Beppu, Hiji, and Oita: Sights and Attractions
Beppu • ONSEN CAPITAL OF JAPAN
The city of Beppu, onsen capital of Japan, is heavily featured in tourist guides, and is only 10 minutes by train from Beppu Zen Retreat. There is just about everything that a tourist might want to relax and have a good time in a quintessentially Japanese fashion. …
… The major attraction is the extremely high concentration of onsens (natural hot spring bathhouses), the highest concentration in all of Japan. There is a huge variety of onsen here. Cost, degree of luxury, style, and amenities vary dramatically from place to place. Many are attached to ryokans (traditional Japanese inns) or hotels of varying quality. There is also excellent shopping, daytime walking around, and nightlife to be had in Beppu, all in a distinctly Japanese style. Other key attractions very near Beppu, but not central to it, are the Monkey Mountain and The Aquarium.
Beppu as seen from across the water in Hiji. Only 10 minutes away by train.
BEPPU TOURISM GUIDES…
“Beppu (別府) is one of Japan's most famous hot spring resorts, producing more hot spring water than any other resort in the country.
Beppu offers an unmatched range of baths to be enjoyed, including ordinary hot water baths, mud baths, sand baths and steam baths. In addition, the Hells of Beppu are several spectacular hot springs for viewing rather than bathing.”
LONELY PLANET
“You don't have to look far in Beppu (別府) to see the reason for its popularity: steam rising from vents in the earth means there are onsen-bathing opportunities galore. Beppu is by turns quaint and touristy, modern and traditional, solid and rickety, but the charm of this hilly, hospitable city grows on visitors as sure as the waters are balmy. Winter visitors get the seasonal treat of seeing the entire town filled with warm escaping steam.”
Climb challenging Mount Yufu, or just visit the perfect little walking town of Yufin.
Photo from Move Around trip planning.
Ebisuya onsen with its unique blue-white naturally mineralized hot spring water.
YUFUIN
(review by Pierre)
My personal favourite particularly for higher quality onsens and fantastic food.
About a one hour but or train ride Beppu Zen Retreat. Its an easy day trip from the retreat.
If you want a beautiful quiet little town among the mountains with great food, shopping, and a fantastic selection of superb onsens and ryokans, Yufuin is the place. The town centre is designed for walking with many of the streets are car-free. Its beautifully laid out with mostly smaller traditionally Japanese building styles, and stunning gardens. Its pleasant to walk outside the city up on the less populated mountainsides taking advantage of great views of the city, and where you will stumble across more secluded onsen, ryokan, and eateries.
The food in Yufuin really stands out: All kinds of speciality food vendors and restaurants exist here offering up many specialized traditional Japanese delicacies, some that have been made the exactly the same way for hundreds of years. There is also a wonderful selection of take-home treats and local crafts; prepared and packaged regional speciality foods, condiments, sweets, spices, and alcoholic beverages. There is also a selection of more touristy modern Japanese fast food, and a few non-Japanese options. There are also excellent higher-end and antique and speciality craft shops in and around Yufuin.
Our Top Onsen Choice in Yufuin
Tsukanoma is my favourite onsen in Yufuin, located within walking distance up in the mountains on the outskirts of the city. Its about 30 minutes walk, or 10 minutes by taxi from the Yufuin central train station. Information is available in English at the train station.
Why is Tsukanoma onsen so special? It is a large, clean, and beautiful outdoor onsen facility with exceptional water quality, that is friendly to foreigners and allows those with tattoos to use the facilities freely. Its natural volcanic spring water has a unique blueish hue and offers special health benefits. Bathing facility is a large, single outdoor pool in a beautiful natural forest environment (separate facilities for men and women). Tsukanoma is a simple and straightforward onsen experience, but carefully crafted and managed to offer what I consider an absolutely perfect hot spring bathing experience. Worth the effort to get here!
There is an option to stay overnight here and also a Japanese fine dining restaurant on site, but these are fairly high cost.
A slightly longer video about Beppu…