Top 10 National Parks in Kyushu, Kyushu

The Aso-Kuju National Park was established in 1934. The major features of this park are Mt. Aso standing tall in the massive caldera, a group of volcanoes stretching in its north such as Kuju Mountain Range, and majestic and gentle grasslands spreading around them. In the vicinity of Mt. Aso in the south of the park, a series of magnificent and breathtaking scenery including a fuming crater of Mt. Nakadake, a beautiful volcanic cone of Komezuka, vast Kusaseringahama Beach, surrounding crater basins, and a somma can be appreciated. In addition, solfataric phenomena can be found all over the central region of the park. Other highlights are distinctive views of volcanoes scattered around, extensive grasslands such as Kuju Highland and Handa Highland, and academically valuable moors such as Tadewara Moor and Bogatsuru Moor.

This park was designated as Japan’s very first national park in 1934 (Unzen National Park), and then the Amakusa area was added in 1956 (Unzen-Amakusa National Park). The feature of this park is the amazing views of waters and mountains comprised of the volcanic scenery of Mt. Unzen (Mt. Onsen) with drifting hot spring steam and the marine scenery with the archipelagic region of Amakusa. The Unzen area is a mountainous area of the Shimabara Peninsula, consisting of more than 20 mountains centering on Mt. Unzen. Together with three sides of the sea, various panoramic views can be appreciated. Volcanic activities can be witnessed in various places, including “Hot Springs of Hell (Unzen Jigoku)” which is the origin of the name of the mountain. Mt. Unzen was originally written as Mt. Hot Springs (Onsen) in Japanese characters.

Kirishima-Kinkowan National Park was born in 1934 as Kirishima National Park, which was one of Japan’s first national parks. This park is largely divided into the northern and southern parts, and each has its own characteristic landscapes as the Kirishima area and the Kinko Bay area, respectively. The Kirishima area, the northern part of the park, has a series of more than 20 volcanoes of various sizes as well as much native vegetation along with crater lakes, fumaroles and hot springs all created by this volcanic activity.The Kinko Bay area, on the southern part of the park, has unique scenery centered on an active volcano, Mt. Sakurajima which is a symbol of the area. It includes Mt. Kaimondake, Lake Ikeda and Chiringashima Island of the Satsuma Peninsula as well as Cape Sata, the home of many subtropical plants, on the Osumi Peninsula along with coral reefs and the area of hydrothermal vents on the ocean floor.

Yakushima Island and Kuchinoerabujima Island in the Yakushima National Park are islands situated in the rich sea area with the Kuroshio Current. Although these two islands are only 12 km apart, they were formed by totally different mountain formation processes. This results in radically different landscapes. The topography of Yakushima Island is steep with Kyushu’s highest mountains standing tall. It has a distinctive landscape with natural forests of giant trees such as ancient Japanese cedar trees of over 1,000 years old. is “natural beauty” has been recognized as a remarkable universal value of the UNESCO World Heritage Site. Meanwhile, Kuchinoerabujima Island is the largest active volcanic island among the Satsunan Islands. The eastern part of the island reveals a volcanic landscape, and natural coastal scenery remains in the coastal area including sea cliffs and caves formed by rough waves.

Saikai National Park is in the northwestern part of Kyusyu and features an archipelago consisting of over 400 islands of various sizes that extend from Kujukushima Islands of Sasebo, Ikitsuki-shima Island, and Hirado Island to the Goto Islands. Its diverse coastal landscapes include groups of islets and the dendritic drowned valley (valley that has been flooded by the sea) topography of Kujukushima Islands, sea cliffs with columnar jointing of the Hirado Island, and the representative scenery of sea cliffs and a pelagic archipelago of Cape Osezaki of the Goto Islands. Further, various volcanic terrains can be observed from Hirado Island to Fukue Island. A variety of ecosystems have formed adapting to such complex terrains.

Amamigunto National Park is located in the southernmost part of Kagoshima Prefecture. It was designated as the 34th national park on March 7, 2017. Amami Islands possess ecosystems consisting of rich and diverse natural environments and endemic, rare wild animals and plants. Cultural landscapes created by the relationship between people and nature also remain on these islands. Each island of Amamigunto National Park offers unique and appealing nature and experiences of the history and life of local people.