Hita City

Hita is a small city in the western part of Oita Prefecture in Kyushu with a population of about 60,000 people. The city lies in a basin surrounded by mountains. It was an important city during the feudal time because it was a transportation hub accessible from the major cities in Kyushu. These cities are Fukuoka, Nakatsu, Oita, and Kumamoto. This is why the city was taken by the Tokugawa Shogunate.

During the Edo period when the Tokugawa family kept the title of Shogun from 1603 for more than 260 years, each area was governed by 250 daimyo or feudal lords. But important cities such as Takayama where high-quality lumber was produced were controlled directly by the shogunate. The magistrate office controlled the whole of Kyushu Island.

Many rivers flow from the mountains into the city and the rivers were used to transport products like lumber to other cities. But river transportation stopped once the Yoake Dam was constructed for electric power generation in 1954.

History of Onta

Onta is located in the northernmost part of Hita City. It takes about 30 minutes by car from the center of Hita. The production of pottery started in Onta in 1705 by Yanase Sanemon. He was a pottery artisan of the pottery village Koishihara in Fukuoka.

Kuroki Jubei who lived in Hita invited him and they tried to find a good place for the production of pottery. They finally founded a kiln in Onta because of its characteristics that made it a good place for creating pottery. There was good clay, abundant lumber to use for the firing, an ideal slope to make a climbing kiln, and a river to generate waterpower.

Production of Onta Pottery

There are only 10 pottery workshops in Onta. They traditionally hand down their techniques from father to one of his sons. Employing only traditional techniques, they don’t use electric power. They use manual pottery wheels, climbing kilns, and water wheel-driven pounders. Japan still has many pottery towns, but it is rare to see this old style anywhere else.

When you enter the village, firstly, you will recognize the sound of the pounder near the river. You can see how the water-power wooden machine pounds the clay. It is really unique! When you continue to walk along the street, you will see plates that are placed in front of houses to dry before firing and you will find that the house is a workshop. Some workshops are welcoming visitors. They will show you how they operate the manual pottery wheels.

You can buy their products at the workshops. A popular pattern is “tobikanna” which is a simple design consisting of short sharp lines. You may also find a jar with a handle that is not a traditional Japanese utensil. This design was influenced by the western tableware introduced to Nagasaki by Dutch traders through the East India Dutch Company. Dejima in Nagasaki was the only port open to Dutch traders while Japan closed the rest of the country for nearly all foreigners.

It is very interesting just walking along the street of Onta. Including the workshops and wooden pounders, there are many traditional wooden houses. Onta is designated as one of the Important Cultural Sceneries of Japan by the Ministry of Culture.

Visit of Bernard Leach

In the 20th century, British artist Bernard Leach came to Japan and visited many workshops all over Japan. He joined the Mingei (folk craft) movement which was started by Yanagi Muneyoshi known as Soetsu. Yanagi saw the beauty of tools made by nameless artisans and started the movement in 1926.

Leach started Leach Pottery in 1922 in Britain with Japanese potter Hamada Shoji. Leach also helped the foundation of the Japan Folk Craft Museum in Tokyo. After Leach visited Onta in 1954, they participated in an international craft contest and won the grand prix. That was the moment when Onta pottery became very famous.

Your Japan Tour

As seasoned Japan experts, we can help you create your perfect Japan tour including guides who can tell you all about Japanese pottery. The guide can take you to the Onta Village and some of the workshops if you wish. Contact us to start planning your unforgettable holiday to this fascinating country. Japan is full of once-in-a-lifetime experiences, culture, history, nature, and delicious food!

Onta Access Information

Access: From Hakata (the big terminal in Kyushu), take a shinkansen to Kurume, then change to the Kyudai Line and get off at Hita Station. It takes about 1 hour 40 minutes. From Hita Station, it takes 40 minutes by bus to the Sarayama stop.

Onta Area Map

History of Hita

Hita is a small city in the western part of Oita Prefecture in Kyushu. Its population is about 60,000. The city is in a basin surrounded by mountains. It was an important city during the feudal time because it was a transportation hub accessible to major cities in Kyushu. These cities are Fukuoka, Nakatsu, Oita and Kumamoto. This is why the city was taken by the Tokugawa Shogunate.

During the Edo period when the Tokugawa family kept the title of Shogun for more than 260 years, each area was governed by 250 daimyo or feudal lords. But important cities such as Takayama where high-quality lumber was produced were controlled directly by the shogunate. The magistrate office controlled the whole of Kyushu Island.

Many rivers flow from the mountains into the city and the rivers were used to transport products like lumber to other cities. But river transportation stopped once the Yoake Dam was constructed for electric power generation in 1954.

Mameda Town

Mameda Town is designated as a preservation area of important traditional constructions by the national government. There are several houses that were constructed more than 200 years ago during the Edo period. You can visit some of these houses which are open to the public as museums.

For example, Kusano Honke House which is designated as a national important cultural asset was constructed around 1725. You will feel as if you have been transported back in time to the feudal time just by walking along the street surrounded by these old houses. At the Tenryo Hita Museum, you can learn about the history of the city.

Hita Gion Festival

When you hear about the Gion Festival, you may think of the big festival in Kyoto, but the Gion Festival in Hita also has a long tradition. It started about 300 years ago by imitating the festival of Kyoto. The wealth earned by financing enabled the city to hold a big festival.

The festival lasts about 20 days, and the highlight of the festival is the parade of floats which is held in late July. There are 10 beautifully decorated floats kept by each neighborhood of Hita. The tallest float is about 11 meters high. The floats are registered as one of the 33 festival floats of japan in the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage.

If you visit the Hita Gion Float Museum, you can see 6 floats that are actually used for the festival.

Access: 12 minutes walk from Hita Station (JR Line)
Entrance Fee: 320 yen for adults / 220 yen for students (elementary, junior high, and high schools)
Hours: 9 am to 5 pm (closed on Wednesday)

Local Products

There are several unique local products from a long time ago that can be found in Hita.

Geta or Clogs: Because they produce high-quality lumber, they make Japanese traditional footwear called geta or clogs. They create stripe patterns by burning the surface. At the peak time, they produced 20 million pairs of clogs in a year.

Ontayaki Ceramics: They make ceramics using traditional techniques without using electricity such as manual pottery wheels, climbing kilns, and water wheel-driven pounders.

Sake & Shochu: Because of the rich water, they produce high-quality sake and shochu (distilled alcohol).

Hot Spring

A hot spring gushes out into the city from the mountains, and there are several hotels and ryokan with an in-house hot spring facility. After you visit the sightseeing spots of Hita, how about staying overnight in the city? It is nice to relax in a hot bath.

Birth Place of Hajime Isayama

Hajime Isayama is a manga (comic) artist who makes Shingeki no Kyojin (Attack on Titan) which has been a big hit in Japan. It is said he was inspired by his birthplace, the city of Hita, to make this manga. The backdrop of the story is in a city surrounded by high walls. They prevent the attack of titan and reminds of Hita which is surrounded by high mountains. He has a lot of imagination about what he would find beyond the mountains when he was a child.

Your Japan Tour

As seasoned Japan experts, we can help you create your perfect Japan tour including guides who can let you experience the best of Hita. Contact us to start planning your unforgettable holiday to this fascinating country. Japan is full of once-in-a-lifetime experiences, culture, history, nature, and delicious food!

Hita Information

Access: From Hakata (the big terminal in Kyushu), take a shinkansen to Kurume, then change to the Kyudai Line and get off at Hita Station. It takes about 1 hour 40 minutes.

Hita Area Map

Fans of Studio Ghibli will love the Donguri no Mori Yufuin Store where they can find all kinds of trinkets related to the famous animated movies. Lake Kinrin is another must-see, as there are streams from natural hot springs that end in this lake. This makes it a place where thick fogs appear easily giving the lake a very mysterious aura.

As Yufuin is only a small village, most people spend around half a day here, or a full day if they also want to visit the onsen area.

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Are you thinking about a trip to Japan? As seasoned Japan experts, we can help you create your perfect Japan tour including destinations such as Yufuin. Contact us to start planning your unforgettable holiday to this fascinating country. Your trip will be full of once-in-a-lifetime experiences, culture, history, nature, and delicious food!

Yufuin Area Map

Number One Bridge

The bridge was opened in 2006, after 2.5 years of construction. The total cost was 2 billion yen. The bridge was built by a private company without any support from the national or local government. It is a very strong bridge and it is safe for 1,800 people to walk on the bridge at the same time.

With its length of 390 meters, the area’s altitude of 777 meters, and a height from the ground of 173 meters, the bridge was Japan’s record holder for all three.  Unfortunately for Oita prefecture, the bridge has since given up its number 1 status when it comes to length has after the Mishima Sky Walk in Shizuoka Prefecture near Hakone was constructed in 2015, which is 10 meters longer than Kokonoe Bridge. But Kokonoe still remains Japan’s number one regarding the height of the location of the bridge, and the height of the bridge from the ground.

The View

The area around the bridge is called Narukogawa Valley, which is a very scenic area. The waterfalls of Shindo-no-taki consist of two parts, Odaki (male waterfall) and Medaki (female waterfall). Odaki is 83 meters high and Medaki is 93 meters high. You can see these waterfalls when you walk on the bridge.

Walking on the bridge is a bit thrilling, which makes it a fun place to visit for those who like some excitement. The width is only 1.5 meters and there are slits. If you stand in the middle of the path, you can look down the valley through them. But if you walk on the side it is fully covered, so it is not too scary to cross the bridge. As you have to come back to the entrance to get off the bridge, if you don’t feel comfortable you should not go too far.

It is not too easy to go there, but it is worth visiting. The name of the bridge includes the word ‘yume’, which means dream. The name was publicly solicited and they got about 6,000 applications. It is like a dream to cross one of the longest bridges with amazing views. But be careful if you have acrophobia because you may get bad dreams at night after crossing this bridge.

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As seasoned Japan experts, we create perfect Japan package tours including destinations like Oita. Check out our group tours and private tours, or contact us to start planning your unforgettable holiday to this fascinating country. Japan is full of once-in-a-lifetime experiences, culture, history, nature, and delicious food!

Access Information

Access: From Bungo-Nakamura Station (JR Line), take community bus to Otsuribashi-Nakamuraguchi (大吊橋中村口) bus stop
Entrance: Adults (over 15) 500 yen / Elementary school students 200 yen
Hours: From August to October 8.30 am – 6 pm, From November to July 8.30 – 5 pm

Kokonoe Yume Otsuribashi Area Map

Kitsuki

Kitsuki developed as a castle town of the Kitsuki domain under feudal lord Matsudaira. The city has an interesting shape as it looks like a V-shaped valley. In the north and south, there are hills, and the middle of the town is on lower ground. Samurai used to live in the upper area while the commoners lived in the lower area. The upper area and lower area are connected by the long steps, which makes for a unique townscape. Some of the samurai residences are well preserved and you can visit some of them.

At the eastern end of the town, you will find Kitsuki Castle. It is surrounded by a natural fortress; there is a river in the north and a bay in the east. This made the castle easy to defend. The castle you see today is a reconstruction from 1970. You can learn about local history and enjoy a nice view from the top floor. The entrance fee is only 300 yen.

Fukiji Temple

Fukiji Temple is a Buddhist temple of the Tendai sect. The temple was founded in the 8the century during the Heian period. It is the existing oldest wooden construction in Kyushu Island, and it is very rare to see the architecture style from the Heian period in regions other than Kansai.

It is said a monk called Ninmon made 28 temples and 69,000 statues of Buddha in the Kunisaki Peninsula. Ninmon was believed to be an incarnation of the god of the Usa Hachiman Shrine. The statue of Buddha in the main hall is a national treasure. The painting on the wall shows the Buddhist paradise.

Futagoji Temple

Futagoji Temple is located on the hillside of Mt. Futago, 721 meter-high, the highest peak in the Kunisaki Peninsula. Mt. Futago erupted more than 1 million years ago and it created the round-shaped peninsula with its deposited materials.

This Tendai sect Buddhist temple has served as the main temple of mountain worship on the Kunisaki Peninsula. The pair of 230 cm tall Nio statues at the entrance of the temple are some of the biggest stone statues. The view from the steps of this entrance looking up the temple gate surrounded by the old trees is very attractive.

Usa Jingu Shrine

The Usa Jingu, or Usa Hachiman Shrine, is located at the entrance of the Kunisaki Peninsula. It was founded in the 8th century and it is one of the oldest Shinto shrines in Japan. Usa Jingu is the headquarter of all the 44,000 Hachiman shrines in Japan. History says that the spirit of 15th Emperor Ojin appeared here in the 6th century after which people made the shrine at the site.

As the shrine is located on the top of the hill you have to walk up a lot of steps. By walking through the main approach surrounded by the old trees, you will feel a sense of holiness. If you are not in a condition good enough to walk up the steps, there is a cable car that you can use for free.

They enshrine three ‘kami’ in the main hall. The first one is Hachiman or Emperor Ojin, the second one is Himeno-Okami, an important goddess in the Kyushu region. And the third one is Empress Jingu who was the mother of Emperor Ojin.

The Kunisaki Coastline

Kunisaki Peninsula has a round shape. It was created by the eruption of Mt. Futago located in the middle of the peninsula. The deposited materials created this peninsula. Because of this, there is an intricate coat line. Many visitors enjoy driving along the beautiful coast.

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As seasoned Japan experts, we create perfect Japan package tours including destinations like Kunisaki. Check out our group tours and private tours, or contact us to start planning your unforgettable holiday to this fascinating country full of once-in-a-lifetime experiences, culture, history, nature, and delicious food!

Kunisaki Peninsula Area Map

Hachiman Shrine

In Japan, there are about 80,000 Shinto shrines and 44,000 of them are Hachiman shrines. A Hachiman shrine enshrines the 15th emperor Ojin who has been regarded as the god of warriors, so it was a very important shrine during the feudal time when Samurai governed the country. For example, Tsurugaoka Hachimangu is a big Shinto shrine in Kamakura near Tokyo. It was founded by Minamoto Family. Several generations later, Minamoto-no Yoritomo became the first shogun in Japan.

History of Usa Jingu

Usa Jingu is the headquarter of all the 44,000 Hachiman shrines in Japan. The shrine was founded in Kyushu in 725, during the Nara period. History says that the spirit of Emperor Ojin appeared here in the 6th century and people built a shrine at the site.

A temple called Miroku-ji was built next to it in 779, making it what is believed to be the first shrine-temple, jingu-ji in Japanese. The resulting mixed complex, called Usa Hachimangu-ji, lasted over a millennium until 1868. This was when the Buddhist part was removed to comply with the Kami (Shinto gods). They did this because of the Shinto-Buddhism Separation Act that was just established by the new government.

The Usa Hachiman shrine first appears in the chronicles of Imperial history during the reign of Empress Shotoku. The empress allegedly had an affair with a Buddhist monk named Dokyo. An oracle said that the monk should be an emperor, and the kami Hachiman at Usa was consulted for verification. The empress died before anything further could develop.

In the 16th century, the temple was repeatedly attacked by the Christian-sympathizing lord of Funai Otomo Yoshishige and destroyed many times. The wife of Yoshishige, Otomo-Nata Jezebel was the High Priestess alongside the Nara Clan and resisted her former husband’s attacks. The Usa Jingu was designated as the chief Shinto shrine for the former Buzen province.

From 1871 through 1946, Usa was officially designated one of the Kanpei-taisha, meaning that it stood in the first rank of government-supported shrines. Other similarly honored Hachiman shrines were Iwashimizu Hachimangu of Yawata in Kyoto Prefecture and Hakozaki-gu of Fukuoka in Fukuoka Prefecture. These are collectively called the Three Hachimangu Shrines in Japan.

Precinct of Usa Jingu

The precinct of the shrine is huge. First, you cross the bridge Shinkyo, then you are in the sacred grounds. Then you will pass the big vermilion colored torii gate and walk straight forward, after which you have to go up the long steps because the main hall is constructed on the top of the hill. You may have a sense of holiness walking through the approach surrounded by the old trees.

If you are not in a condition to walk up the long steps, there is a cable car to the top of the hill. It is free of charge.

They enshrine three ‘kami’ in the main hall. The first one is Hachiman or Emperor Ojin, the second one is Himeno-Okami, an important goddess in the Kyushu region, and the third one is Empress Jingu who was the mother of Emperor Ojin.

The main hall and the Kujaku Monkei are designated as Japan’s National Treasures. The structures which comprise the current shrine complex were built in the middle of the 19th century. The characteristic construction, called Hachiman-zukuri, consists of two parallel structures with gabled roofs that are interconnected with the non-gabled side to form what internally is a single building. But if you see it from the outside, the complex still gives the impression of being two separate buildings.

On the way back, please don’t forget to see Kurehashi Bridge, it is a beautiful bridge covered with a vermilion colored roof. You cannot actually cross the bridge and you have to walk on another Shinkyo bridge, but you can see the inside of the Kurehashi Bridge.

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As seasoned Japan experts, we create perfect Japan package tours including destinations like Kyushu. Check out our group tours and private tours, or contact us to start planning your unforgettable holiday to this fascinating country full of once-in-a-lifetime experiences, culture, history, nature, and delicious food!

Access Information

Access: 10 minutes ride on the bus from Usa Station to the Usa-Hachiman bus stop.
Entrance: Free
Hours: From April to September 5.30 am – 7 pm / From October to March 6 am – 7 pm

Usa Jingu Shrine Area Map

Healing Hot Springs

If you look down on the town from a hill, you can see a unique urban landscape with steam coming up from everywhere as if there are a lot of fires burning. There used to be many guests who stayed at self-catering accommodations for long periods of time to cure themselves of diseases. Today, you can stay at a hotel and enjoy the hot springs very comfortably.

Hot water gushes from many spots in the city. The Beppu-onsen Spa consists of eight hot spring areas. There are about 2,200 hot spring sources in total. There are many modern spa resorts that are also supplied from the rich sources in these areas. Beppu offers an unmatched range of baths to be enjoyed, including ordinary hot water baths, mud baths, sand baths, and steam baths.

Hells of Beppu

In addition, the Hells of Beppu are several spectacular hot springs for viewing rather than bathing. The Tour of Hell is the highlight of sightseeing in the Beppu Spa area. The color of each spring varies due to the chemical components in the water.

Eight spots including the Umi-jigoku (Sea Hell) made up of bright cobalt blue hot water, and the Chinoike-jigoku (Blood Pond Hell). Here, hot water containing red melted clay gushes out. There’s also the Tatsumaki-jigoku (Tornado Hell), a geyser. These spots are usually on the itinerary of a Beppu tour.

Utilizing the vast amount of hot spring water, progress is also being made for industrial purposes. Research is conducted into collecting aluminum and utilizing geothermal heat for power generation and agriculture. The hot springs are also used for medical treatment and beauty care. So how about buying some hot spring powder as a souvenir to keep your beauty?

Your Japan Tour

As seasoned Japan experts, we create perfect Japan package tours including destinations like Beppu. Check out our group tours and private tours, or contact us to start planning your unforgettable holiday to this fascinating country. Japan is full of once-in-a-lifetime experiences, culture, history, nature, and delicious food!

Access Information

From Beppu (JR Line) station.
There are buses for the Tour of Hell starting from Beppu station.

Beppu Area Map