoo policy: Many public onsen forbid visible tattoos. Private (kakoiyu) baths are available at most facilities on request — often the same price. Book these in advance, especially at busy Beppu and Yufuin locations.
Shochu ordering: In Kagoshima, imo-jochu (potato shochu) is ordered imo-wari (potato shochu + hot water, 6:4 ratio). Ordering whisky or beer at a Kagoshima shochu izakaya is technically legal but culturally odd.
JMA volcano alerts: Check jma.go.jp before any volcano visit. The Aso Volcano Museum board updates daily. Mt. Aso changes access level without notice during eruption periods.
10
TRIP BUDGET
KYUSHU BUDGET CALCULATOR
¥0
SELECT OPTIONS ABOVE TO SEE YOUR ESTIMATE
11
KYUSHU PHRASEBOOK
九州の言葉 — ESSENTIAL JAPANESE + LOCAL DIALECT — TAP CARD TO COPY
ラーメンをください
RAMEN O KUDASAI
"One ramen please" — your most-used sentence in Fukuoka
▶ TAP TO COPY
替え玉をください
KAEDAMA O KUDASAI
"Extra noodles please" — add to your remaining broth for ¥100. Mandatory at Hakata yatai.
▶ TAP TO COPY
温泉はどこですか？
ONSEN WA DOKO DESU KA?
"Where is the hot spring?" — used constantly in Beppu and Yufuin
▶ TAP TO COPY
個室の露天風呂はありますか？
KOSHITSU NO ROTENBURO WA ARIMASU KA?
"Is there a private outdoor bath?" — essential if you have tattoos
▶ TAP TO COPY
火山の警戒レベルは？
KAZAN NO KEIKAI REBERU WA?
"What is the volcano alert level?" — ask at Aso Visitor Centre before heading to the crater
▶ TAP TO COPY
芋焼酎をお湯割りで
IMO-JŌCHŪ O OYUWARI DE
"Sweet potato shochu with hot water" — the correct way to order in Kagoshima izakayas
▶ TAP TO COPY
ありがとうございます
ARIGATOU GOZAIMASU
Thank you (formal) — use constantly and mean it
▶ TAP TO COPY
すみません、お会計お願いします
SUMIMASEN, OKAIKEI ONEGAISHIMASU
"Excuse me — the bill, please" — at yatai, this means you're done and the next person is waiting
