Port of Beppu cruise port guide

Port of Beppu — Beppu, Japan.

Beppu is Japan's hot spring capital in a category of its own — more geothermal hot spring water flows from the ground here than anywhere else in the world outside Yellowstone, with over 2,900 separate spring sources producing 130,000 litres of steaming water per minute. The city is perpetually wreathed in steam venting from drains, roadsides and hillside pipes; the smell of sulfur is constant and oddly welcoming after the first few minutes. The famous 'Hells of Beppu' (Jigoku Meguri) are eight extraordinary geothermal pools of vivid, otherworldly colours used for viewing and therapeutic purposes rather than bathing. Beyond the spectacle, Beppu is a genuine working onsen town with hundreds of traditional public baths (sentō and onsen) where locals bathe daily — from the steaming sand baths to the wood-panelled communal pools of Kannawa district. Ships dock at Beppu Port, 5–10 minutes by taxi from the main city and the Jigoku Meguri cluster.

Getting ashore

Where do cruise ships dock in Beppu?

Ships dock at Beppu Port — no tender required. The terminal is close to the city centre; Beppu Station is approximately 10–15 minutes by taxi or local bus from the port. The main Jigoku (Hells) cluster in the Kannawa district is approximately 15 minutes by taxi from the port (¥1,500–2,000). Local buses from Beppu Station reach Kannawa in about 25 minutes.

How do I get from the cruise port to town?

The Beppu Ropeway to Tsurumi-dake Peak departs from above the city and takes a taxi to reach. The port has taxis and tourist information available at the terminal.

Getting around

The most convenient transport between the port and the Hells is taxi (approximately ¥1,500–2,000 to Kannawa). Local buses connect Beppu Station (a short taxi or bus from the port) to the Kannawa area (Kamenoi buses from the west exit, approximately 20–25 minutes). An IC card (Suica or Nimoca — the local Kyushu IC card) covers buses and local trains. The Hells are divided into two clusters, in Kannawa and Shibaseki, about 1.5 km apart — a short bus or taxi ride. The Beppu Ropeway trailhead requires a separate taxi from Kannawa. Many passengers hire a taxi for the day (negotiate a fixed multi-site fare — approximately ¥8,000–12,000 for a 4–5 hour round trip covering Kannawa hells, Chinoike Jigoku, and other sites).

Don't miss

• Jigoku Meguri (Eight Hells tour) — The defining Beppu experience: a circuit of eight extraordinary geothermal pools, each with a distinct character, colour and geological origin. The must-see hells: Umi Jigoku (Sea Hell) — a vivid cobalt-blue boiling pool, the largest and most photographed, coloured by dissolved iron sulfate; Chinoike Jigoku (Blood Pond Hell) — a deep crimson pool coloured by iron and magnesium oxide, described as Japan's oldest natural hell, recorded some 1,300 years ago; Shiraike Jigoku (White Pond Hell) — a milky white-blue thermal pool; Bozu Jigoku (Monk Hell) — grey bubbling mud erupting in slow, round bursts; Kamado Jigoku (Cooking Hell) — named for the tradition of cooking offerings on the steam vents, with multiple thermal pools of different colours. Tickets are sold individually per hell or as a combination pass covering all seven main sites (the combined pass costs approximately ¥2,200 and is the best value). Allow 2–3 hours to walk the full circuit at a relaxed pace.
• Traditional onsen bathing in Kannawa district — Beppu's Kannawa district, the setting of the Hells, also has a concentration of small, inexpensive traditional public baths (¥100–300 entry) that locals use daily. Hyotan Onsen in Kannawa is one of the best-known — a larger, pricier (about ¥1,160) multi-pool complex with indoor, outdoor, sand bath and steam bath options, open to visitors without reservation. Experiencing an actual Beppu bath rather than just viewing the Hells from outside adds an entirely different dimension to the visit. Basic bathing etiquette: wash thoroughly at the shower stations before entering any pool; tattoos are banned at most traditional onsen.
• Sand bath at Beppu Kaihin Sunayu — Beppu's signature therapeutic experience: burial up to the neck in naturally heated volcanic sand on the beach, tended by an attendant who covers the body with a wooden shovel. The sand at Beppu Kaihin Sunayu on the beachfront is naturally heated by thermal water below; sessions last about 15 minutes (a sand-bath yukata is provided). Profoundly relaxing and genuinely unlike any other onsen format. A beach sand bath at Beppu Kaihin Sunayu is the most quintessentially Beppu experience available.
• Beppu Ropeway and Tsurumi-dake — A gondola ropeway ascending Mount Tsurumi-dake (1,375m) from a hillside station above Beppu city, with panoramic views of the Beppu plain, the geothermal steam columns rising from the city, and Beppu Bay. The summit is within the Aso-Kuju National Park and has a short walking trail to the highest point. The combination of the thermal steam rising from thousands of vents below and the backdrop of Beppu Bay makes for an outstanding aerial view of the city's geothermal character.

Planning your day

Beppu is essentially a single-destination day: the Jigoku Meguri and an onsen experience are the entire programme and together fill a comfortable 4–5 hours. Arrive at Kannawa early (by 9am) when queues at the most popular hells (Umi Jigoku and Chinoike Jigoku) are short. Walk the Kannawa cluster (five hells, approximately 90 minutes), buy and eat jigoku-mushi eggs and pudding at the Steam Kitchen, then take a short taxi or bus ride to the Shibaseki cluster (Chinoike Jigoku and Tatsumaki Jigoku, 30 minutes). Lunch at a Kannawa toriten restaurant, then either a sand bath at Beppu Kaihin Sunayu (30 minutes, back near the port) or an onsen soak at Hyotan (60 minutes). The combined Jigoku pass is best purchased at the first site. Passengers who want to skip the cultural sites and focus entirely on the bathing experience can spend the whole day between Hyotan Onsen and the sand bath — both are 10–15 minutes from the port and require no further logistics.

Food & drink

Beppu's food culture is shaped entirely by its onsen — jigoku-mushi (hell-steamed cooking) is the defining culinary tradition, using steam from live geothermal vents to cook vegetables, eggs, seafood and dumplings in bamboo baskets. The local chicken (Oita Jidori), Beppu reimen (cold noodles), and Toriten (Oita-style chicken tempura) round out a distinctive regional cuisine.

Where to eat

• Jigoku-mushi Kobo (Hell Steam Kitchen) — The purpose-built public steam cooking facility in Kannawa, where visitors buy raw ingredients from the adjacent shop and cook them in bamboo steamers over live geothermal vents. The experience is genuinely interactive and the results — particularly the eggs, sweet potatoes and dumplings — are outstanding. Open 10am–7pm (last orders 6pm), closed the third Wednesday of the month; minimal English instructions are available at the facility.
• Hyotan Onsen — One of Beppu's best-loved public onsen, awarded a Michelin recommendation, with a variety of pools including indoor, outdoor rock pools, waterfall baths, sand baths and steam rooms — all fed by natural Kannawa thermal water. Foreigners welcome (English signs, rental towels and yukatas available). A complete onsen experience in one facility, walking distance from the main Jigoku cluster.
• Beppu Kaihin Sunayu — The beachside sand bath (now run as Sand SPA at TKP Shonin Park), where hot spring water warms the beach sand to bathing temperature. The most atmospheric setting — beside the sea, with the steam columns of Beppu visible in the hills behind. A sand-bath yukata is provided, and a session is about 15 minutes under the sand. Open from 8am, with irregular closures about twice a month; it can get busy during cruise calls — arrive early or late in the port day.
• Toyotsune — A long-established Beppu restaurant serving the regional classics: toriten (the Oita chicken tempura set), tori tendon (tempura chicken on rice) and other tempura dishes. Popular with locals for lunch; the toriten set with rice and miso soup is a benchmark preparation of this Oita Prefecture speciality.

Must try

• Jigoku-mushi (hell-steamed cooking) — The signature Beppu food experience — cooking by placing ingredients in bamboo steamers over live geothermal vent openings in the Kannawa district, where steam issues from the ground at approximately 100°C. The Jigoku-mushi Kobo (Hell Steam Kitchen) in Kannawa is a public facility where visitors purchase raw ingredients (eggs, vegetables, seafood, dumplings, sweet potato) from the adjacent shop and steam them themselves in the vent baskets — eggs take 15 minutes and emerge with a firm white and creamy, rich yolk of extraordinary sweetness from the mineral-rich steam. Vegetables become sweeter; the seafood gains a clean, pure character. An irreplaceable and completely original cooking experience.
• Toriten (Oita chicken tempura) — A tempura preparation unique to Oita Prefecture — fresh Oita Jidori (free-range chicken) thigh meat, marinated in soy, sake and ginger, then dipped in a light tempura batter and fried to a thin, feathery crisp. Served with ponzu (citrus soy) and grated daikon for dipping. The chicken's natural flavour comes through clearly beneath the light batter — completely unlike the heavier battered chicken of standard karaage. A regular item at restaurants and izakayas throughout Beppu and Oita city.
• Beppu reimen (chilled buckwheat noodles) — A cold noodle dish brought to Beppu by Korean immigrants in the postwar period and now thoroughly assimilated as a local speciality. Buckwheat noodles served in a cold, clear beef-based broth with sliced beef, kimchi, hard-boiled egg, cucumber and a wedge of watermelon — the watermelon is the Beppu signature addition, its sweetness balancing the slightly spicy broth. Best in summer but served year-round. Found at specialist reimen restaurants and izakayas throughout Beppu.
• Jigoku-mushi pudding (onsen tamago and steamed egg custard) — The soft-set onsen tamago (spring egg) slow-cooked at the precise temperature at which the white remains barely set while the yolk is silky and custard-like — the thermal water temperature allows this that cannot be replicated on a stove. Sold as take-away at Umi Jigoku and other hells. Geothermal steam pudding (purin) — a firm caramel custard cooked in small ceramic cups by the vent steam — is sold at the Jigoku-mushi facility and at souvenir shops throughout Kannawa.

Know before you go

• 🗣️Language — Japanese. The Jigoku Meguri sites have reasonable English signage and audio guides available at the ticket offices. Onsen facilities in Kannawa have minimal English — basic gestures and a translation app handle the essential interactions. Beppu is accustomed to foreign visitors given its status as a famous hot spring resort.
• 📋Documents — A valid passport is required. Japan is visa-free for US, EU, UK, Australian and most Western citizens for stays up to 90 days. Note: tattoos are not permitted at the vast majority of onsen facilities in Japan, including most Beppu establishments — check facility policies before planning a bathing visit.
• 🛍️Shopping & hours — The Jigoku sites have excellent souvenir shops: best buys include jigoku-mushi pudding in ceramic cups, onsen salts, Oita Jidori chicken products, Beppu reimen dry noodle packs, and geothermal spring bath salts. The Kannawa district has artisan shops with local pottery. Shops open from approximately 8:30–9am; all Jigoku sites are open by 8am. The combined Jigoku pass is the best value for seeing multiple sites.
• 🌤️Weather — Beppu has a relatively mild climate for Japan — warm, humid summers (July–September, 28–33°C) and mild winters (January–February, 6–12°C). Cruise calls typically fall in spring (April–May) or autumn (September–October): mild temperatures of 16–25°C and often clear skies. The steam from the geothermal sources makes the Kannawa area perpetually misty regardless of weather. Light layers work well — the steam zones are warm even on cool days, but the walk between hells is breezy.
• 📶Connectivity — Good 4G coverage from NTT Docomo, SoftBank and au throughout Beppu city and the Kannawa district. Nimoca IC card (Kyushu's local IC card) works on buses and at convenience stores; Suica also accepted. Free Wi-Fi at the port terminal and at major Jigoku sites. The ropeway summit has limited connectivity.
• ♿Accessibility — The Jigoku Meguri sites are variable for accessibility: Umi Jigoku has paved paths and is largely accessible; Chinoike Jigoku and Bozu Jigoku have some ramps but also uneven stone paths. The sand bath at Beppu Kaihin Sunayu requires lying down on the beach — accessibility staff can assist. Hyotan Onsen has some accessible bathing areas. The Beppu Ropeway gondola is accessible; the summit walk is natural terrain.
• ⏱️Getting back — From Kannawa to the port by taxi takes approximately 15 minutes (¥1,500–2,000). Bus from Kannawa to Beppu Station takes 25 minutes; the station area is a short taxi or bus ride from the port. Build 30–45 minutes buffer. If on a hired round-trip taxi, confirm the return time with the driver at the outset of the excursion — Jigoku circuits can run long when queues form at popular hells.

Sources: beppu-jigoku.com (official Hells site); onsen-beppu.net; japan-guide.com/e/e4700.html; hyotan-onsen.com