Beppu Hell Hot Pools
The 7 hell springs of Beppu are a must see when in Beppu if only because it is very easy to get to (5 are in one location and the other two are a short bus ride away). Most things in Kyushu are long car rides away but these unique hot spring pools (deadly to humans so you can’t go for a dip) are a pleasant half a day sightseeing, albeit fairly crowded with tourists (mostly Japanese) at weekends and holidays.
Either take a bus to the main entrance or else drive and park in one of the nearby car parks that you can see below.
Below are the routes from Kamegawa station (bus) or else from Beppu station (different bus). They recommend number 26 (26A for reverse direction) however there are a ton of buses in Beppu to choose from so use Google maps to figure it out to/from this bus stop or this bus stop to get to the main entrance or to move to the 2 satellite hells after visiting the first 5 hells. It depends on where you are staying in Beppu. The best resorts are fairly far away up the mountain side so getting to know the buses is quite useful. There is a website for searching bus routes in Oita however it doesn’t show the routes on a map so is very confusing. Best stick to Google Maps.
The hell pools are close to one another and can be walked in any order once you get a ticket at the main entrance. If you want details on each hell pool then read this English brochure from the official website (Google translate only). The main website has poor English support however the website for one of the individual pools has a proper English section with prices. It is recommended to buy the 7 pools ticket but you can pay to enter the satellite pools separately.
Umi (Ocean) Hell
Official homepage for this pool only. There is a foot-bath also nearby.
Red Hell
This hell isn’t written on the maps however is a few meters away from the Umi Hell, next to the foot baths on the way to the Oniishibozu Hell.
Oniishibozu (Devil’s shaven Head) Hell
There is a foot-bath also nearby.
Kamado Hell
Official homepage of this pool only.
Shirake (White Lake) Hell
Oniyama (Devil’s Mountain) Jigoku
If you are against animal cruelty then this place isn’t for you. Same goes for any pet shop in Japan and also the Aso Country Dominion Bear Park, which is a spectacular concrete bear nightmare.
Chinoike (Blood Lake) Hell
Official homepage of this pool only.
Tatsumaki (Whirlwind) Hell
Other hell pools (not part of the 7 main ones)
Mountain Hell – includes a small zoo (separate entrance fee of ¥500) (map)
