[2025 Kagoshima Attraction] Travel Guide for Sakurajima Visitor Center (Updated Jul)

#favouriteitinerary Kagoshima – A Gateway to Nature and Tradition 🇯🇵✨ Located on the southern tip of Kyushu, Kagoshima is a captivating city that offers a mix of natural beauty, rich culture, and a view into the island's volcanic past. Known for the iconic Sakurajima volcano, hot springs, and delicious local food, Kagoshima provides a peaceful yet vibrant getaway. --- Top Highlights Sakurajima: The iconic volcano just across the bay is the symbol of Kagoshima. Whether you're hiking, enjoying the views from the Sakurajima Visitor Center, or soaking in a hot spring with a volcano backdrop, it’s a must-see. Shiroyama Park: Offering panoramic views of the city and Sakurajima, this park is perfect for a relaxing stroll. It also features the Shiroyama Observatory and the ruins of Kagoshima Castle. Iso-Teien Garden: A beautiful Japanese garden with traditional tea houses and a peaceful atmosphere, perfect for nature lovers. Ibusuki: Famous for its sand baths, where visitors are buried in warm sand at the beach, providing a relaxing and unique experience. Kagoshima Aquarium: A great spot to see marine life from the surrounding waters of Kagoshima, featuring a variety of species and interactive exhibits. --- Things to Do Soak in the Sand Baths: Head to Ibusuki for a relaxing and unusual sand bath experience, where you’ll be buried in warm sand by professional attendants. Take a Ferry to Sakurajima: Enjoy scenic views on the ferry ride to the Sakurajima volcano, and spend the day exploring its hiking trails, hot springs, and volcanic craters. Visit Sengan-en Garden: A historical garden that offers views of Sakurajima and a chance to explore the region's traditional architecture and history. Kagoshima Food: Don’t miss out on local dishes like Kagoshima Black Pork, Satsuma-age (fried fish cakes), and the delicious shochu (local distilled spirit). --- Cuisine and Dining Kagoshima Black Pork: Known for its tender and flavorful meat, this local delicacy is often served as shabu-shabu (hot pot) or grilled. Satsuma-age: A type of deep-fried fish cake made with fish paste, it’s a popular local snack. Shochu: Kagoshima is one of Japan’s main shochu-producing regions, so be sure to try this local distilled spirit. --- Best Time to Visit Spring (March to May): A great time to visit with mild weather, ideal for outdoor activities like hiking and sightseeing. Autumn (September to November): Cooler weather and beautiful autumn leaves, especially around Sengan-en Garden and Shiroyama Park. Summer (June to August): While it’s hot, summer festivals, including the Kagoshima Flower Park Festival, offer a unique way to experience the city. --- Kagoshima is a wonderful place to relax, explore nature, and enjoy Japan’s slower pace of life. Whether you're hiking around Sakurajima, enjoying a sand bath, or savoring local dishes, this charming city offers a perfect blend of history, nature, and culture.

Sakurajima Lava Waterfront Park is connected to the Sakurajima Visitor Center! The most special feature of Sakurajima Lava Waterfront Park is the 100-meter-long foot soup. It's so comfortable to soak in the hot foot soup under the cold weather. #Japan Attractions #Japan Travel #Kagoshima #Sakurajima Volcano

I went on a solo trip to Kagoshima for the first time. My mission was to visit Kirishima Shrine, Chiran Special Attack Memorial Museum, and take the Sakurajima ferry. Eel at Sueyoshi. Black pork shabu-shabu at Ichini-san. I took a direct bus from Kagoshima Airport to Kirishima Shrine. Be careful, as there are few bus services. On the way back, I took a bus to Kirishima Shrine Station. Kirishima Shrine Station is an unmanned station, so I was worried because I couldn't use new bills, transportation IC cards, or credit cards. I took the Nippo Line to Kagoshima Chuo Station. I stayed at the KOKO Kagoshima Tenmonkan Hotel in Tenmonkan, with no meals included. It was very convenient and clean, with good access and lots of restaurants. Tenmonkan has a tram and there are many direct limousines to Kagoshima Airport, so it was the best place to stay. I rented a car to go to Chiran on the second day. Chiran is a place you should definitely visit. On the third day, I took a ferry to Sakurajima. Sakurajima from Kinko Bay was a spectacular sight. There was a free foot bath. The eel and black pork shabu-shabu were also very delicious. Next time I would like to go to Ibusuki. Round-trip ANA + accommodation fee 39,000 yen March 2025

#MayTravelSupportI took a bus around Sakurajima Volcano. The view of the active volcano outside the window while riding the bus was really attractive, and the areas where I could get off in between had really nice scenery, so it was fun to take pictures and play. It was a travel destination that people who like science and nature would really enjoy.

#May Travel Support Fund I went to Sakurajima Volcano, which is still active. On the day I visited, there was a lot of smoke and volcanic ash coming out from the top of the volcano. It was really amazing and interesting to see the volcano for the first time. I was able to see it while driving.

#May Travel Support Fund Sakurajima Island is an active volcano near Kagoshima that is still active today. I was able to visit Sakurajima Island. At that time, I had to take a boat to get there. I was able to safely get to Sakurajima Island by ferry.

I went to Sakurajima in Kagoshima! I went there with the image that it erupts often, but I was surprised to find that it is an island with many people living there and a school. The Sakurajima Visitor Center is about a 10-minute walk from the port. This is a spot like a small museum, where soil, volcanic ash, and photos of Sakurajima are displayed with explanations. Sakurajima still erupts repeatedly, but it seems that there was a very large eruption in the past. Sakurajima from a geological perspective, Sakurajima from a historical perspective, and Sakurajima as it is now on foot. If you want to enjoy Sakurajima from various angles, be sure to visit the Visitor Center before exploring Sakurajima! 💰Price per person: Free 💞Reason for recommendation: There is a foot bath nearby that you can enjoy for free! #0 yen trip #Kagoshima #Sakurajima #Domestic travel #Tourism

#MeAndMyTravel The Sakurajima Visitor Center is located about a 15-minute walk from the Sakurajima Port ferry dock. It's a free facility, so I thought I'd just take a quick look, but there were interesting exhibits, including videos on a large screen and quizzes, and I learned about the structure of the volcano, the history of Sakurajima, and even the relationship between Sakurajima and the people of Kagoshima. I knew that Sakurajima is an active volcano and that it still erupts, but I didn't know that it erupts so regularly. It seems that an eruption and an explosion are different. Souvenirs from Sakurajima were also on sale. If you come to Sakurajima, be sure to stop by. #Sakurajima #SakurajimaTourism

Outside Sakurajima Port is the Sakurajima sightseeing bus stop, but the bus service is limited. The first stop is the Sakurajima Visitor Center. Piaoer walked directly from the port. It took about 10 minutes. There were no sights or shops to visit on the way = = But you can enjoy the view of Sakurajima volcano while walking, look! From time to time, there is a small-scale volcanic eruption, and smoke is coming out of the crater! Being in the volcanic town, the air around you is filled with the strong smell of volcanic ash. Finally we arrived at the Sakurajima Visitor Center! This visitor center itself is a mini volcano museum. The video in the audio-visual room introduces the formation of the offshore volcanic island 26,000 years ago, the two stratovolcanoes of Kita-dake and Minami-dake on Sakurajima, and the four large-scale volcanic eruptions from the Civilization period to the Showa period that formed the current Sakurajima volcano. Lava Field Trail After visiting the Visitor Center, there is still some time before the next Sakurajima sightseeing bus arrives at the Visitor Center. You can use this time to walk to the Kirishima-Kinkowan National Park outside the Visitor Center. The 3-kilometer-long "Lava Field Trail" is one of the "100 Best Walking Tours in Japan". You can walk all the way to the "Urasashima Observatory" to overlook the Sakurajima volcano. However, Piaoer only walked to the natural foot bath and then returned to the tourist center to catch the bus. Along the "Sakurajima Lava Nagisa Trail", you can see many lava rocks formed by volcanic eruptions. In recent years, I have walked through Mount Eden, a dead volcano with a huge crater in New Zealand, and Gunung Batur in Bali, which erupted just a few months ago. However, this is the first time I have stepped directly on active volcanic mud and smelled the strong smell of volcanic ash on my nose! Natural Foot Bath Walk along the trail to the 101-meter-long "Natural Foot Bath", where you can soak your feet, but I didn't feel anything because the spring water is salty and can heal wounds... I wasn't injured~ Instead, it was especially healing to sit and admire the beautiful scenery of the volcano.