Destination guide
Beppu
Japan
Beppu ( Beppu) is a city in Oita prefecture on the island of Kyushu, Japan. Famous for its visually stunning hot springs (the Hells of Beppu), Beppu is one of Japan's Three Great Hot Springs.
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At Takegawara Onsen, incorporate the sand bath service into your visit; an attendant will bury you in hot sand before you head to the hot water bath. Be mindful that the water in the main bath is kept at high temperatures specifically to suit the preferences of local regulars, so move at a pace that respects their established routine.
If you are a first-time visitor to Japanese bathing culture, head to Yume Tamatebako instead of the strictly traditional public baths; it functions more like a modern public facility, making it a lower-pressure environment to experience multiple bath types, including electric and sauna options.
Visit the Beppu Ropeway for mountain views, but plan your trip for clear weather as the primary draw is the visibility of the city and bay from the summit; avoid planning evening visits unless you are traveling during peak holiday periods when extended hours are offered.
Experience the local nightlife at the Hit Parade Club, which functions as a performance venue rather than a standard bar. It operates as an all-you-can-eat and all-you-can-drink buffet, centered around a live band performing 1950s American music while local patrons engage in coordinated dancing.
When choosing a place to stay, prioritize guesthouses or ryokans that offer in-house hot spring access; this allows you to experience the local bathing lifestyle at your own pace without needing to travel to public bathhouses for every soak.
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【日本一の温泉⁉︎】温泉都市の別府！人気観光スポットや絶品グルメをご紹介！
ULTIMATE BEPPU TRAVEL GUIDE | Top 6 things to do in Beppu, Oita Japan
【別府観光】地獄巡りとおすすめグルメ&絶景|女子旅|Beppu Oita
BEPPU TRAVEL GUIDE | 8 Must Do Experiences in Beppu, Oita
Best time to go
Best window: March–April and October–November
June, July, August and September are the months to avoid — very heavy rain. The window below is when it is genuinely pleasant.
Rated from ten years of daily temperature and rainfall recorded at this destination, via Open-Meteo's ERA5 reanalysis. Hover a month for its real numbers.
Getting around
By bus
The Hells and other sites can be easily reached via the tourist-centered bus system. Departures are outside JR Beppu Station. The Foreign Tourist Information Office inside JR Beppu Station sells one-day bus passes for ¥900 (¥700 students), which is likely the…
On foot
The town is walkable. The Hells may be a bit far for most to find it convenient. Though, walking is a possibility for those who don't mind it, and are not in a hurry.
Transport notes from Wikivoyage, CC BY-SA 4.0.
What to see
Places are listed from Wikivoyage and our own sourced research. Worth it means a second, independent source names the place too; “3 sources agree” means three or more do — and each card names them, so you can check.
Umi Jigoku (Sea Hell)
Worth itAlso recommended by Lonely Planet and 1 other
Look into a steaming, cobalt-blue boiling pond, the standout stop of the Kannawa half of Beppu's hell circuit.
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Chinoike Jigoku (Blood Pond Hell)
Worth itAlso recommended by Japan Guide
See naturally red, iron-oxide-stained boiling water in the Shibaseki hell group, one of the most photographed of the seven hells.
Vetted sources
Oniishibozu Jigoku
Worth itAlso recommended by Japan Guide
Watch grey mud bubble up in rounded blobs that resemble a shaved monk's head, giving the hell its name.
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Beppu Ropeway
When the weather is clear this ropeway will take you 800 m up to the top of Mt. Tsurumi (1375 m) which has a full view of the city and Beppu Bay. Hours vary by season but mostly closes around dusk.
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Global Tower
An observatory 100 m up in Beppu City that gives a full 360 degree view of the city. It's part of the Beppu International Convention Plaza (B-Con Plaza) and about 15 minutes on foot from the west exit of Beppu Station, just across from the…
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Beppu City Traditional Bamboo Crafts Center
Has displays on bamboo craftsmanship and offers courses on making your own. Buses run from JR Beppu Station.
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What to do
Beppu onsen bathing
Worth itAlso recommended by Japan Guide
Soak in the actual hot-spring baths the city is famous for, as distinct from the hells, which are for viewing only.
Vetted sources
Yume Tamatebako
1-gumi, Kannawa-kita-naka
A good place to start when you've never been to an Onsen before, as it's more like a public bath than a traditional Onsen. Features six types of indoor and outdoor baths, including an electric bath and a Japanese-style sauna.
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Hyōtan Onsen
A large complex with indoor and outdoor baths using several types of wood and stones, sauna and steam rooms, a waterfall bath, and a dry sand bath. There is a restaurant inside the complex.
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Tanayu Onsen
Part of Suginoi Palace Hotel
Many different baths and a sauna with stunning view of the city.
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Public baths
Such as Mushiyu (historical steam bath), Shibunoyu, Shoninyu, Jigokubaruyu, Netsunoyu, Sujiyu and Taninoyu.
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Takegawara Onsen
16-23 Motomachi
A Meiji-era classic. The hot bath is extraordinarily hot, and signs gently remind you that the regulars like it that way. If you're not in a hurry, take a dip after you've been buried up to your neck in hot sand on the other side of the…
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Yukemuri Observation Platform
To see hot springs steam against mountains.
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What to eat
Hit Parade Club
A uniquely Japanese experience, Hit Parade is an all you can eat buffet and all you can drink (alcoholic or not) American 1950s Dance Hall. A live band performs songs from 1950s America while locals perform coordinated dance moves in front…
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Hanatokei Coffee and Tea
Daisansou-Iriguchi bus stop (Oita Kotsu Bus toward Ritsumeikan)
Hanatokei is run by Mrs. Matsumoto, a devoted student of coffee beans and baking. The menu includes Japanese and Western style dishes.
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Toyotsune
as you exit the East Exit of Beppu Train Station, it's opposite the station on the left side tucked in the corner
A small but cozy outlet. The place's friendly okami-san has an English menu (inquire inside). The place serves a good tendon (2 big prawns!) and it comes with a miso soup which is also the shop's specialty, with a stronger taste than the…
Vetted sources
Where to stay
Happy Neko
in the Kannawa onsen area, 10 min walk from Jigoku
Budget accommodation in traditional Japanese style. There are many restaurants and onsens in the neighborhood. Free parking. They speak Japanese, English and Czech.
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Nogamihonkan Ryokan
it's a few minutes from JR Beppu Station on Ekimae-dori; turn right at the first street once you see the post office across the street on your left
New, spacious and well-appointed rooms, with meals and 3 private and 2 public onsen available. There is a fluent English speaker on staff during the day-time hours.
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Yokoso Ryokan
25 min. by bus from Beppu station
A traditional Japanese-style hotel equipped with hot springs baths and steam-powered ovens.
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Beppu Guest House
5 minutes walking south east from Beppu station
Great location, nice staff, free laundry.
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OMOLOSO Hostel
鉄輪東８組
Fantastically decorated rooms in a traditional Japanese-style home. Toshi-san speaks English well and gives invaluable tips about the surrounding area. Features a well-equipped kitchen and a common room to meet and greet. Opened July 2023.
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Cabosu House Beppu Hamayu
8 minutes walk from JR Beppu Station east exit
Clean and cozy. English-speaking desk staff. Has own public natural hot spring (free for guests).
Vetted sources
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Travel content from Wikivoyage, CC BY-SA 4.0. Encyclopedic context from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Videos via the YouTube Data API.