This is the first blog post in a series about exploring Japan from Saga!

Stephanie, Kumamon and Kumamoto Castle.

Saga City CIR, Stephanie cycled to Kumamoto back in 2023! (25 May, Thursday to 28 May, Sunday 2023)

How I got there
One of the most memorable trips and even proudest achievements during my time here is when I cycled from Saga City to Kumamoto City. I left on 25 May 2023 (Thursday) and cycled back on 28 May (Sunday), spending 3 nights in Kumamoto. It was a really nice way to go there because I got to see all the little places in between that you would miss if you were zooming through by train or car. It is about 75 kilometres each way and even though I am admittedly not very physically active, I think it is quite doable in a day.

How much it cost
As you can imagine, it was very cost effective as I only really had to pay for accommodation, entrance fees and food. I stayed in KKR Hotel Kumamoto for the first night in a private room to give myself a nice private space to recover (8625yen a night). It was beautiful with an excellent rooftop view of the castle! Then I stayed in Hotel Carna A for the remainder of the trip (a total of 6723yen for the other 2 nights)

Nagasu (Fukuoka Pref.) on my way back

What I did
I stored my bike in bike parking in the city centre and got around by bus and on foot during my time there. In terms of what I did, I went to Kumamoto Castle, Suizenji Garden (don’t forget to find the boxes with koi food to feed them if you go!!), Musashizuka Park where the grave of the famous samurai Musashi is, and Lafcardio Hearn’s Former Residence. Food- wise, I really enjoyed the Sri Lankan and Vietnamese restaurants there!

Musashizuka Park, the burial sight of Miyamoto Musashi

Natsume Soseki and Uchitsuboi House

If I took leave
I took 3 days of nenkyuu for the trip, the Thursday and Friday, as well as the Monday the
day after I returned. This gave me a day to recover before going to work again and was
definitely a good idea.

Suizenji Garden

Tips/things I would have done differently

• Obviously please be careful of your safety. I wore a helmet the whole time. Plan out
  your route to make sure you don’t end up on any dangerous fast narrow roads with
  little space for the bike. I did not do this very well and sometimes it was a bit scary.
• Also try to avoid big inclines as much as possible to preserve your stamina and keep it
  chilled and enjoyable (if you are going to Kumamoto, this is admittedly impossible at
  times).
• I did it on a mamachari but if you have or can get your hands on a better bike, that
  could be a good idea. I did appreciate being able to put my rucksack in the basket tho.
• I found I was there a bit too long as got bored. If I did it again, I would go for 2 nights
  instead of 3 and also save myself a day of nenkyuu.