Miyazaki City 宮崎市

Miyazaki: the city of palm trees and Shinto myths

Miyazaki is a pleasant city located in the Miyazaki prefecture, in the southeast of the island of Kyushu. With its mild year-round climate (Miyazaki is the sunniest city in Japan), its coast popular with surfers, and its wide streets lined with palm trees (symbols of the city), Miyazaki has a tropical air and it was the favorite destination of the Japanese for their honeymoon until the early 1980s. But the city and its region are also and above all a place of legends and founding myths of Japan. Welcome to “Himuka no Kuni”: the land of the rising sun.

Aoshima Island

About 15 kilometers from Miyazaki, Aoshima Island is Miyazaki's top destination. You can get there on foot via a bridge or by tuk-tuk!

This small island of 1.5 kilometers in circumference is distinguished by the strange rock formations that surround it. They are nicknamed Oni no Sentaku-ita, "the devil's washboards" because their bumps and hollows are reminiscent of old washboards. These rocks eroded by winds and tides also line much of the coast south of Miyazaki.

Aoshima, Miyazaki

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Aoshima Beach Park

Aoshima Beach Park

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Aoshima, Miyazaki

Aoshima, Miyazaki

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You can try to attract luck by throwing a small "undama" stone (lucky ball). Women throw them with the right hand and men with the left hand. If you can throw your undama into the circle on a rock below, luck will smile on you.

Access: to visit these different sites, it is possible to buy a bus pass for 1500 yen (about $12.50/11.50€) in front of Miyazaki station and visit Aoshima and Udo Jingu which are on the same line. Count one day to enjoy the two sites because the buses are not very frequent. In summer, you can also get off at the Futo stop to enjoy its very pretty little beach.

Udo-jingu, Miyazaki

Udo-jingu, Miyazaki

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Udo-jingu, Miyazaki

Udo-jingu

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Miyazaki's culinary specialties

The prefecture is famous for its mangoes. However, their exorbitant price may not allow you to taste them (around $13.25/12€ minimum for a mango), especially since the season extends from May to July. If you don't eat the fruit, you can console yourself with sorbets, crushed ice cream, or even mango smoothies.

Miyazaki beef is very famous and has even been selected as the best beef in Japan.

Nanban chicken: fried chicken with a vinegar sauce and covered with a tartar sauce.

Another unique specialty is hiyashijiru, cold miso soup that is poured over rice topped with tofu and thin slices of cucumber.

Le bœuf de Takaharu (connu aussi sous le nom de bœuf de Miyazaki)

Takaharu beef (also known as Miyazaki beef)

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Address, timetable & access

  • Address

  • Timetable

    By plane: less than 2 hrs flight from Haneda (JAL or ANA) or Narita (Jetstar or Peach) airports. The airport is served by bus (about 20 min) and by train (10 min) which lead to Miyazaki Station. By train: From JR Kagoshima Station, take the JR Kirishima train to Miyazaki.

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