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JAPAN

Oita

Steam, mountains, coastal calm.

Popular keywords#Hot springs, experiences & entertainment#Nature & scenic views#Architecture#Culture & history#Protection from misfortune#Outdoor & land art#Crafts & pottery#Art spot#Sculpture
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Bungotakada

Kumano Magaibutsu

A group of stone figures carved directly into the cliff, among the largest in Japan. You climb stone steps said to have been built by an ogre in a single night.

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Hajime NAKANO · CC BY 2.0 ↗
Nakatsu

Komo Jinja

Held to be the ancestral shrine of Usa Jingu. The Misumi pond itself is the deity. Its gate is an Important Cultural Property.

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Ginger1192 · CC BY-SA 3.0

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Introduced by city, ward, town and village within the prefecture.

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BungotakadaShrines & Temples, Nature & Scenery · 19 entriesBungo-OnoNature & Scenery, Art & Crafts · 18 entriesNakatsuNature & Scenery, Shrines & Temples · 16 entriesBeppuHot Springs, Contemporary Art · 14 entriesUsukiShrines & Temples, Culture & History · 13 entriesHitaHot Springs, Shrines & Temples · 13 entries
FEATUREOita now (autumn)Yabakei Gorge and the Kuju Mountains blaze with autumn color.See the feature Yuji Sakamoto · CC BY-SA 3.0
See the Usuki BuddhasView the National Treasure group of ancient Buddhas carved into rock faces.Tour Beppu's HellsTour vividly colored geothermal pools and experience Beppu's volcanic energy.Taste Oita's CuisineSavor toriten, marinated fish and seafood from the Bungo Channel.

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JAPAN GUIDE

Things worth knowing about Japan

No worries even on a first trip to Japan. Useful things to know, explained clearly.

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Q. What do people get wrong about IC cards (Suica, PASMO) in Japan?

This answer is a draft. It stays unpublished until legal review and source verification are complete. The answ…

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Q. What do people get wrong about coin lockers and luggage forwarding in Japan?

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Q. What do people get wrong about Golden Week, Obon and New Year travel?

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REGIONAL SPECIALTIES

Meet the Japan you don't know yet.

It is not only the big cities. The regions are full of charm, and special experiences you can only have in each place are waiting.

Beppu University Institute of Fermented FoodHita Cedar and WoodworkYabakei

Value Village

Japan's value, to the world.

Regional culture, tradition, food, sightseeing, nature and people. A directory that delivers the appeal of each to the whole world.

About Value Village
Value VillageLocal Value, Global Reach.
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INSTAGRAM / 6

Official and local Instagram photos

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THINGS TO DO / 6

Things to do in this prefecture

Choose from what you can only do here.

01Tour Beppu's HellsTour vividly colored geothermal pools and experience Beppu's volcanic energy.See related entries →そらみみ (Soramimi) · CC BY-SA 4.002Wander Through YufuinExplore Lake Kinrin and small shops beneath the slopes of Mount Yufu.See related entries →Saigen Jiro · CC003Hike the Kuju HighlandsHike through open grasslands with sweeping views of volcanic peaks.See related entries →Sanjo · CC BY-SA 3.004Explore Kunisaki TemplesVisit stone Buddhas and ancient temples rooted in Rokugo Manzan culture.See related entries →Sanjo · CC BY-SA 3.005See the Usuki BuddhasView the National Treasure group of ancient Buddhas carved into rock faces.See related entries →Si-take · CC BY-SA 3.006Taste Oita's CuisineSavor toriten, marinated fish and seafood from the Bungo Channel.See related entries →STA3816 · CC BY-SA 3.0

NEED TO KNOW

At a glance

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BEST TIME TO TRAVEL

What each season brings

LOCAL FOOD / 12

Local food

What people have long eaten in this place. We collect the dishes themselves, not restaurants.

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Tori-Ten

Chicken seasoned in advance with soy sauce, grated garlic and sugar is coated in a batter of wheat flour and egg and deep-fried. It is eaten with vinegar and soy sauce served with mustard paste.

Area：Throughout the prefecture

Source：Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF)

Ryukyu

Sashimi of seasonal fish such as yellowtail or horse mackerel is dressed in a sauce of soy sauce, sake and mirin with toasted sesame seeds and ginger. It is eaten on rice or with tea poured over the rice.

Area：Southern coastal area

Source：Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF)

Dango Jiru (dumpling soup)

Wheat flour is kneaded and stretched thin by hand into bands of dumpling, which are put with daikon, carrot, burdock and taro into a miso-seasoned soup made with dashi from dried sardines and kombu.

Area：Throughout the prefecture

Source：Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF)

Yaseuma (Thinly Rolled Out Flour Sprinkled with Roasted Soybean Flour)

Dough of wheat flour kneaded with water is left to rest, stretched by hand into long thin strips and boiled, then coated while still warm with roasted soybean flour and sugar.

Area：Throughout the prefecture

Source：Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF)

Kirasumameshi

Sashimi of yellowtail or horse mackerel is marinated in a soy sauce-based sauce and coated with soybean pulp. It is served with green onion and ginger, with kabosu citrus squeezed over it.

Area：Usuki

Source：Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF)

Gomadashi

A seasoning paste made by flaking the flesh of grilled white fish such as lizardfish and grinding it together with toasted sesame seeds, soy sauce and mirin. A well-loved way to eat it is to place it on boiled udon noodles and pour hot water over.

Area：Saiki

Source：Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF)

Atama ryori

The head, jaw, fins and innards of large white fish such as longtooth grouper and other groupers are boiled in salted water and rinsed in cold water, then arranged on a large platter and eaten with sanbaizu vinegar dressing or kabosu citrus.

Area：Taketa

Source：Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF)

Hyugadon (Rice Bowl with Marinated Tuna Sashimi)

A rice bowl of lean tuna marinated in a sauce of ground sesame, soy sauce, sugar, mirin and egg yolk, placed on hot rice. Green onion and ginger are mixed in.

Area：Tsukumi

Source：Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF)

Tori-Meshi (Mixed Rice with Chicken)

A rice dish in which chicken and burdock shaved into thin slivers are simmered with soy sauce and sugar, then either mixed into freshly cooked rice or cooked together with the rice.

Area：Throughout the prefecture

Source：Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF)

Aji no maruzushi

Horse mackerel is split open along the back and cured with salt and vinegar, then stuffed with vinegared rice and wrapped with red shiso, keeping the shape of the whole fish. It can be eaten from head to tail.

Area：Yonozu, Saiki

Source：Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF)

Ohan and Ohan Kayaku

Ohan, rice cooked in water dyed yellow with gardenia fruit, is eaten topped with kayaku: white fish such as lizardfish simmered with tofu, daikon and burdock in soy sauce and mirin.

Area：Usuki

Source：Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF)

MICHI-NO-EKI / 26

Michi-no-Eki roadside stations

RestInformationLocal links

Rest facilities registered by Japan's national government. Each has parking and toilets open 24 hours, and by definition includes a facility that sells local products. This is where the making and the food of this prefecture can actually be bought.

There are 26 stations in this prefecture in all (national registry).

Source: MLIT register of Michi-no-Eki

LOCAL ACCOUNTS / 2

People posting this area

Japanese-language accounts that post about this area.

These are third-party accounts. They are not affiliated with Value Village and this is not an endorsement.

CITIES & TOWNS / 17

Find by city or town

Sorted by number of entries. Start from the name of a town.

Bungotakada 19Bungo-Ono 18Nakatsu 16Beppu 14Usuki 13Hita 13Kokonoe 13Kitsuki 13Oita 12Yufu 12Saiki 12Kunisaki 11Taketa 8Usa 7Kunisaki and others 2Kusu 1Himeshima 1

INTERESTS / 11

Find by interest

Only the interests found in this prefecture.

Usa Jingu · Sanjo · CC BY-SA 3.0

Shrines & Temples35 entries

Usa Jingu ／ Fukiji

To the list Yabakei · そらみみ · CC BY-SA 4.0

Nature & Scenery33 entries

Yabakei ／ Sekisaki Lighthouse

To the list Beppu Jigoku · そらみみ (Soramimi) · CC BY-SA 4.0

Hot Springs42 entries

Beppu Jigoku ／ Nagayu Onsen

To the list

Historic Districts2 entries

Yufu City Tourist Information Center YUFUiNFO ／ teamLab Gallery Showa no Machi

To the list Ao no Domon · そらみみ · CC BY-SA 4.0

Architecture18 entries

Ao no Domon ／ Mameda

To the list Taki Rentaro Memorial Museum · Belle Equipe · CC BY-SA 3.0

Museums3 entries

Taki Rentaro Memorial Museum ／ Kyushu University Beppu Hospital and the History of Onsen Medicine Research

To the list Oita Prefectural Art Museum · 大分帰省中 · CC BY-SA 4.0

Art & Crafts33 entries

Oita Prefectural Art Museum ／ Oita City Art Museum

To the list Steam Landscape of Beppu · inunami · CC BY 2.0

Contemporary Art8 entries

Steam Landscape of Beppu ／ Water Hammers of Onta

To the list Kokonoe Yume Bridge · そらみみ (Soramimi) · CC BY-SA 4.0

Craft Experiences62 entries

Kokonoe Yume Bridge ／ Hita Geta

To the list Komo Shrine · Ginger1192 · CC BY-SA 3.0

Culture & History18 entries

Komo Shrine ／ Kumano Magaibutsu

To the list Beppu University Institute of Fermented Food · 大分帰省中 · CC BY-SA 3.0

Food & Markets26 entries

Beppu University Institute of Fermented Food ／ Oita Airport

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HIGHLIGHTS

Highlights of this prefecture

From entries with clearly licensed photos.

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Shrines & Temples
Usa

Usa Jingu

The Hachiman line is held to be the most numerous of all shrine networks in Japan. It enshrines Emperor Ojin, and spread nationwide once the Minamoto took him up as the guardian of the warrior class. Iwashimizu Hachimangu too was divided from here. The main hall is a National Treasure: three halls standing side by side in the hachiman-zukuri style. Worship is two bows, four claps, one bow, the same form as at Izumo Taisha.

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SMILE NEWS / 136

Smile news from Japan and the world

Stories that lift your spirits a little, collected with their sources.

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Oita

High school students paint lanterns for Hita's Kento Festival

The Kento Festival at Takatsuka Atago Jizoson in Amagase, Hita, takes place on October 10 and 11, lighting up about 350 lanterns and 300 Japanese umbrellas. For the first time, local high school students painted seasonal scenes and flowers on 80 of the lanterns.

source: Nishinippon Shimbun me
Patagonia National Park, Chile

Women rangers return Darwin's rheas to the wild in Chile

In Chile's Patagonia National Park, a women-led ranger team returned 13 Darwin's rheas to the wild in April 2026. Working with the Rewilding Chile Foundation, they care for the birds around the clock; surveys once estimated only about 11 to 15 remained.

source: Mongabay
Matusadona National Park, Zimbabwe

New 210-million-year-old dinosaur species named from Zimbabwe's Lake Kariba shore

A new dinosaur species, Musango matusadonaensis, has been described from rocks about 210 million years old in Matusadona National Park on the shore of Lake Kariba, Zimbabwe. The bipedal, not-yet-adult animal was about 4.5 metres long, and the find suggests Zimbabwe's dinosaur fauna differed from South Africa's.

source: Phys.org (The Conversation)

INSTAGRAM

Explore on Instagram

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#大分県Oita Prefecture

SEASONS & EVENTS

Seasons & events

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BEFORE YOU GO

Before you go

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Q1Q. What do people get wrong about IC cards (Suica, PASMO) in Japan?Q2Q. What do people get wrong about coin lockers and luggage forwarding in Japan?Q3Q. What do people get wrong about Golden Week, Obon and New Year travel?

TRAVEL

Transport & stays

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Photos of Oita

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OitaEnlarge ↗
Oita大分帰省中 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Original image and source ↗Display size adjusted. The enlarged view shows the whole photo.
OitaEnlarge ↗
Oita大分帰省中 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Original image and source ↗Display size adjusted. The enlarged view shows the whole photo.

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