Beppu

Beppu is a hot spring town on the east coast of Kyushu, in Oita Prefecture, and steam rises from its streets, its hillsides and its rooftops. The town sits between the sea and a range of volcanic hills, and it has an extraordinary number of natural hot springs, public baths and geothermal vents, which are used for bathing, for cooking and for heating homes. It is one of the places in Japan where the traditions of the onsen are most fully part of everyday life, and for many visitors it is the best hot spring destination in the country.

The most famous sights are the Hells of Beppu, known as Jigoku Meguri. These are a group of geothermal ponds and pools that are too hot to enter and are meant to be looked at. Umi Jigoku, the Sea Hell, is a pool of cobalt-blue water set in a pretty garden, and the steam rising from it is used to heat a greenhouse for tropical water lilies. Chinoike Jigoku, the Blood Pond Hell, is bright red because of the iron-rich clay in the water, and other pools have names that describe their appearance, from a bubbling mud pond to a geyser that erupts at regular intervals. Most of the hells are within walking distance of each other in the Kannawa and Shibaseki districts, and a combined ticket is available.

Kannawa Onsen is the heart of the old hot spring town. Its narrow lanes are filled with steam, and small bathhouses, inns and shops line the streets. Here you can try jigokumushi, hell-steamed cooking, in which vegetables, seafood and eggs are placed in a steam chamber fed by a volcanic vent, so that they cook in a few minutes. Some places allow visitors to cook their own food, and others serve it ready. The result has a clean, natural flavour, and it is one of the most distinctive meals in Japan. The district also has several steam baths, called mushi-yu, in which you lie on a bed of herbs and absorb the heat.

Beppu has other kinds of bath too. A sand bath on the beach buries bathers up to the neck in warm sand, and Takegawara Onsen, a wooden bathhouse from 1938 in the old town, is a beloved local institution where the bath is very hot and the building is part of the attraction. Many ryokan and hotels have private baths, and the town has dozens of small public baths that charge a few hundred yen, which locals use daily. Bring a small towel, follow the washing rules before entering the bath and keep in mind that tattoos can be a problem in some places.

The craft of bamboo is part of Beppu's identity. The region has produced baskets, vases and other objects from local bamboo for centuries, and a museum and workshops show the techniques. Mount Tsurumi, behind the town, has a ropeway that rises to a viewpoint above the city, with views of the bay, and walking trails continue along the ridge. The Takasakiyama Natural Zoo, where wild monkeys come down from the mountain, is a popular stop for families, and the town also has a few small museums, markets and a lively waterfront.

Food in Oita is excellent. Toriten, chicken tempura served with a ponzu and mustard sauce, is a local favourite, and dango-jiru, a hearty soup with flat wheat dumplings, is a comforting classic. Seki-aji and seki-saba, mackerel and horse mackerel caught in the strong currents off the coast and served as sashimi, are prized, and kabosu, a green citrus, flavours dishes and drinks. Local shochu and sake are served in the small bars near the station.

Nearby places combine easily with a stay in Beppu. Yufuin, a village in the hills with art galleries, cafes and a lake that steams on cold mornings, is about an hour away. Usa Jingu, the head shrine of all Hachiman shrines in Japan, lies to the north, and the Kunisaki Peninsula has ancient temples and stone carvings. Cruise ships dock in the port, so the town is a popular shore excursion, and the Kyushu Shinkansen and local trains connect it with Fukuoka and other cities.

The best months are spring and autumn, when the temperatures are mild and the hills are green or red. Winter is perfect for the baths, although it can be cold outside, and summer is hot and humid. Plan for a night or two if you want to enjoy the baths in the evening, and at least half a day for the hells and Kannawa. A guide helps to choose the best order, to explain the baths and the steam cooking and to ease the language barrier in the smaller places.

The Beppu experiences on Excurze include a private driving tour with a local guide who covers the viewpoints, the hells, the steam lunch and Kannawa, and a three-hour private onsen and culture tour built around Umi Jigoku and the steam district. Our concierge can combine them with Yufuin, Fukuoka and Kumamoto, and book a ryokan with a private bath so that the day ends in the water.