Travelers looking to experience more of Japan beyond its most popular destinations, such as Tokyo, Kyoto, and Mount Fuji, have an enticing new option.
Those three tourism behemoths are located on Honshu, the largest and most populous of Japan's four main islands. Some of Honshu's best-known attractions have gotten so swarmed with visitors at certain times of the year that officials have recently introduced crowd-thinning measures such as fees to climb Mount Fuji and higher rates for foreigners at cherry blossom sites.
The mood is different, though, on the tip of Kyushu, the southernmost of the country's main islands.
There, the scenic Kagoshima Prefecture is actually trying to attract more international tourists and is making it easier to get there by giving away free tickets aboard Japan's famed Shinkansen network of high-speed bullet trains.
The promotion is a collaboration between Kagoshima Prefecture and Klook, an online platform for booking hotels and tours that's popular in East and Southeast Asia.
To get free one-way Shinkansen tickets for those in your party, travelers must fly into Fukuoka Airport, located in Kyushu's gateway city, and travelers must book at least 1 night in a participating Kagoshima Prefecture hotel via Klook.
Meet those requirements and speedy trains can whisk you from Fukuoka to one of three Kagoshima stations in under 2 hours at no extra charge. Ordinarily, that trip by bullet train would cost about 11,420 yen ($72).
What to do and where to stay in Kagoshima, Japan
Once you get there, you'll be treated to views of mighty Sakurajima—an active volcano puffing smoke above Kagoshima City (pictured at the top of this page)—and the 17th-century Sengan-en Garden.
The seaside prefecture also offers steamed sand baths, which give you whatever therapeutic benefits come from being buried up to your neck in warm volcanic sand, and local culinary delicacies like Wagyu beef and black pork.
You have plenty of good lodging options to choose from. Klook's promo page lists several participating properties that are recommended in the most recent edition of Frommer's Japan, including Art Hotel Kagoshima, Hotel Gasthof, Richmond Hotel Kagoshima Kinseicho, and Shiroyama Hotel.
Frommer's Japan
Frommer’s books aren’t written by committee, by A.I., or by travel writers who simply pop in briefly to a destination and then consider the job done. We use seasoned, locally-based journalists like David McElhinney, who lives in Japan, and has been published widely, covering the country’s extraordin...
Get the bookFrommer's Japan
Frommer’s books aren’t written by committee, by A.I., or by travel writers who simply pop in briefly to a destination and then consider the job done. We use seasoned, locally-based journalists like David McElhinney, who lives in Japan, and has been published widely, covering the country’s extraordin...
Many hotels involved with the campaign advertise nightly rates at Klook that are equivalent to around $100 or less.
How to redeem the offer for free bullet-train tickets
To redeem the offer for free Shinksansen tickets, get the special promo code from Klook's website and apply the code when booking your stay at one of the participating Kagoshima hotels.
After completing a short online survey, you'll receive another code to use for booking a free Shinksansen journey to Kagoshima from Hakata, the train station near Fukuoka Airport (a short subway ride from the airport terminal will take you to Hakata).
The offer remains valid through Feb. 28, 2027, and is currently open only to residents of the U.S., Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and mainland China.
To read the terms and conditions or to redeem, go to Klook.com.
From Kagoshima, you can further sample Kyushu's hot springs and other underrated charms, advises Japan's SoraNews24, by getting the 7-day JR Kyushu Rail Pass, which covers transportation across the entire island for 25,000 yen ($158).