In Kagoshima city, people carry umbrellas not just for the rain and sun, but for the volcanic ash. The active volcano that sits offshore, Sakurajima Island, provides a pretty backdrop for Kyushu’s southernmost major city–and it regularly rains ash down on the mainland. Despite its natural beauty and glorious hot springs, Kagoshima is a city and a prefecture that foreign tourists seem to have forgotten–or just didn’t have time to travel to. If you do, you’ll find a laid-back, subtropical place with plenty of things to do and see.
Kagoshima is very far south in Japan, at the bottom of Kyushu island, so it tends to be warmer than Honshu. Winter is a good time to visit if you want to escape the cold winter of Tokyo or Osaka, and there are many hot springs around Kagoshima prefecture. Otherwise, spring (April–May) and fall (October–November) are ideal. Like the rest of Japan, these seasons offer lovely blossom and leaf-peeping opportunities and mild weather in Kagoshima.
Kagoshima city is fairly compact and easy to get around—riding a bike is ideal. Around 200 Kagorin city bikes are available to pick up from more than 27 locations around the city. There’s also a sightseeing bus that takes about 80 minutes to cover the city’s main sights. One-day travel cards allow you to get on and off. Kagoshima is connected to many of its offshore islands, including Sakurajima, by ferry–note that there are seven different ports in the city, including the cruise terminal.
If you’re used to traveling around the major cities of Honshu, be prepared for a change of scenery in Kagoshima—and to exercise your Japanese-language skills. Fewer tourists make it to this part of Japan, and knowing how to speak and read some basic Japanese (at a minimum) will improve your experience. Menus tend not to be in English (thank goodness for picture menus!) and hotels may not be used to dealing with gaijin. Travelers with serious allergies should carry translation cards.
