Oita Private Tour: Takasakiyama, Umitamago and Saganoseki

Oita is the capital of Oita Prefecture, on a bay on the east coast of Kyushu, and most visitors see it only from the window of a train on the way to Beppu. The two cities sit about twenty minutes apart, so Beppu collects the ryokan and Oita keeps the station, the port and the castle moat. Give it a night and it turns out to be the most practical base in eastern Kyushu: an aquarium and a monkey park on one stretch of coast, a castle site in town, and a fishing port to the south that lands some of Japan's most sought-after mackerel.

Getting there

Oita sits at the end of the Oita Expressway and on the Nippo main line, so both road and rail work. What changes is what you can do on the way.

• From Fukuoka: roughly two hours by car on the expressway, and about the same on the Sonic limited express into Oita Station.
• From Beppu: about twenty minutes by car, and a short hop by train. Many people sleep in Beppu and treat Oita as a half-day.
• From Yufuin: roughly an hour by car over the Yamanami Highway, which is a destination in its own right rather than a link road.
• From Oita Airport: the airport sits out on the Kunisaki peninsula, roughly an hour by car or by airport bus.
• From Aso or Kumamoto: about three hours by car across the caldera rim and the Yamanami Highway — a long day, but one of the island's best drives.

包車 — charter

Inside the city a car solves very little: the station, the castle park and the restaurants sit close together and the streets are flat. The car earns its place the moment you leave the centre, because the coast road toward Beppu carries the two sights most families come for, and the buses along it are not frequent.

• Takasakiyama — a wooded hill above the bay where a large troop of wild Japanese macaques comes down to feed. The animals are wild and the park is arranged so that you watch them from a short distance rather than walk among them.
• Umitamago — the city aquarium next door, built around Beppu Bay, with a big main tank and outdoor pools. The two are close enough to do in one morning, which is why they are usually paired.
• Funai Castle — the moat, stone walls and one turret of the castle of the Otomo family, who ruled this coast in the sixteenth century, when the port of Funai was the base from which Francis Xavier worked in Japan. What remains is water and stone rather than a rebuilt keep.
• Saganoseki — the headland south of the city, where the channel runs deep and fast and the fish landed there is sold under its own name. This is a place to eat, not to photograph.
• Kunisaki — the peninsula north-east of the city, scattered with old stone Buddhas, mountain temples and farm roads. It is the part of Oita that almost no short itinerary reaches.

包團 — private tour

The city's hotels are business and city hotels rather than ryokan, so most people sleep in Beppu or Yufuin and use Oita for the day. A planned private tour is what makes that work: which nights go where, which morning starts early, and how to avoid driving the same stretch of coast twice in opposite directions.

It also covers the parts that are hard to arrange from outside — a table at a toriten restaurant at lunchtime, a guide who can explain what the stone Buddhas on Kunisaki actually are, and the small decisions that turn a day from three stops into six. The food is the reason many people come back: toriten is chicken tempura served with a citrus dip, dangojiru is a dumpling soup that every household makes differently, and the mackerel and horse mackerel from Saganoseki are eaten raw with nothing but soy and ginger. Kabosu, the sour green citrus that turns up on every table here, is grown across the prefecture.

Routes that work

Five days, eastern Kyushu only: land at Fukuoka, drive to Beppu for two nights, spend a full day on the coast between Beppu and Oita — Takasakiyama, Umitamago, the castle park, dinner in the city — then a night in Yufuin and out. No long legs and nothing rushed.

Seven days, adding the peninsula: the same first half, then a night in Oita city and a day on Kunisaki — Usa Jingu in the morning, the stone Buddhas and mountain temples in the afternoon — before turning west through Yufuin and Kurokawa Onsen.

Ten days, the whole island: Fukuoka in, Nagasaki and Unzen down the west coast, ferry across to Kumamoto, Aso and Kurokawa through the middle, then Beppu, Oita and Yufuin before flying out of Oita or returning to Fukuoka. This is the version for people who would rather do Kyushu once, properly.

When to come

Spring and autumn are the easy answers: cherry blossom in Kyushu comes early, usually late March into the first days of April, and the castle moat is one of the better places in the city to see it. Autumn runs from October into November and is dry and clear, which suits the coast road and the peninsula.

Summer is hot and humid, and the combination of Beppu's steam and August air is heavier than the temperature suggests; if you come in July or August, plan the outdoor stops for the morning. Winter on this coast is mild and rarely snowy — a comfortable month for onsen and the aquarium, and the quietest time to drive the Yamanami Highway.

Frequently asked questions

Is Oita worth a night, or is it just a stop?

A night, if you want the coast without rushing. The city itself needs half a day and the coast needs the other; doing all of it between trains means choosing one.

How long do we need at Takasakiyama and Umitamago?

Half a day for both, since they are next to each other. Families with young children often spend longer at the aquarium than they planned.

Can we see Beppu and Oita in one day?

Yes. They are twenty minutes apart, and the coast road between them is where the monkey park and the aquarium sit. Two nights in Beppu with a day out is the usual arrangement.

What should we eat in Oita?

Toriten for lunch, dangojiru when it is cold, and sashimi from Saganoseki if you are driving south. Ask for sekisaba or sekiaji by name — the fish is sold under those names because of how it is caught.

Do we need a car in Oita city?

Not in the centre. You do need one for Saganoseki, for Kunisaki, and for the coast road in comfort. That is why we suggest a car for the days outside the city rather than every day.