| Kagoshima Prefecture (鹿 児 島(ja)) | |
 | |
| The city of Kagoshima and the Sakurajima volcano. | |
| Information | |
| Country |  Japan |
|---|---|
| Region | Kyushu |
| Prefecture | Kagoshima |
| Area | 9 132,42 km² |
| Population | 1 586 435 hab. () |
| Density | 173,71 inhab./km² |
| Spindle | Japan Standard Time |
| Location | |
&groups=aller,circuler,voir,faire,acheter,manger,sortir,loger,ville,destination,diplomatie,masque,around,buy,city,do,drink,eat,go,listing,other,see,sleep,vicinity,view,black,blue,brown,chocolate,forestgreen,gold,gray,grey,lime,maroon,mediumaquamarine,navy,red,royalblue,silver,steelblue,teal,fuchsia) 30 ° 0 ′ 0 ″ N 129 ° 24 ′ 0 ″ E | |
| Official site | |
| Touristic site | |
Kagoshima is a prefecture japanese, the southernmost of the region and island of Kyushu, at Japan.
Understand
Kagoshima Prefecture is located at the southern end of Kyushu, which is the southernmost of Japan's four main islands. Here you can experience Yakushima's majestic cedar forests, active volcanoes such as Sakurajima, hot springs in abundance, samurai history, and rich nature. The prefecture consists of two peninsulas, originally separate areas called Satsuma (薩摩), to the west, and Ōsumi (大 隅), to the east, as well as the island chains stretching south towards Okinawa.
In addition to the website of the Kagoshima Prefecture Visitors Bureau, the prefecture has a other official website presenting various attractions in the form of videos.
Story
Kagoshima was once known as Satsuma (薩摩) and was one of the most powerful Japanese provinces, ruling in its heyday an empire whose effective domain stretched from Okinawa in the south to the north of Kyushu. Fiercely reactionary, the town of Kagoshima was bombarded by English warships in 1863 in retaliation for the assassination of an English merchant, an event still known to the Japanese as the Satsuma-England war (薩 英 戦 争, Satsu-Ei sensō).
While initially in favor of the Meiji Restoration of 1868 and was a key contributor to the military defeat of the shogun's forces, Satsuma later resisted attempts by the new government to roll back samurai privileges. By 1877 the province had made a complete U-turn and was now at the forefront of the satsuma rebellion (西南 戦 争Seinan-sensō), led somewhat reluctantly by Saigō Takamori (西 郷 隆盛) a quasi-mythical character whose story has been (very loosely) adapted for the film "the last samurai". Outnumbered and outnumbered, the rebels failed to take the castle of Kumamoto and were soon hunted down, Saigō dying in the final battle of Shiroyama at Kagoshima.
With the end of the rebellion, the port of Satsuma was transformed into an imperial naval fortress which gave birth to the Japanese admiral Tōgō Heihachiro.
Weather
The sub-tropical part of Kagoshima is the rainiest area of Japan, knowing not one but two rainy seasons which extend almost without interruption from May to July. Parts of Yakushima receive nearly 9 000 mm of precipitation (9 m, about seven times more than Tokyo!).
Shortly after the rainy season comes the typhoons, with a peak in August and September. The following season is one of the best times to visit, as is spring and its cherry blossoms at the end of March. Winter can be surprisingly cold, with average temperatures on the coast around 7 ° C and snow in the mountains.
Regions
Satsuma Peninsula
The Satsuma Peninsulas (薩摩) and Ōsumi offer picturesque coasts, dotted with tiny islets.
- 1 Kagoshima (鹿 児 島) – The capital and largest city of the prefecture, with a relaxed atmosphere, and great views and access to a very active volcano, the Sakurajima.
- 1 Chiran (知 覧) – Home to the Chiran Peace Museum, a place to discover the moving stories of the often very young suicide bombers of World War II. Also a the location of many samurai houses.
- 2 Ibusuki (指 宿) – A very quiet area where to relax; the place to try Japan's famous "sand baths". Close to Mount Kaimon, the iconic mountain by the ocean, where the most active travelers can climb and be rewarded with stunning views at the top.
- 2 Izumi (出水) – Samurai houses open to the public, and in winter a refuge for flocks of birds of vulnerable species, and fairly large white-necked cranes.
- 3 Kirishima (霧 島) – A mountain range with active volcanoes, crater lakes and year round landscapes that are sometimes from another world. The source of some of Japan's earliest myths. Many thermal springs.
- 3 Satsumasendai (薩摩川 内)
Ōsumi peninsula
- 4 Sakurajima (桜 島) – The active volcano bordering Kagoshima.
- 4 Kanoya (鹿 屋) – Place at the edge of a bay hosting a famous rose garden.
- 5 Cape Sata (佐 多 岬, sata misaki) – The southernmost point of Kyūshū.
He is
- Koshikijima Islands (甑 島 列島) (West)
Kagoshima also includes a string of subtropical islands open to travelers seeking island adventures, stretching south and culturally strongly influenced by Okinawa. The northernmost group is known as theŌsumi islands (大 隈 諸島Ōsumi Shotō):
- 6 Kuchinoerabu (口 永良 部 島, Kuchinoerabu-jima) – Active volcanoes, hot springs and fishing
- 7 Mishima Islands (三島) – Three small volcanic islands, but a short hop from Kagoshima
- 8 Tanegashima Island (種子 島) (To 1 h 40 by boat from Kagoshima) – Home to Japan's largest space center.
- 9 Yakushima Island (屋 久 島) (To 1 h 40 / 2 h 30 by boat from Kagoshima) – A subtropical island, Unesco World Heritage, to the forests of timeless giant cedars; has its own unique variety of deer and monkeys, and some of the highest mountain peaks in the Kyushu region.
We then find:
- 10 Tokara Islands (ト カ ラ 列島) – Tiny, isolated and less popular islands
They are followed by others, much larger, but also sparsely populated:
- 11 Amami Islands (奄 美) – The most important island, both in area and in population.
- 12 Kikai (喜 界)
- 13 Tokunoshima (徳 之 島)
- 14 Okinoerabujima (沖 永良 部 島) – Small island with hundreds of caves and impressive coastlines.
- 15 Yoron (与 論) – Tiny and quiet island with heavenly beaches.
To go
By plane
Airport Kagoshima, at about 2 h flight from Tokyo, has good connections with the rest of Japan and connections with Seoul and Shanghai. There are also direct flights to Amami Oshima from Tokyo Haneda and Osaka-Itami.
By train
Kagoshima is the southern terminus of the Kyūshū Shinkansen Line. In March 2011, a new high-speed train service linking Kagoshima to Shin-Osaka in 3 h 45 was launched. With this commissioning, the main island of Japan and the southern tip of Kyushu are now connected, although one has to change trains to make the trip from Tokyo.
Alternatively, the JR Nippō main line (日 豊 本 線Nippō-honsen) goes from Fukuoka to Kagoshima via the east coast of Kyūshū, passing through Oita and Miyazaki.
By ferry
Virtually all ferries heading south to the Amami Islands orOkinawa pass through Kagoshima. The main operators are A-Line Ferry, a.k.a Maru-A (マ ル エ ー) and Marix Line, both circulating between Kagoshima and Naha (Okinawa) alternating every other day. The whole trip from Naha takes approx. 24 h and costs 14 200 JPY in 2nd class and - you don't save much compared to a plane ticket.
