All 7 Jigoku Hells + the Sand Bath
Morning in Kannawa · steam-cooked lunch · Takegawara sand burial in the afternoon · evening onsen and toriten chicken — the day that makes you understand why people keep coming back.
Start at Beppu Station and take Kamenoi Bus route 5 or 7 to Kannawa (about 15 minutes, ¥220). All five Kannawa hells are within comfortable walking distance of the bus stop — follow the signs through the steam-hazed lanes in this order:
Umi Jigoku (Sea Hell) — the largest and most photographed: cobalt-blue water at 98°C, 200 metres deep, with giant lotus pads floating in a shallower adjacent pool. Oniishibozu Jigoku (Monk's Head Hell) — grey bubbling mud that forms smooth domes like shaved monk heads. Kamado Jigoku (Cooking Pot Hell) — the most varied, with pools in blue, green, grey and red all within the same site. Oniyama Jigoku (Devil Mountain Hell) — the crocodile hell: over eighty live crocodiles bred on the site's geothermal heat since 1923. Shiraike Jigoku (White Pond Hell) — the quietest of the five, pale milky water, good for a slower look.
After the Kannawa five, take bus route 16 or 16A from Kannawa to Shibaseki (5 minutes). The final two hells are here:
Chinoike Jigoku (Blood Pond Hell) — deep crimson-red water from iron-rich clay, the oldest named hell in Japan, documented since 867 CE. Tatsumaki Jigoku (Waterspout Hell) — a natural geyser that erupts roughly every 30–40 minutes, shooting water to 50 metres at 105°C.
Back in Kannawa for lunch, try jigoku-mushi — food steamed in geothermal steam at 98°C. Chicken, corn, eggs, tofu and vegetables come out firmer and sweeter than boiling or roasting because the moisture of the steam penetrates the food differently. Several shops along the Kannawa lanes offer the full setup.
From Shibaseki, route 16A runs back to Beppu Station (about 40 minutes). From the station it is a ten-minute walk to Takegawara Onsen — a wooden bathhouse built in 1938 and one of Beppu's most recognisable buildings. The sand bath experience works like this: you change into a cotton yukata, lie down in a shallow trough of dark volcanic sand, and an attendant buries you up to the neck. The sand is heated by geothermal water underneath. You stay buried for ten to fifteen minutes.
The combination of heat and the weight of the sand does something that a regular onsen soak simply cannot: it compresses and then releases the muscles in your back, shoulders and legs. After the sand, a regular onsen bath in the same building costs ¥300 and rounds out the experience.
Beppu has over one hundred public bathhouses (koshuu yokujou) scattered through the city, most costing ¥100–300 and open until late. Pick any one near your hotel for a quiet soak to close out the day. For a full breakdown of each onsen type and the best neighbourhoods, the Beppu onsen guide covers everything you need.
Dinner should be toriten — chicken tempura, Oita-style, lighter and less oily than standard tempura, eaten with ponzu sauce or a touch of Japanese mustard. It is not a tourist dish; it is what people in Oita actually eat, and Beppu's izakayas around the station serve it properly. Pair it with cold barley shochu if you want to drink the way the locals do.
