Kamiamakusa (Amakusa)

Kyushu, Japan · Town / small city, Sea / Beach

The northern gateway to the Amakusa archipelago, linked to the mainland by the Amakusa Five Bridges: over 200 resident bottlenose dolphins with a sighting rate above 90% year-round, the scenic 'Pearl Line' drive between pine-covered islets, and seaside hot springs in Oyano and Matsushima.

The essentials

Getting there

Bus — Direct 'Amakusa-go' highway bus from Kumamoto Station or Sakuramachi Terminal to the Matsushima area, about 1h15min (longer services continue to Hondo, further south, up to 2h45min); 15 departures a day. There's no long-distance train here: the only JR line in the area (the Misumi Line) ends at Misumi port, before the Amakusa Five Bridges.

Frequently asked questions about Kamiamakusa (Amakusa)

What to do in Kamiamakusa (Amakusa): 25 activities

• Sakitsu village, World Heritage Site 2.5 h must-see booking

  A fishing village in Amakusa-shi, inscribed in 2018 in the UNESCO Hidden Christian Sites group: the only component in Kumamoto prefecture. Its 1934 church is Gothic and has tatami flooring instead of pews; visiting the interior requires a booking form before three the previous afternoon, and photography inside is not allowed. It reopened on 1 August 2026 after the earthquake.

• Wild dolphin watching 1.5 h must-see booking

  Over 200 resident bottlenose dolphins in the waters off Amakusa, with a sighting rate above 90% year-round; 60-90 minute boat trips. To be precise: the resident population, around two hundred Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins, lies off Tsujishima, in the Itsuwa area of Amakusa-shi, some forty to fifty minutes by car from Matsushima, even though it is marketed from Kamiamakusa. The industry has its own code of conduct: keep at least thirty metres away unless the dolphins themselves come closer, slow down within a radius of two hundred, do not feed them, do not chase them or cut across their path, and do not interfere with feeding, mating or birthing. It is worth asking the operator whether they apply it, and being wary of anyone who promises contact or swimming with dolphins.

• Amakusa Christian Museum 1.25 h

  In Hondo, open since 1966 and with the heaviest documentary weight of the four museums on the Christian circuit. Its centrepiece is the banner associated with Amakusa Shiro, the flag of the Shimabara-Amakusa rebellion.

• Amakusa Shiro Museum 1.25 h

  In Kamiamakusa. It tells the story of the 1637 rebellion nominally led by Amakusa Shiro, a teenager of about 16, and its outcome: some 37,000 rebels wiped out at Hara castle. Shiro is also a recurring character in Japanese manga, anime and video games, and this is his real-world anchor.

• Goshoura Dinosaur Island Museum 4 h booking

  On the island of Goshoura, refurbished in 2024 and reopened after the earthquake on 1 August 2026, with a fossil excavation activity. It is the centrepiece of the Amakusa-Goshoura Geopark, with Cretaceous fossils including dinosaur remains. Reached by ferry or sea taxi.

• Kyushu Olle route of Amakusa-Matsushima 4.5 h

  Eleven kilometres of intermediate difficulty crossing rice fields, hills and coast and climbing Sengan-moriake, with a panorama of the Five Bridges and, on clear days, of two bays at once. It ends near a foot bath looking out on the fifth bridge.

• Rosario Museum and Oe church 1.25 h

  In Oe, Amakusa-shi. The museum holds objects of clandestine worship, some with prefectural cultural protection, and opposite stands Oe church, Romanesque and white on a rise, put up in 1933 by Father Garnier. It is not a UNESCO component, unlike Sakitsu. Closed Wednesdays.

• Ryugatake astronomical observatory 2.5 h booking

  A summit park at 470 metres inside Unzen-Amakusa National Park, with an observatory, in an area recognised as one of the best in Japan for stargazing because of the absence of light pollution. It is the destination's only real night-time activity.

• Sakitsu's Suwa shrine and its alleys 0.75 h

  Next to the church, the Shinto shrine where hidden Christians disguised their prayers, and the web of narrow alleys between fishermen's houses. On the cape, a statue of Mary marks one of the eight best sunsets in Amakusa.

• Scenic drive over the Five Bridges (Pearl Line) 2 h

  Five bridges that have connected Amakusa to the mainland since 1966, over a sea dotted with pine-covered islets, with viewpoints such as Mount Senganzan. To be precise: the Five Bridges do not join two parts of Amakusa but Misumi — in Uki, already on the mainland — with Kamiamakusa. The island group they cross is called Amakusa Matsushima and is counted among the three great Matsushima of Japan. The classic panorama is not from the car but from Senganzan and Takabutoyama. After the earthquake of July 2026 the bridges and the main roads are undamaged and passable.

• Shimoda Onsen 14 h booking

  A historic spa town on the west coast of Amakusa-shi, with traditional ryokan facing the sunset over the sea. No significant earthquake damage according to the official bulletin of August 2026.

• Spa Thalasso Amakusa 2.5 h

  It combines natural onsen with thalassotherapy in a seawater circuit, at very low prices for what it offers. Closed Mondays and Thursdays outside the high season, and practically unknown outside Japan.

• Takahama-yaki porcelain workshop 1.75 h booking

  In Amakusa-shi, with porcelain painting sessions from 800 yen and booking the day before. On the same grounds, the museum of the family that historically controlled the area's porcelain stone.

• The cooking of Amakusa 1.75 h booking

  The Amakusa daio is a revived local breed of giant chicken, with firm meat. Alongside it come farmed tiger prawn, sea urchin in summer, oysters, octopus, Amakusa champon and the island's salt.

• The sunset line of the west coast 3 h

  Amakusa has an official list of its eight best sunsets. The essential ones are Takabutoyama, among the 100 best in Japan; Nishibira park, with a tree of hanging roots they call 'the Laputa of Amakusa'; and Myokenura, a protected natural rock arch. The Route 389 coast road strings them all together.

• Ushibuka Haiya Matsuri 5 h only mid-April

  Three days in mid-April in Ushibuka, with a mass dance along the shopping street and the bridge, a competition between groups, a fish market and a parade of the fishing fleet. Local tradition holds that the song was born between passing sailors and the women of the port when this was a trading hub.

• Amakusa Hondo Haiya Matsuri 4 h only late July to 1 August

  In late July in Hondo, with fireworks, a children's version of the dance and a competition. Warning: the big parade of 1 August 2026 was cancelled three days after the earthquake, although the fireworks did go ahead; check the format for the year.

• Amakusa Pearl Garden and floating aquarium 2.5 h

  The only aquarium floating on the sea in western Japan, with dolphin encounters, plus an Akoya pearl centre with an accessory-making workshop. Amakusa is a historic pearl farming area.

• Amakusa porcelain stone 1 h

  Amakusa produces around 80 per cent of Japan's porcelain stone, some 20,000 tonnes a year, and supplies the porcelain centres of the rest of the country. The scholar Hiraga Gennai described it in the Edo period as of unmatched quality in the world. It is the direct, and little exploited, link between this destination and Arita.

• Amakusa spiny lobster fair 2 h booking only late August to late December

  A food campaign from late August to late December in which nearly 20 establishments serve menus of freshly caught spiny lobster, with ferry discounts for participants.

• Beaches of Amakusa 3 h

  Higoai is the largest in Kamiamakusa; Hakutsuru-hama is the white-sand one on the west coast of Amakusa-shi; and Tomioka is in the village of Reihoku. The official swimming season with lifeguards ends on 31 August.

• Diving and snorkelling in Ushibuka 3.5 h booking

  The south coast of Amakusa-shi is a dive site well known in Japan, above all for its wealth of nudibranchs, with several centres offering try-dives and guided snorkelling.

• Tomioka castle and Reihoku local guides 2.5 h booking

  In the village of Reihoku, the castle rebuilt as a visitor centre was the domain's stronghold during the rebellion. The local association offers resident guides with three routes, of one to three hours, around the traces of the rebellion, the walls and the sites of the martyrdom.

• Yushima, the cat island 5 h booking

  A small island of Kamiamakusa in the Ariake sea, four kilometres around and with some 260 inhabitants, with a regular ferry. It is called the cat island for the way cats and residents live side by side, but its historical name is 'council island': the rebellion's strategic meetings were held here. Sea urchin and abalone are eaten.

• Kamiamakusa Onsenkyo hot springs 1 h

  Two seaside onsen areas, in Oyano and Matsushima, with baths looking straight out over the archipelago. Verified status: the prefecture's official bulletin of September 2026 confirms that Kamiamakusa suffered no significant damage to tourist facilities or accommodation after the earthquake of 28 July, and that it can be visited and stayed in as normal. The problem is economic, not physical: bookings are running at around half the usual level because of confusion with the damage on the mainland, which is concentrated in Uki, Uto, Hikawa and Yatsushiro.

What only happens on specific dates

• Ushibuka Haiya Matsuri mid-April
• Amakusa Hondo Haiya Matsuri late July to 1 August
• Amakusa spiny lobster fair late August to late December

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