3 days around Kumamoto

Hi again!

Hope your plans are coming together well for Japan!
I think staying one night at Kurakawa and two in Kumamoto is a great plan!
This because it will limit the amount of time that you have to carry your luggage around and Mount Aso makes for a great day trip from Kumamoto so you won't have to stay there.

You can reach Osaka directly by Shinkansen from Kumamoto, so if you stay there the last couple of nights you will have an easy trip back to Osaka.

Hope this helps,
Daniel

Hi Daniel-san

The plans are coming along great, but I have one more question regarding our stay in Kurokawa - what would be the best way to travel from Nagasaki to Kurokawa?

Some people have suggested I take the ferry to Kumamoto then use trains and a bus, but I want to get there as soon as I possibly can and use the JR Pass. Can you suggest the best way/route to get there which will take the least amount of time? As we have only one night in Kurokawa we want to get the most out of our short time there.

Thanks again!

Hi Again,

Glad to hear things are coming together!
It is a bit hard to compare travel times, because I don`t have the time tables for the ferries and all buses. I know that the bus from Kumamoto alone is 3 hours so all in all there may not be that much of a difference.

The best way to travel there by JR-Pass is to travel to Mount Aso and take a bus from there (it takes about 1h/1000Yen from there). Buses from there leave at 10:28 11:28 12:28 14:40 and 17:12.

阿蘇駅前 is Aso Station 黒川温泉 is Kurokawa Onsen

I would recommend the following route 2 or 3. Than take the bus from 12:28 from Aso. All together it will be a bit of a trip but I think it will be well worth it and you can enjoy the Onsen after! Also the limited express trains are very pleasant to travel on.

Hope this helps,
Daniel