Hi all! My wife and I have a two-week Japan trip coming up in late May, with the most adventurous leg being three nights around Kyushu with a rental car after our time in Tokyo and Kyoto. This is our first time visiting Japan.
The current plan is to take an early-morning bullet train from Kyoto, rent the car at FUK around mid-day, and drive to Minamioguni where we have two nights booked at a ryokan. During that time we’d like to check out Mt. Aso and Takachiho Gorge. Then we’ll head back to Fukuoka and nearby beaches for one more night before grabbing a cheap flight back to Tokyo (for the last two nights of the trip).
On paper it all makes sense, but since we’ve never been to Japan I’m naturally a little nervous about it. I do know we need to get our international driving permits before the trip. A few questions:
\- How’s cell service between Fukuoka and Mt. Aso? We’ve bought a couple Mobal SIM cards and expect we’ll be pretty dependent on our phones to navigate.
\- We’ve booked two nights at a single ryokan in Minamioguni, but would it make more sense to stay elsewhere the second night? (The owners already reached out to warn that we should expect the same dinner both nights, which to me suggests two-night stays are less common.)
\- Anything else we should know about the logistics of pulling this off?
Thank you!
4 comments
Is a plan doable? Yes.
Should you rent in Fukuoka? Probably not. I would argue that you should rent in either Kumamoto, or if you would want spend your second night elsewhere in an onsen town other than Kurokawa Onsen (because Minamioguni is essentially that) – it would probably be Yufuin.
I think logistics wise, you are okay. Normally, I would warn people that Kyushu is bigger and takes longer to drive than it looks. But, your destinations are only 1-2 hours apart. Takachiho isn’t somewhere I would normally suggest a traveler because it’s so far away from everything, but it’s only ~1 hour from Minamioguni, so no problem.
The only thing you should consider is the time period. If your trip is during the winter, you should reconsider because that area has snow and messing with chains on tiny mountain roads is a pain. All other seasons is great though.
I’ve never had problems with reception, but if you are worried, you can download google maps to offline. The pictures won’t show up in offline mode, but the navigation still works.
Also, unlike the other guy, I don’t recommend renting in Kumamoto. Kumamoto isn’t *that* special to go out of your way for. It’s a pretty big city with a castle. Fukuoka is more convenient to start out of.
I recommend driving in Kyushu, I did it all round the island on a longer trail and the scenery is stunning.
Also, driving in Japan is easy, drivers are chilled, everything is sign-posted, you’ll have a great time and Aso is stunning.
Minamioguni is really beautiful, a picture-perfect Onsen town but tiny and often expensive, I’d consider a stay somewhere else but you have little time and not sure how much it bothers you changing hotels.
Are you from US? Do you have any experience driving on the opposite side of the street? I tried it after spending a month in Japan and it was a bit confusing on countryside road and I imagine a bit risky to start it in a city. Doable but can be really confusing.