Things to do in Beppu
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Beppu
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Onsen Festival, Mt Ogi Fire Festival and cherry blossom. The single best month.
Foliage, clear ropeway days and the start of fugu season.
Peak steam and the best bathing of the year, with hoarfrost days on Tsurumi.
Rainy season. Baths cope, mountain views often do not.
Summer fireworks over the bay, but hot humid sightseeing and Obon crowds in August.
What's on
- Beppu Hatto Onsen Festival around 1 to 5 April
Free public baths, parades near the station and the Yu Bukkake water parade.
- Mt. Ogi Fire Festival early April, during the Onsen Festival
The mountainside above Beppu is set alight at night to welcome spring.
- Beppu Argerich Music Festival late spring, dates vary
Classical festival directed by Martha Argerich, held since 1998.
- Beppu Summer Festival and Hi-no-Umi fireworks late July
Downtown stalls and a major fireworks display over Beppu Bay.
- Kamegawa Summer Festival early August
Port festival with food stalls and fireworks at Kamegawa.
- Kannawa Yuami Festival late September
Kannawa thanks its founder Ippen Shonin, whose statue is carried between the district baths.
Best things to do in Beppu
Hells of Beppu
Seven viewing-only hot springs in vivid colours, with Umi and Chinoike as the essential pair.
Hyotan Onsen
Beppu's most varied day bath, with many tubs, a waterfall bath, a sand bath and private options.
Takegawara Onsen
Historic 1938 municipal bath with very hot water and a classic heated sand bath for almost nothing.
Kannawa Mushiyu
A short, intense herbal steam bath in a stone chamber, unlike any pool or sauna elsewhere in town.
Beppu Traditional Bamboo Crafts Center
Master bamboo weaving on display plus hands-on workshops, and Beppu's best rainy day hour.
Global Tower
A 100 metre tower giving the clearest orientation view over the bay, the city and Kannawa steam.
Yukemuri Observatory
Free viewpoint where Kannawa's steam rises in front of the mountains, best at dawn and dusk.
Oita Marine Palace Aquarium Umitamago
Modern bay aquarium with strong shows and local fish tanks, ideal paired with the monkey park.
Where to stay in Beppu
Kannawa
classic onsen trip, two plus nights
Steaming lanes, the Hells, Mushiyu and Hyotan on foot, and ryokan with their own sources.
Beppu Station and Downtown
transport, food and value, one night stays
Station, buses, restaurant streets and Takegawara Onsen all within a flat walk.
Kankaiji
families and resort facilities
Large resort hotels with water parks and shuttles, chosen for facilities over walkability.
Myoban and Horita
quiet and water quality, repeat visitors
Hillside inn districts with distinctive sulfur water and dinner at your inn.
Shoningahama
seaside luxury and quiet budget stays
Waterfront strip north of the centre with the beach sand bath and sea views.
Think twice about
- Oita City as a base
A businesslike prefectural capital with none of Beppu's steam, baths or evening onsen culture. Visit, do not base there.
- Remote hillside minshuku without a car
Steep, unlit walks and taxis for every bath and dinner erase the saving on the room.
- Ground floor rooms facing the station nightlife blocks
Bars, pachinko and late noise on the blocks east of the station. One street back fixes it.
Best restaurants in Beppu
Toyotsune Honten
The toriten institution, serving light crisp chicken tempura and tempura rice bowls for 90 years.
Jigokumushi Kobo Kannawa
Steam your own tray of vegetables, eggs and seafood in natural onsen steam, then eat it hot.
Kamesho Kurukuru Sushi
Conveyor belt sushi with thick local cuts and standout chutoro at everyday prices.
Kaisen Izutsu
Plain local dining room serving prized seki aji and seki saba sashimi at local prices.
Robata Jin
Charcoal grill izakaya for local fish, Bungo beef and a deep sake list near the station.
Amamichaya
Old house cafe for dangojiru noodle soup and toriten, with a slow room made for lingering.
Okamotoya Baiten
Home of hell-steamed pudding with bitter caramel, plus onsen eggs and a view over Beppu.
Fugumatsu
Beppu's established fugu house, at its best in winter with full pufferfish courses.
Outdoor things to do in Beppu
Yufuin
Rural onsen town under Mount Yufu with a cafe street, a steaming lake and hillside day baths.
Beppu Ropeway
Kyushu's largest ropeway to near the Tsurumi summit, for bay views and easy summit paths.
Mount Tsurumi
A free two hour trail ascent of Beppu's volcano, with the ropeway as a one way bail-out.
Beppu Beach Sand Bath
Be buried in heated black volcanic sand on the seafront, then shower and soak indoors.
Myoban Yunosato
Thatched yunohana huts and milky blue sulfur baths in Beppu's quietest hillside district.
African Safari
Drive-through safari park where the caged jungle bus lets you feed lions and giraffes up close.
Mount Yufu
A proper 4 to 6 hour twin peak hike with a chained final pull and wide Kyushu views.
Kijima Kogen Golf Club
Highland 18 hole resort golf above Beppu, cooler in summer with mountain views throughout.
Best hotels in Beppu
AMANE Resort SEIKAI
Seaside luxury where every room faces the ocean and has its own open-air bath.
SEKIYA RESORT GALLERIA MIDOBARU
Art-led 35 room resort with private onsen and a serious restaurant above the city.
Kannawaen
Classic Kannawa luxury ryokan by the Hells, with private indoor and outdoor onsen in rooms.
Beppu Suginoi Hotel
Huge family resort with the Tanayu baths, a water park, buffets and a free station shuttle.
Oniyama Hotel
Large well-run Kannawa hotel with extensive baths, a short walk from the Hells circuit.
Hotel Shiragiku
Formal central hotel near Takegawara with polished service, its own onsen and kaiseki dining.
Beppu Guest House
Former school hostel two minutes from the station, with dorms, a big kitchen and cheap bikes.
J-Hoppers Beppu Guesthouse
Polished guesthouse with sturdy bunks, strong common space and a very hot onsen next door.
Is Beppu expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | ¥9,000 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | ¥18,000 a person |
| Splurge | ¥38,000 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- Kijima Kogen Golf Club: weeks ahead
- Fugumatsu: a few days ahead
- Otto e Sette Oita: a few days ahead
- AMANE Resort SEIKAI: weeks ahead
- SEKIYA RESORT GALLERIA MIDOBARU: weeks ahead
- Kannawaen: weeks ahead
- Luxury ryokan book weeks ahead for April festival week, Golden Week, Obon and foliage weekends.
- Book Fugumatsu in fugu season and Otto e Sette on weekends, days to weeks ahead.
- Reserve the safari jungle bus slot on arrival at the park.
Is Beppu safe?
- Stay behind barriers at the Hells. The springs can scald and children should be held at the ponds.
- Limit soaks to 10 to 15 minutes, hydrate, and do not bathe after heavy drinking.
- Beppu water runs hot at local baths. Enter slowly and get out when you have had enough.
Beppu travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- Doing all seven Hells at a march. Do Umi, Chinoike, Kamado and one more properly instead.
- Paying hotel spa prices when Takegawara Onsen costs about 100 to 300 yen nearby.
- Doing both Beppu Tower and Global Tower. Choose Global Tower.
Getting around Beppu: public transport and more
- Kamenoi buses from Beppu Station serve Kannawa in 20 to 25 minutes and Yufuin in about 50 minutes.
- Buy a 1 or 2 day bus pass at the station if you will ride three or more times in a day.
- Central Beppu is flat and walkable. Kannawa and Myoban are steep hill districts.
Who Beppu suits
| Solo travellers | Great |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Good |
| Couples | Great |
| Bachelor parties | OK |
| Families | Great |
| Bachelorette parties | Good |
Make Beppu your trip
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