Yufuin and Beppu are two onsen towns that sit on the north-eastern coast of Kyushu. If you have time, you should definitely visit them both. Sadly, time is often a commodity with all that Japan has to offer. So with considerations to logistics and costs, it may make more sense to stick to just one for your next Japan adventure.
TLDR:
Choose Yufuin if you’re interested in a more curated tourist experience where the main street has it all – local treats, a Studio Ghibli themed village, the backdrop of Mt. Yufu, and a beautiful lake for Instagram. On the other hand, choose Beppu if the Hells of Beppu look interesting to you, or if you’re the onsen-hopping type ready to dip into one public bath after another.
[Considering Logistics]
Since the two cities are geographically close, it may be tempting to visit them both, like us. But unless you have a lot of free time and maybe an extra day, you might run into some of the same inconveniences as we did.
We chose to stay one day each in Yufuin and Beppu and started our trip via the Yufuin-no-mori from Hakata (make sure to book ahead when reservations open!!). The train ride was gorgeous and we got to Yufuin just before 1. However, since we wanted to do an afternoon soak before our ryokan dinner, we didn’t have time to walk around town until the next morning.
The next day, we visited the main street and had lunch near Kinrin Lake. The streets were lined with cute shops and cafes to dip into, which we often did. It was a bit crowded but probably still light by Yufuin standard as this was in early October. I bought a deck of cards with the Very Hungry Caterpillar design for my cards collection =).
It was a good way to spend the morning, but ultimately we felt a bit rushed because we knew we had to catch another hour+ train to Beppu. And of course by the time we got to Beppu, we again wouldn’t have time to walk around town until the next day.
And that more or less captures the main issue. If you stay one day in both cities, there’s just not quite enough time to accommodate an afternoon check-in while also being able to leisurely sightsee the rest of the city once you factor in the travel time.
Waking up early or catching a faster train might be an alternative, but if you’re booking an onsen to relax and forget about life, this time pressure might not be something you want. Another solution is to opt for less time at the baths in favor of going out, but it wouldn’t feel great either since the ryokans can get pretty expensive.
Looking back, we would’ve liked to stay at the same city for two days, which would give us enough time to bathe, visit the local sights, and most importantly, relax.
[The Ryokan Experience]
In Yufuin we stayed at Yufuin Yamadaya, which was near picture perfect. It’s close to the train station yet far away enough from the crowds on the main road. In the morning, walk along the Oita River and smell the earthiness of bladed grass covered in dew. It doesn’t get much better.
The ryokan has only about 15 rooms and it’s beautifully decorated with a large garden area. A true ryokan experience without missing any of the modern amenities. We paid USD$550 for a room with a private bath, a Kaiseki dinner course, and the breakfast. Not the cheapest but I think well worth the price. Just remember to opt for room-only if you’re staying for more than one night.
In Beppu, we stayed at Sanso Kannawaen. They have several buildings in the complex and you could immediately tell that this is a bigger operation. They sent a taxi to pick us up from the train station, and when we arrived, we were greeted by someone who spoke our native language.
The rooms were bigger and the kaiseki dinner was a bit better, but I felt the onsen itself was a bit lacking. Our private onsen sat in an empty patio without much greenery or décor. It was missing a bit of that traditional ryokan charm compared to the previous place.
We paid USD$570 which was pretty similar to Yufuin Yamadaya. In all, I preferred the Yufuin place a bit more. That’s the other thing about visiting both cities – since the onsen experience will be similar, you can’t help but compare and invariably be disappointed by one of them.
We didn’t get a chance to try any public baths outside of the hotels (another reason to stay in one place!), but if that’s the main attraction for you, Beppu will offer many more options in that regard. The city has the largest volume of hot springs in Japan and you can see that everywhere. There are billows of white smoke throughout the city and plenty of public baths along the main street known as ‘Ideyu-zaka’, including one for just 100 yen!
[Final Thoughts]
Online critiques of Yufuin mostly argue that it’s too commercialized and geared towards tourists, which is true, but the same can really be said about the Hells of Beppu. In the end, very few places stay as hidden gems forever.
If you’re worried about this, I can see Yufuin being more crowded during peak season because everything is centered around one street. It was already busy when we went in October. In that case, Beppu is more spread out and may give you a better local experience.
Lastly, I didn’t get a chance to go to Kurokawa onsen in this trip so I can’t speak too much to that, but in my research, it was a bit more hassle as only buses operate. In general, I think they are also positioned as more luxurious and therefore more expensive. If you’re a first-time visitor to Kyushu, Yufuin or Beppu might be a better start. In the end, save yourself enough time and you can’t go wrong. Going to an onsen is a relaxing experience and like everything else in Japan, the minimum bar is still very high.