Getting to Kurokawa Onsen

No train reaches Kurokawa. One direct bus from Fukuoka runs the three hours to the village, and every other route ends on the same mountain road.

One direct bus from Hakata or Fukuoka Airport, 3 hours 6 minutes from Tenjin, ¥4,000. No train reaches the village.

One scenic Ōdan bus crosses the Aso caldera to Kurokawa in about three hours — but just twice a day, booked the night before.

From Aso Station the Kyūshū Ōdan bus reaches Kurokawa in about 50 scenic minutes — three a day, booked the night before.

One daily Ōdan bus threads Beppu and Yufuin to Kurokawa over the Kujū highlands — about 2.5 h from Beppu, 1.5 from Yufuin.

The Odan bus stops at the airport itself, so the simplest arrival in Kyushu is also one of the easiest. No trip into Kumamoto city, no transfer, one seat to the village.

Nothing runs from Nagasaki to Kurokawa in one seat. The trick is knowing which of the two connections to make, and Kiyama is the one nobody tells you about.