Suncloud Outfitters, which is just off the beaten track in central Yufuin, is widely sort out for its range of lesser-known but quality Japanese and overseas outdoor wear brands for both adults and children together with the gear to go with it. Unusually, it also rents out trekking and camping gear.
The Showa-no-machi quarter in Bungo-Takada, a small city settled into the north-west shoulder of the Kunisaki Peninsula, seems to have been stopped in a retro time warp centred on the 1950s. A time when Japan was well on the way to recovery after the devastation of the Second World War, Showa-no-machi’s Ma & Pa and brick-a-brack shops not only has nostalgic appeal to older Japanese but has a warmth of feeling that any visitor can enjoy.
Hita, set in deep countryside in the west of Oita, is at the centre of northern Kyushu. Serving as the shogun’s most important stronghold on the island, roads fanned out in all directions allowing the rapid transmission of information and dispatch of military forces to suppress any dissent.
Usuki’s grand temples hints at the power it once held and wealth it accumulated in the Edo Period, when the samurai ruled the land. Today, it is a compact and quiet town of stone-paved streets, lined by a number of traditional buildings, that are pleasant to stroll around. Of particular note is the traditional Inaba Family samurai house, which has a delightful Japanese garden, and the pagoda at Ryugen-ji temple.
