Central Miyazaki is easily accessible from the airport and Miyazaki Station

Visitors to Horikiri Pass will find scenery that exemplifies the tropical mood of Miyazaki City, with rows of Canary Island date palms and the vibrant blue of the sea and sky. We recommend picking up a serving of soft ice cream at the nearby Roadside Station Phoenix while you enjoy the views.

This formation of undulating rocks surrounding the Nichinan Coast and Aoshima is known as the Devil’s Washboard. This formation is the result of eons of erosion occurring to hydrothermal rocks formed in the ocean roughly seven million years ago, leaving only the harder sandstone layers which can be seen piled today like slabs.

The rich nature of Mt. Osuzu stretches north to south on the western side of Tsuno Town. The Yatogi Falls is located just a 30 minute walk from the Osuzu Camping Ground located nearby. The sheer volume of water that loudly roars down the rock face from a height of 73 meters is breathtaking.

This spacious zoo is home to roughly 1,200 animals of over 100 different species. There are also numerous events where you can interact with the animals, such as the elegant flamingos or even taking walks with the elephants. The zoo also features an amusement park, restaurants, shops, and a “flowing pool” open only in summer.

This facility teaches visitors about the environment, including experiencing and observing the nature of the Oyodo River, one of the leading rivers in Miyazaki. Attractions here (free admission) include the 3D high-definition River Theater and the Biological Exhibit Hall that features fish and other marine organisms that live in the river basin.

Here, you can see flowers and other flora from around the world year round. You can spend a leisurely time surrounded by flowers and greenery on the spacious grounds here, such as the beautiful grassy lawns kept green throughout the year, and the sample themed gardens. There are also a variety of different events held every season.

Located on the outskirts of Aoshima, Kodomo no Kuni is a vast park featuring a variety of attractions, such as the multipurpose facility Aoshima Picnic Club, miniature golf, and the Rose Garden botanical garden. Any child or adult who enjoys being active is sure to have a good time here.

This facility offers visitors a chance to experience the mysteries of the universe and the fascination of science through experiment-related shows and craft workshops. Here you can take your picture with one of only two full-scale reproductions of the Apollo 11 lunar module or take in a show at Kyushu’s largest planetarium dome, and there are plenty of events for the enjoyment of children and adults.

This museum features monuments and actual specimens that teach about the plants and animals found in Miyazaki. The diorama that demonstrates the way ancient people here hunted is particularly impressive. The Minka-en on the grounds features four traditional Japanese homes moved here from different parts of the prefecture, each demonstrating unique architectural styles and registered as important cultural heritages by the national and prefectural governments (the permanent exhibit is free of charge).

The many attractions on the spacious grounds here, filled with the richness of nature, include an indoor bouldering facility, a permanent mountain bike course, and even canoeing. There is even the Kid’s Pico Park where children can learn while playing on the large playground equipment available.
* All facilities will be closed from April 1, 2024 for a planned one year period for renovations.

This tourist facility can be found in Nishimera Village, a place that retains the beautiful traditional scenery of a former Japan. The quaint thatched roof sakugoya, a special type of thatched hut used as a place to sleep when working in the mountains, contain facilities such as a shop and restaurant featuring local goods and produce. Attractions on the premises include the Ogawa Folk Museum, where you can learn about the history and culture of Nishimera, as well as an inn called Peach Blossom Inn (Togenkyo-no-Yado) for a relaxing moment.

This massive facility covering a total of 35 hectares surrounded in nature features a variety of attractions, such as a campground, a grass skiing slope, a Japanese garden, a tennis court, and miniature golf. The park can be enjoyed in a variety of ways throughout the seasons, including cherry blossom viewing, using the children’s pool, and enjoying the autumn leaves, and playground equipment is available for small children.

Local charcoal-grilled chicken is one of the leading gourmet options in Miyazaki. The locally grown chicken is flavored with salt and pepper before quickly grilling it over high temperature charcoal. The result features a delicious savory aroma and tender texture.
The chicken goes great with local Miyazaki shochu, and can be found at specialty restaurants and Izakaya bars. 

Hiya-jiru, which means chilled soup, is a local Miyazaki dish that is perfect for combatting the summer heat.
Not exactly a soup, the dish consists of chilled miso soup poured over a dish of rice with shredded seared fish on top, and topped with cucumber, shiso, and tofu.
You can visit a few restaurants to experience different interpretations of the dish, as the recipe at each restaurant is slightly different.

The udon noodles of Miyazaki are notable for being slightly softer and thinner than usual. The udon here is typically eaten with a shoyu-based dipping sauce flavored with the Japanese Yuzu citrus fruit. Udon can be eaten as the main meal in Miyazaki of course, but it is also popular eaten after drinking. Many udon restaurants open as early as 6:00 in the morning, so a culture of eating udon for breakfast has taken root here.

The lettuce-maki, or lettuce roll, was invented by a sushi restaurant in Miyazaki City known as Ippei. The dish consists of lettuce, shrimp, and an original mayonnaise placed over sushi rice and wrapped in seaweed. This is said to be the original prototype that later became the salad-maki or other rolled sushi dishes found outside Japan. There are many restaurants that serve the dish other than sushi places, such as Izakaya bars and udon restaurants, so you can enjoy the interpretation of each wherever you go.

Eel from Miyazaki (unagi in Japanese) is notable for the thin skin, soft texture, and ample fat that seems to melt in your mouth. Eel farming is also popular in Miyazaki, taking advantage of the rich environment, resulting in the third highest yield in Japan. So as a production region, visitors to Miyazaki can enjoy high quality eel at a relatively reasonable price.

Miyazaki is famous throughout Japan for its mangoes, so much so that it’s the first thing some people think of when they say Miyazaki. The mangoes are ready to eat when the skin takes on a certain elasticity, the fragrance grows stronger, and the surface of the fruit becomes shiny. Miyazaki mangoes are known for their melt-in-your-mouth fruit pulp and their rich sweetness.
There is also a variety in Miyazaki called Taiyo-no-Tamago (Egg of the Sun), a luxury item for which only those fruits which meet the strictest standards for flavor, weight, and color are allowed to bear the name. Thanks to the focus on ripeness, the fruit are allowed to ripen on the tree and harvested by catching them in nets when they fall off naturally.

Visitors to this site will find Takanabe Daishi, a collection of roughly 750 unique stone statues constructed to console the ghosts of the ancients buried in the Mochida Burial Mounds when they were hit by large-scale theft around 1930. Each statue bears a different expression, and their location on the top of a high hill gives a good view of the town of Takanabe and the Pacific Ocean.

Mizunuma Shrine has long been worshipped by local residents for enshrining the God of farming and protection against water hazards. The embodiment of that God is actually Komizugaike Lake, a lake with a circumference of one kilometer located behind the main shrine building. The lake is covered with the high leaves and white flowers of lotus during the summertime.