BEPPU, JAPAN VIRTUAL GUIDE

JAPAN’S MOST UNDERRATED CITY

BEPPU, JAPAN CITY GUIDE

Beppu is a hot spring city located in Oita Prefecture on the island of Kyushu. Beppu has the second largest concentration of hot springs in the entire world!

If you aren’t familiar with hot springs and onsen - they are geothermal natural “baths,” or water with minerals good for your health. They are not only great for your skin, but help with stress and muscle pain. This makes Beppu the perfect place to relax and unwind.

That is not steam from industrial pipes, it’s steam from some of the 3,000 natural vents around the city. You might be wondering why this phenomenon is happening? About 60 miles south west of Beppu is Japan’s largest active volcano- Mount Aso. The city sits in a valley with volcanic ash, and… the hot springs are born (along with other geological reasons I don’t truly understand, but I’m glad they’re there anyway, lol)!

Beppu is such a unique experience to see and experience in person! Not all of the hot springs are meant for bathing; they are attractions, too! I had never heard of a “hot spring city,” and was enchanted by everything I was reading.

TATTOO FRIENDLY BEPPU

In Japan, tattoos are still considered to be taboo. They are associated with organized crime, like the Yakuza; it’s an older-generation way of thinking. Tattoos are becoming more normalized, but a lot of onsen and public bath houses (in Japan) do not allow tattoos. I have a very small tattoo, and have been asked to leave a facility before. I can attest, it's still very prominent.

Since Beppu is a hot spring city, a lot of people with tattoos have been worried about visiting and not having great experiences - do not stress while visiting hot springs in Beppu! I will list the two we went to below, and here’s a great resource for tattoo friendly Japan.The mayor of Beppu is progressively making changes in town to make it a more accessible experience for foreigners. We never had issues finding our way in English, and always had friendly encounters with the locals. Beppu alone has over 100 tattoo friendly onsens to visit, making it one of the most inclusive cities in Japan!

RULES AND MANNERS AT AN ONSEN:

Just incase you want more information! Read this.

WHEN TO VISIT

Colder weather, like fall and winter; might be a personal preference :) Hot springs are super HOT! I love the contrast of freezing air and being in a warm environment. I couldn’t imagine being here in the summer to be honest.

WHO TO VISIT WITH

Anyone you’re comfortable being naked with. Keep to smaller/more intimate groups! Seriously, that’s what you do in bath houses/ onsen… get naked and relax in front of strangers :) There are public onsen where bathing suits are allowed (again this is a way some businesses are catering to foreigners) which is a great option if you’re shy!

If you’re going with a spouse or someone of the opposite sex and want to experience bath houses together… do your research! I recommend private onsen so you are never separated, or be sure that the actual bath part is public and not separated into genders.

HOW WE GOT THERE

We drove to Beppu from Iwakuni, Japan. We took the toll roads which cost about $68 USD EACH way. It was a super easy drive, and was only 3 hours and 15 minutes.

You can get to Beppu via train as well! If you take the train, you will need to rent a car or plan to rely on taxi’s while visiting.

DAY 1

Private Onsen and lunch at ANA Intercontinental - Beppu.

$100/ hr for the private room - lunch was a buffet style $40 per person! This was totally WORTH IT! This is not something I can say we will do all the time, but if you are going with girlfriends, your family, or alone with your significant other, or just want an experience like this just once - I think the pictures speak for itself! I have a quick 1 minute video with a tour of the onsen here. You can book here; ask for the private onsen/family room. ANA Intercontinental-Beppu opened in August 2019, and is one of the most stunning properties I have ever been to. You get panoramic views of Beppu from the top of the hill, and it makes for an incredible start to the weekend. You can stay the night here (it’s a hotel), we just opted for the spa services.

Hells of Beppu (you will see “Jigoku” written on signs, this means “Hell,” and also why you see little devils around the town).

This is a self guided walking tour to visit 7 large hot spring attractions. You can either buy tickets individually at each entrance or all at once. The price is about $3.80 per hot spring. Here’s a great article explaining what they are.

Check in to Airbnb

I do not recommend THIS airbnb. I linked it so you know the area to look in, but I was not a fan of the place (if you follow me on IG you know how bad we slept)! I will leave a link here so you can get $55 off your first trip using Airbnb. Anyway, I loved the area we were in. You can walk to restaurants and cafes for breakfast and dinner. It was about 5 minutes walking from the main Beppu train station, so just search around that area.

**While searching on airbnb, you might see some locations advertising “private onsen” or “private hot spring”... these are legitimate. They had to build the city and neighborhoods around the hot springs, so naturally, some personal homes have them on their property; take advantage of that!

Dinner

We got dinner at a restaurant near the train station - we were really exhausted, so we grabbed something quick. It honestly wasn’t that great and they smoke inside (yuck). Sorry I can’t find the name :/ We use TRIPADVISOR to find all of our restaurants in Japan!

DAY 2

Breakfast

We walked to the train station to grab snacks from Lawsons and food from the bakery there (hard to miss)! I highly recommend the sugar dusted donuts!!!

Beppu Beach Sand Bath

I read so many great articles about this: This and this are fantastic to read over. This is the exact sand bath Jame’s May went to while in Beppu (amazon prime episode 6). We arrived at 11 am and received a 12pm slot, done by 1pm. It cost about $14 per person (including a towel). If you do not bring a towel BUY ONE! You will need it! No need to bring a change of clothes :)

Eat HELL STEAM CUISINE!

Along the walking tour you'll pass vendors selling local food using steam harnessed from the ground. It has a …. unique (sulfur) flavor! I wouldn’t say it’s bad, it’s just not my preference. The locals believe the steam enhances the natural flavors of your food. This local cuisine is called Jigoku Mushi (Hell Steam Cuisine), and I encourage you to go for it!! When in Rome is what I say :) Did you happen to watch James May: Our Man in Japan, and see the restaurant he went to while in Beppu? We went to the same spot! Here’s the deets! 10/10 a great experience! I also have a section about it in my Beppu youtube video (virtual tour of Beppu).

Beppu Ropeway

Around 3pm, we finished our food and hopped in our car to go to the Beppu Ropeway! It was FREEZING this day!! Irrelevant, anyway… it’s a beautiful experience and a very leisurely activity; you get to see all of Beppu below you! The aerial tram was about 10 minutes to get to the top. Once you get to the top, you can ‘hike’ a paved path to the summit and explore around.

TOTAL TRIP COST IN USD

Toll roads: $136

GAS: $30

Airbnb: (varies) ours was $148.81 for 2 nights

Lunch Buffet at the hotel: $42 per person (AMAZING FOOD OMG!!!) Menu is here!

Private Onsen: $100 (ish) ~ can vary depending on the season / exchange rate

Hells of Beppu: $20 per person for access to all 7 springs (unsure price of children)

Sand Bath: $9 per person (you will need a towel, if you don’t bring one you can purchase a souvenir towel for about $3)

Beppu Railway: $15 per person (children are less)

Other expenses: food! We typically spend $30-50 per person each day on food. This varies if we order alcohol or not! Typically $30 per person, not alcohol, andcloser to $50 per person if we decide to get drinks! Total (averaging $40 per day) $80

TOTAL TRIP COST FOR 2 ADULTS/ 3 DAYS:

$672.81