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Hells of Beppu: Colorful Hot Springs in Ōita, Japan

It was my last day in Oita when I decided to do the Hells of Beppu. I woke up at 8 in the morning and had a very satisfying meal of cold noodles (udon) dunked in savory sauce. It was cooked by my Japanese dorm mate in the hostel. According to her, she travels to Beppu at least once a year for an onsen holiday. That morning, she decided to cook udon and gave me a bowl full of noodles. It was my first time to eat noodles with ice. Lol!

hotspring in Japan
Umi Jigoku is one of the hot springs (hells) in Beppu

After breakfast, I boarded a bus going to the Kannawa District at Beppu Station. 6 hells (Jigoku) are located at the Kannawa District and the other 2 can be found at Shibaseki District. Access to all hells costs 2,000 JPY. If you only want to visit the most popular, then you can purchase individual tickets to Umi Jigoku, Oniyama Jigoku and Chinoike Jigoku, which cost 400 JPY each. Tickets can be purchased outside the Hells of Beppu and need not to be reserved in advance.

entry to hot spring
red Torii and bridge at the right side of Umi Jigoku

Hells of Beppu: Kannawa District

Umi Jigoku

I was about to get off at Umi Jigoku mae bus stop when I handed 5,000 yen to the driver. He said the machine cannot accept it because the max is only 1,000 yen. I do not have any coins left for the bus fare (330 yen) and I don’t know how can I pay him. This obachan (granny) volunteered to pay for me. Although I did not understand her, she just said okay and smiled. Thank you obachan!

Travel tip: Always prepare coins when riding a bus. Kamenoi Bus offers one day and two day unlimited bus passes (900 and 1500 yen respectively) that cover all of the sites within central Beppu. I did not purchase a Kamenoi bus pass because I only plan to board a bus going to Kannawa District and going back to Beppu Station from Shibaseki District. The pass will not pay off for me.

the water temperature here is a scalding 98 degrees C

Oniishibozu Jigoku

mud bubbles

Shiraike Jigoku

Kamado Jigoku

Oniyama Jigoku

Yama Jigoku

flamingos at the Yama Jigoku

Hells of Beppu: Kannawa District to Shibaseki District

It was around 10:30 AM when I finished seeing all the hells in Kannawa District. My next destination was Shibaseki District, the location of Chinoike Jigoku (Blood Pond Hell) and Tatsumaki Jigoku (Tornado Hell). To get there, take the number 16 bus from Kannnawa and get off at Chinoike jigoku mae bus stop. It was about 3 kilometers away from the bus stop at Kannawa. Normally, people drive or take a bus to get there, but it’s possible to walk between the areas in about 40 minutes.

I was feeling brave when I decided to walk to Shibaseki District. It seemed like a good idea at the time – until I realized that the journey would take me along an isolated mountain highway, with very little sidewalk. As drivers whizzed by, they stared at me incredulously; it’s not every day you see someone walking this route! An eerie abandoned village wore away my excitement while a looming tunnel triggered so much anxiety. And 40 long minutes later (and some serious self-criticism), here was Shibaseki District!

Hells of Beppu: Shibaseki District

Chinoike Jigoku

Thank the heavens I arrived safely in Shibaseki District. I spent an hour in Chinoike Jigoku and skipped Tatsumaki Jigoku. I took some photos, walked around for a bit and sat on a wooden bench trying to absorb everything that happened. It was so hard to calm my nerves so I bought matcha ice cream. My tour ended at 1 PM so I went back to Beppu Guesthouse to prepare for my departure. I bought a bento at the bento factory near Beppu Station.

Ramen at Hakata Station

At 2 in the afternoon, I took a Limited express train from Beppu Station to Hakata Station. I arrived at around 4 PM and spent my remaining time at JR Hakata City. My way of saying good bye to Japan is by having my last bowl of Ramen at Ippudo Hakata. It was sooo good!

In summary, I enjoyed my solo Japan trip very much! There were many ‘firsts’ for me on this trip – first solo out of country, first time to stay in a mixed dormitory, first time to go on a trip without a rigid itinerary (I can be too anal sometimes), first time to walk/run along a mountain highway, etc. I would definitely travel solo again!

This is the end of my 6-day Northern Kyushu adventure! I sincerely hope you enjoyed this series! Have you tried solo travel yet? How was the experience? I would like to hear your thoughts. Share it on the comment box below!

By Project Gora

Hey there! My name is Milet Miranda, and I'm a full-time corporate employee during weekdays and a traveler during weekends (and holidays...you get the picture). I'm a foodie at heart and I love joining food tours. When I'm not traveling, you'll find me walking my dogs or biking around my neighborhood.

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