Things to Do in Kyushu, Japan

Kakeroma Island

Kakeroma Island: A Town Ferry, Ferry-Timed Buses and No Taxis Across the Strait from Amami

A long, ragged island across the Oshima Strait from the south tip of Amami Oshima, with small set...

Kamishikimi Kumanoimasu Shrine

Moss-Covered Lanterns and a Hole Through the Mountain in a Cedar Forest Above Takamori

A small mountain shrine in southern Aso reached by a stone stairway lined with 97 moss-covered la...

Karatsu Castle

A hill above Karatsu Bay carries a modern castle tower with broad sea and town views. The histori...

Kashiragashima Church

A Stone Church Its Congregation Quarried by Hand, on a Goto Island Once Left to the Sick

A sandstone church on Kashiragashima, off Nakadori island in the Goto chain, built from 1910 to 1...

Kasuga Village and Mount Yasumandake

Rice Terraces Where Hidden Christians Never Went Back to the Church, Below the Sacred Mountain They Prayed To

A farming village of terraced rice fields on the west coast of Hirado Island, where Hidden Christ...

Kijima Kogen Park

Japan's first wooden roller coaster, on a plateau above Beppu

A highland amusement park on the road from Beppu to Yufuin, best known for Jupiter, the wooden co...

Kokonoe Yume Suspension Bridge

Japan's Tallest Pedestrian Suspension Bridge, 173 Meters Over a Gorge in Oita

A pedestrian-only suspension bridge 173 meters above the Naruko River gorge and 390 meters long, ...

Koshikijima Islands

Koshikijima Islands: Three Islands Joined by a Bridge, and Still Reached Only by Boat

Three inhabited islands about 45 km off western Kagoshima, joined end to end since 2020 by the pr...

Kuju Mountains

Kyushu's Highest Mainland Peak, Pink With Azaleas in Early Summer

A cluster of volcanic peaks on the Oita highlands whose top, Nakadake at 1,791 meters, is the hig...

Kuroshima

A Ferry Island off Sasebo Where Hidden Christians Farmed an Old Horse Ranch, and a Brick Church from 1902

A small hilly island about 50 minutes by ferry from Ainoura in Sasebo, settled in the 19th centur...

Kyushu Natural Animal Park African Safari

Feeding lions from a caged bus on a plateau near Beppu

A large drive-through safari park with about 70 species and 1,400 animals along a 6 km road. Driv...

Lake Ikeda

Kyushu's Largest Lake: 233 m Deep, Giant Eels, Mount Kaimon Behind

A round caldera lake about 15 km around and 233 meters deep, the largest lake in Kyushu, with Mou...

Manda Pit

A Miike Coal Mine Shaft Tower and Brick Winding House on the Kumamoto-Fukuoka Border

A pit of the Mitsui Miike coal mine with its works still standing: an 18.8 m steel headframe from...

Michi-no-Eki Aso

Aso produce and travel advice beside JR Aso Station

A roadside station on Route 57 right next to JR Aso Station, facing the five peaks of Mount Aso. ...

Michi-no-Eki Harazuru

Fuyu persimmons at the gate to Harazuru Onsen

A farm market on Route 386 at the entrance to Harazuru Onsen, five minutes from Haki IC. Asakura ...