Overview
Hiking in Kyushu over eight days, Japan’s third-largest island, takes you into the heart of its volcanic natural heritage. With trails and accommodations that hone in on volcanic hot springs, Mount Eboshidake and its crater, as well as a cable car journey up to Mount Myokendake. Culturally, Kyushu is both fascinating and devastating, with the history of Christianity more prominent than on other islands, but also the historical horrors of Nagasaki, where you spend a night, so there is plenty of time to ruminate on these times. Accommodation is a mix of hotels, traditional ryokans and a farmstay, with plenty of onsen opportunities too.
- Kyushu
- Mount Eboshidake
- Usuki Stone Buddhas
- Unzen Jigoku
- Dejima Island
- Nagasaki
Itinerary
Day 1: Arrive in Beppu
Travel to Ōita Prefecture and arrive in Beppu. If time allows, walk through the steamy streets of Beppu’s town centre, where hot springs shape daily life and local industry. We recommend trying a jigoku-mushi cooking experience or a hot sand bath, also known as suna-mushi (both payable locally). Walk to your accommodation for the evening and relax in an onsen hot spring after dinner.
- Accommodation: ryokan in Beppu
- Meals included: dinner
Day 2: Onyujima Island – Saiki | 6.3km
Travel by train from Beppu to Saiki (included, approx. 1h 40mins), followed by a short ferry crossing to Ōnyūjima Island (payable locally, approx. 15mins). Before starting the walk, we recommend stopping at one of the local restaurants for some fresh seafood. Walk the Kyushu Olle loop trail which takes you past bays, along a coastal path and rural terrain before coming to a low summit with views across the archipelago. Return by ferry to Saiki (payable locally) and overnight at a local farmstay.
- Accommodation: farmstay in Saiki
- Walking for the day: 6.3km, 3h, ↑235m ↓235m
- Meals included: breakfast and dinner
Day 3: Usuki – Oita
You are transferred to Saiki Station (included) and travel by train to Usuki (included, approx. 35mins). Walk through the historic town centre, once a regional administrative hub during the Edo period. Continue to the ruins of Usuki Castle and the Niōza district, home to an array of preserved buildings and temple sites. Visit the Usuki Stone Buddhas before travelling onwards by train to Oita, a city on the north-eastern coast (included, approx. 50mins). In the evening, there is time to explore the city centre independently, including the Oita Prefectural Art Museum.
- Accommodation: JR Kyushu Hotel Blossom Oita or similar in Oita
- Meals included: breakfast
Day 4: Taketa – Kurokawa Onsen
Travel by train from Oita to Bungo-Taketa (included, approx. 1.5h). Spend the day exploring Bungo-Taketa, focusing on its samurai history and Christian heritage. Visit the Taketa Christian Museum (payable locally), which exhibits the area’s heritage amid centuries of religious suppression. Walk through the Old Town, where former samurai residences and traditional wooden buildings line the cobblestone street, then continue to the ruins of Oka Castle. In the afternoon, you are transferred by our driver to Kurokawa Onsen (included, 30mins) where you can take a reinvigorating bath in the hot spring waters in the evening.
- Accommodation: ryokan in Kurokawa Onsen
- Meals included: breakfast and dinner
Day 5: Mount Eboshidake – Kumamoto | 4.2km
After breakfast, you are transferred to Aso Station (included, 35mins). Continue by bus to Kusasenri (payable locally, 30mins) and begin walking the loop trail across open grassland at the base of Mount Eboshidake. An optional ascent leads to the summit (1,337m), offering views of Nakadake crater. Return by bus to Aso Station (payable locally) and travel by train to Kumamoto (included, 1.5h) where we recommend a visit to Kumamoto Castle, known as one of the three great castles of Japan.
- Accommodation: The Blossom Kumamoto or similar in Kumamoto
- Walking for the day: 4.2km, 2h, ↑216m ↓216m
- Meals included: breakfast
Day 6: Mount Myokendake – Unzen Onsen | 2km
Travel by bus (payable locally, 30mins) and ferry (included, 35mins) to Shimabara Peninsula. From the port, our driver brings you to the trailhead at Nita-toge Pass (35mins). Walk uphill along a short, but steep trail on dirt paths and stone steps up to Unzen Ropeway station. Take the cable car (payable locally) to the top of Mount Myokendake (1,326m) where you can visit Myoken Shrine for views over the peninsula. Descend to the foot of the mountain, either by foot (0.75km) or by cable car, where your driver awaits to transfer you back to the accommodation in Unzen Onsen (included, 30mins).
- Accommodation: Unzen Iwaki or similar in Unzen Onsen
- Walking for the day: 2km, 2h, ↑262m ↓208m (2.5km with optional descent by foot)
- Meals included: breakfast, dinner
Day 7: Unzen Jigoku – Nagasaki
Explore the onsen district and stroll through Unzen Jigoku, a geothermal area with over thirty natural hot springs. Walk along wooden boardwalks, past steam vents and bubbling water pools. Afterwards, travel by bus (payable locally, 1h) to Nagasaki. Check in to your hotel and walk or take a short tram ride to to the man-made port island of Dejima (payable locally) to visit the former Dutch trading post. Finish the day by trying one of the many izakayas (a traditional Japanese bar) in the area.
- Accommodation: Hotel JAL City Nagasaki or similar in Nagasaki
- Meals included: breakfast
Day 8: Nagasaki and departure
Explore the past and present of Nagasaki, a former hotspot for foreign trade during the period of national isolation, known as Sakoku. We recommend visiting the Atomic Bomb Museum, Nagasaki’s Chinatown and the Dutch Slope in the Higashiyamate area. If you have time before departure, it’s also worth travelling north by tram (payable locally, 10mins) to visit Nagasaki Peace Park which commemorates the city’s history and those who lost their lives as a result of Japan’s second atomic bombing.
- Meals included: breakfast
What to expect
Accommodation
Accommodation on this tour includes a mix of hotels, traditional ryokans and a farmstay. Ryokans are traditional Japanese-style inns. They may be in modern concrete or older wooden buildings, but the rooms are always in the Japanese style with tatami (straw) matting and futon bedding. At a ryokan, the futons are laid out for you in the evening. Dinners are served together, usually in the dining room and are exquisitely prepared multi-course meals. Some ryokans have en-suite bathrooms, although older buildings generally offer shared facilities. Smaller inns offer normal baths used privately in turn by guests; larger inns offer communal spa-style baths, segregated by gender. Read more in our blog: A guide to Japanese baths and onsen etiquette. Please note that, in Japan, it is common for accommodations to have twin rooms rather than double. If you prefer a double bed, we will happily request this at time of booking, however it can’t always be guaranteed.
Click to view example accommodations
- JR Kyushu Hotel Blossom Oita (oita)
- The Blossom Kumamoto (Kumamoto)
- Unzen Iwaki (Unzen Onsen)
- Hotel JAL City Nagasaki (Nagasaki)
In the event of a particular hotel or guesthouse being fully booked for your chosen dates, we will replace it with a hotel of equal value and quality level. We will provide exact accommodation details to you upon booking confirmation.
Meals
All breakfasts and four dinners are included, with superb Japanese cuisine. Vegetarian options are available, but limited. Strict vegetarian diets, vegan diets, or gluten free diets will be difficult to accommodate due to the pervasiveness of the fish-based stock dashi and the use of soy sauce and miso in Japanese cuisine.
Difficulty and terrain
This holiday is rated easy to moderate (read more about difficulty grades). The maximum daily walking distance is 6.3km. Trails may be uneven at times and while they are usually well signposted, a degree of map-reading and route-finding skills is recommended for a smooth experience. Many of the walks can be optionally shortened (or completely skipped) using the excellent local public transportation system.
We strongly advise you to follow only marked trails and never try to shorten the path through unknown and unmarked terrain. We will provide you with detailed road notes and maps and you can call our 24/7 local assistance phone number anytime. More detailed info on route navigation will be included in your holiday information pack.
When to go
This holiday is available from March to November. Departure is possible on any day of the week, except Tuesdays. Please indicate desired beginning date when booking.
Please note that travel during the end of year holidays may incur supplements of up to 20%. We will only pass along to you the actual supplement charged to us by the accommodation. For more information, see our blog on the Best time to go to Japan.
Getting there
Click to view travel options
By plane
Our recommended arrival airport for this tour is Oita Airport (OIT). Alternative airports are Aso Kumamon Airport (KMJ) and Fukuoka Airport (FUK). For departure, our recommended airports are Nagasaki Airport (NGS) for domestic flights, or Fukuoka Airport (FUK) for international flights.
By train or bus
- Arrival in Beppu: from Oita Airport there is a direct bus to Beppu (53mins). From Aso Kumamon Airport, you can take a shuttle bus from the airport (50mins) to Kumamoto Station, followed by a train to Oita (2h) and another short train to Beppu (15mins). From Fukuoka Airport, take a short train (5mins) to Hakata station, followed by a train directly to Beppu (2h). For timetables and further information, visit Navitime or use the Omio planner above.
- Departure from Nagasaki: there is a direct bus (44mins) to Nagasaki Airport. For departure from Fukuoka Airport, take a train from Nagasaki to Hakata (2h), followed by a short train (5mins) to Fukuoka Airport. For timetables and further information, visit Navitime or use the Omio planner above.
Inclusions
Included
- 7 nights accommodation
- 7 breakfasts and 4 dinners
- Train tickets on days two, three, four and five
- Taxi transfers on day four from Taketa to Kurokawa, day five from Kurokawa Onsen to Aso Station and day six from Shimabara Port to the trailhead and from the end of the walk to Unzen Onsen
- Entrance to Usuki Stone Buddhas on day three
- Ferry from Kumamoto Port to Shimabara Port on day six
- Topographical maps and walking instructions
- 24/7 phone assistance by our local office/representative
Excluded
- Airfare to and from Japan
- Airport transfers
- Lunches, three dinners, drinks and snacks
- Luggage transfers
- Travel insurance (required – get a quote online)
- Ferry tickets from Saiki to Ōnyūjima Island and return on day two (approx. ¥200 each way per person)
- Cable car from Mount Myōkendake to Nita-tōge Pass on day six (approx, ¥1,290 round trip per person)
- Please pay locally for any bus, tram and train journeys not listed as ‘included’
- Personal expenses
- Local tourist taxes and entry fees (payable locally)
- Any items not explicitly listed as included
- eSIM data for international travel (get an eSIM)
Options, extras and supplements
- If you’re travelling in a group, a supplement applies to group members who would like to have a room of their own
- This holiday is available for solo travellers. However, a supplement will be charged as the cost of rooms and also luggage or private transfers (when applicable) is not shared. Please note that solo travellers are always accommodated in their own room. For logistical reasons, we don’t offer an option for solo travellers to share rooms with other solo travellers
Baggage transfers
Please note that baggage transfers are not included in this tour. You can opt for Japan’s very efficient Takkyubin Courier service, which you pay for locally (Takkyubin is the brand name of the best-known service provider). These services are secure, efficient and economical, typically around ¥5,000 (approx. €30, £25, $33) per bag per transfer, depending on the size or the bag. The sent luggage does not re-join you each night; it is waiting for you at the accommodation where you stay at a night or two later on. You carry overnight essentials in your daypack for the intervening nights.
Takkyubin does not need to be arranged in advance. You arrange and pay for the service yourself in Japan, usually with help from the concierge of your hotel or inn. Some smaller local hotels and inns may not offer the service, but they will direct you to the nearest location where the service is available such as a local convenience store, for example. For this tour, we recommend to forward your luggage before the tour to Ōita (day three) and then from Ōita to Kumamoto (day five) and from Kumamoto to Nagasaki (day seven), or straight on to your accommodation after the tour.
Please note: travelling light on the trails is easy. All inns provide cotton yukata gowns and slippers for you to wear after arrival for dining, relaxing in your room, exploring outside and sleeping. They also provide small towels, soap, shampoo and hairdryers. You don’t need a complete change of clothing for the evening, so it is possible to manage with just a medium daypack to carry overnight essentials. Takkyubin may be a novel experience for clients who have walked self-guided in other parts of the world, but it works wonderfully well in Japan.
Takkyubin allows you to travel throughout Japan without having to handle your main luggage. You can avoid carrying your bags on trains and buses, where luggage space is often limited, or through busy railway stations. The only disadvantage is that you are without your main bag for one or more nights while it is in transit.
