Hi everyone, 1st time posting here so nice to meet all of you!
I will be going to Kyushu for 13 days in early April. Previously, I have been to Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka and parts of Hokkaido like Sapporo.
I will be doing solo travel, but I heard that unlike the main regions in Honshu, Kyushu is hard to get by without a car. But I still intend to use public transport nonetheless as I am not confident in my driving.
See my itinerary for now and help me address some of my questions + anything I need to add/edit?
You may DM me if you’d like to tell me in more detail too!
Appreciate any & all sorts of advice! \^\^
**Some questions I have:**
1) Is there any part of my itinerary that does not make much sense or can be more efficient/cheaper? This is esp with regards to the tours I wish to book like the Kitakyushu/Yamaguchi tour and Mount Aso/Takichiho Gorge tour. Pls let me know if there are any better alternatives to the Klook tours as some of these tours are pricey.
Let me know if there are attractions I listed which are not worth the commute too. Initially, I thought to go to Miyazaki but the attractions there seem rather inaccessible for someone who’s not driving…
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2) As you can see from my plan, for inter-city travel, I am going to use the North Kyushu JR Pass (for travel between Fukuoka, Beppu, Nagasaki and Kumamoto) and the South Kyushu JP Pass (for travel between Kumamoto and Kagoshima). Reason I didn’t get the whole Kyushu pass is because my travel between all the cities will span more than 7 days.
But I also saw on Klook that there are some passes from inter-city and intra-Fukuoka travel. For intra-city, I plan to use the Sugoca card. But from your experience, are any of the commute options listed below (or any others I may not know of, better in terms of convenience and cost?
Fukuoka City Subway 1 Day Pass
[https://www.klook.com/en-SG/activity/26871-fukuoka-subway-unlimited-pass/?spm=Wish.Favorite\_Activity\_Card\_LIST&clickId=877b703026](https://www.klook.com/en-SG/activity/26871-fukuoka-subway-unlimited-pass/?spm=Wish.Favorite_Activity_Card_LIST&clickId=877b703026)
Fukuoka Tourist City Pass
[https://www.klook.com/en-SG/activity/94833-fukuoka-tourist-city-pass/?spm=Wish.Favorite\_Activity\_Card\_LIST&clickId=d587770b6f](https://www.klook.com/en-SG/activity/94833-fukuoka-tourist-city-pass/?spm=Wish.Favorite_Activity_Card_LIST&clickId=d587770b6f)
Kyushu SunQ Pass
[https://www.klook.com/en-SG/activity/28320-kyushu-sunq-pass/?spm=Wish.Favorite\_Activity\_Card\_LIST&clickId=6fd6a0a12e](https://www.klook.com/en-SG/activity/28320-kyushu-sunq-pass/?spm=Wish.Favorite_Activity_Card_LIST&clickId=6fd6a0a12e)
3) Any worthwhile attractions/sights I missed out in my itinerary?
4) Any other things in general I should take note of which makes travelling in Kyushu different from the main cities in Honshu?
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**Fukuoka (3 days)**
**Day 1 -**
Kushida Shrine
Fukuoka Tower + Momochi Seaside Park
BOSS E · ZO FUKUOKA – Team Lab Forest
Tenjin Underground Shopping Center
**Day 2 -**
Kitakyushu & Yamaguchi tour from Klook ([https://www.klook.com/en-SG/activity/89198-kitakyushu-yamaguchi-one-day-bus-tour-fukuoka/?spm=BookingDetail.ActivityCard&clickId=54bfe1ff8f](https://www.klook.com/en-SG/activity/89198-kitakyushu-yamaguchi-one-day-bus-tour-fukuoka/?spm=BookingDetail.ActivityCard&clickId=54bfe1ff8f)) – this includes Kitakyushu, Yamaguchi and Karato Market
**Day 3 -**
Either Yanagawa River or Dazaifu (or can I do both in 1 day?)
Dazaifu Tenmangu Shrine
Yanagawa River
Kawabata Shopping Arcade
**Beppu (2 days)**
**Day 4 – Fukuoka to Beppu (using JR Pass North Kyushu 5 days \~ 2 hrs travel time)**
Jigoku Meguri Hells Tour (Umi Jigoku)
Chi-no-ike Jigoku
Takegawara Onsen or Shoningahama Beach (Sand Bath)
Beppu Ropeway + Mt Tsurumi
**Day 5 – Yufuin/Beppu**
Yufuin Floral Village
Yunotsubo Kaido
Kitakoka Shotengai Shopping street
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**Nagasaki (2 days)**
**Day 6 – Beppu to Nagasaki (using JR Pass North Kyushu 5 days \~ 4 hrs travel time)**
Nagasaki Peace Park
Atomic Bomb Museum
Mount Inasa
**Day 7**
Gunkanjima – booked but need to pay cash there
Glover Garden
Meganebashi
Nagasaki Shinchi Chinatown
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**Kumamoto (2 days)**
**Day 8 – Nagasaki to Kumamoto (using JR Pass North Kyushu 5 days \~ 2 hrs travel time)**
Kumamoto Castle + Kato Shrine
Sakuranobaba Johsaien
Suizenji Jojuen Garden
Kumamon Square
Kamitori + Shimotori Shopping Arcade
**Day 9 – Mount Aso + Takachiho Gorge**
I realize it’s very hard to get to these 2 places (esp Takachiho) with public transport, so I’m thinking of booking this Klook tour – [https://www.klook.com/en-SG/activity/102818-asoka-takachiho-gorge-amanoiwato-shrine-tenyasu-kawara-day-tour-kumamoto/?spm=Wish.Favorite\_Activity\_Card\_LIST&clickId=bccc096af8](https://www.klook.com/en-SG/activity/102818-asoka-takachiho-gorge-amanoiwato-shrine-tenyasu-kawara-day-tour-kumamoto/?spm=Wish.Favorite_Activity_Card_LIST&clickId=bccc096af8))
But I also heard that the danger level for Mount Aso crater has been increased so I am not sure if it is worth to even go there given that the situation in April is not certain)
Other tours I was looking at –
Takachiho Gorge tour – [https://www.klook.com/en-SG/activity/88874-takachiho-gorge-one-day-bus-trip-takachiho-beef-lunch-kumamoto/?spm=Wish.Favorite\_Activity\_Card\_LIST&clickId=2bc71c2bc0](https://www.klook.com/en-SG/activity/88874-takachiho-gorge-one-day-bus-trip-takachiho-beef-lunch-kumamoto/?spm=Wish.Favorite_Activity_Card_LIST&clickId=2bc71c2bc0)
Mount Aso + Kusasenri tour – [https://www.klook.com/en-SG/activity/92789-kusasenri-mount-aso-one-day-tour-akaushi-lunch-kumamoto/?spm=Wish.Favorite\_Activity\_Card\_LIST&clickId=d7ae19ae1e](https://www.klook.com/en-SG/activity/92789-kusasenri-mount-aso-one-day-tour-akaushi-lunch-kumamoto/?spm=Wish.Favorite_Activity_Card_LIST&clickId=d7ae19ae1e)
**Kagoshima (2 days)**
**Day 10 – Kumamoto to Kagoshima (using JR Pass South Kyushu \~ 1 hr travel time)**
Kagoshima Sengan-en Garden
Tsurumaru Castle Ruins
Shiroyama Park Observation Deck
**Day 11 – Sakurajima**
Ferry
Nagisa Lava Trail
Sakurajima Yogan Nagisa Park Footbath
Yunohira Observatory
Tenmonkan – shopping arcade
**Fukuoka (2 days)**
**Day 12 – Kagoshima to Kumamoto using JR South Kyushu Pass, then separate shinkansen from Kumamoto to Kukuoka \~ 2 hrs travel time –> I saw that this seems cheaper than whole Kyushu JR Pass)**
Canal City Hakata
Nanzoin Temple – Fukuoka Reclining Buddha
**Day 13 (last day)**
Yanagibashi Rengo Market
**Food to try (pls recommend if there are some must-try items I missed out!)**
Food in Fukuoka –
\- *Hakata Ramen*
*- Motsunabe (hot pot stew)*
*- Mizutaki (chicken hot pot)*
*- Yatai stalls*
Food in Beppu and Yufuin
\- *Jigokumushi Kobo Kannawa (hot spring steam food)*
*- Original Jigoku-mushi Pudding*
*- Toyotsune Beppu: Tempura Rice Bowl*
*- Rokusei Beppu: A Bowl of Handmade Reimen*
Food in Kumamoto/Aso
\- *Horse meat*
*- Kumamoto ramen*
*- Nagashi Soumen Noodles*
Food in Kagoshima
\- *Berkshire pork/Kurobuta pork*
by ashandburnnn