It was Gerald Anderson and Julia Barretto who introduced Saga to me. In the film between Maybes, this humble, little-known prefecture became the setting of an unlikely romance. While Saga’s rustic charm sure feels cinematic, there is definitely more to this unassuming destination than what can be captured on cam.
Saga is one of the seven prefectures that make up Kyushu Island. located in the northwestern side of the island and situated next to Fukuoka, it is easily accessible. However, most tourists coming from Fukuoka, considered the primary gateway to Kyushu, breeze past this often overlooked destination in favor of Nagasaki. but there are many reasons to stop and take your time in Saga. here are some of them.
Hvad er dækket af denne vejledning?
Mifuneyama Rakuen
Yutoku Inari Shrine
Saga Prefectural government Office
Zombie Land Saga
Saga Balloon Fiesta
Saga Balloon Museum
Sagajoka Hinamatsuri (Doll Festival)
Ōuo Shrine (Floating Torii Gates)
Saga Beef
Sicilian Rice
Ureshino Tea
Ureshino Onsen
Tosu premium Outlets
How to get to Saga
How to get to Fukuoka
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Mifuneyama Rakuen
This was our most unforgettable stop in Saga. We visited in late November, so the entire site was clad in the fiery colors of fall.
Mifuneyama Rakuen is a picturesque garden in the shadows of Mt. Mifuneyama, a postcard-worthy mountain that looks like the hull of a ship. completed in 1845, this was originally built as the holiday home of Shigeyoshi Nabeshima, a feudal lord. Spanning 50 hectares, this sprawling park takes pride in its walking trails that will take you around the site including a still pond that mirrors its breathtaking surroundings perfectly.
The best time to visit is spring, when the cherry blossom trees — all 5000 of them — reach the peak of their bloom. aside from the sakura season, autumn is also a great time as the trees paint the site red and orange.
Entrance fee: ¥600
Hours open: 8am-5pm (may change on certain dates)
Nearest station: Takeo-Onsen Station.
Yutoku Inari Shrine
Welcoming over three million visitors annually, Yutoku Inari Shrine is undoubtedly one of the three most popular Inari shrines; the other two are Kyoto’s Fushimi Inari Shrine and Aichi’s Toyokawa Inari Shrine. most visitors flock to the Shinto shrine to ask for good family fortune, good business, traffic safety, and a huge catch. The whole complex is stunning. It has a gate, a bridge, a garden, small ponds, the main building, a museum, the numerous dark orange (or red) torii gates, and other beautiful buildings.
Admission Fee: FREE; For the Yutoku Museum: ¥300 (Adult) / ¥200 (Students) / ¥100 (7-15 y/o); For the Garden: ¥200
Opening Hours: 9:00 AM – 4:30 PM
Location: 1855, Furueda, Kashima City, Saga Prefecture
Nearest Station: JR Hizen-Kashima Station. travel time from JR Hakata station to JR Hizen-Kashima station is about an hour via limited express Train Kamome for around ¥3200. From the station, take the bus to Yutoku Inari Shrine. The bus fare is ¥320.
Saga Prefectural government Office
What will you be doing at a government office, you ask? The Saga Prefectural government office offers a 360-degree, unobstructed view from its observation floor (called Saga 360). To manage your expectations, it isn’t that tall. It stands only 50 meters, but it is the tallest building in the city. If the weather cooperates, you can even see Mt. Unzen, an active volcano in Nagasaki Prefecture.
If you can, visit at around sunset when the city is bathed in golden light. After admiring the vista, have a taste of Saga’s rich, delectable cuisine at Shino, a restaurant on the same floor. You can dig into some tender, juicy Saga beef and delicious sashimi.
If you visit at night, you can also enjoy a projection mapping show! more about that in the next section.
Observation Hall operating Hours: Weekdays, 8:30am-10pm; Saturdays, 10am-10pm; Sundays, 10am-9pm
Nearest train station: JR Saga Station. From here, you can take the bus from nearby Bus center to Kencho-mae bus stop. It’s a short walk from there. You can also walk straight from Saga Station, but it’s gonna take at least 20 minutes.
Zombie Land Saga
Over the past few years, one of the anime shows that made the biggest waves in Japan is Zombie Land Saga, which tells the story of Sakura Minamoto, a high school student who met an untimely death on the way to an audition. Years later, she was resurrected together with other zombies to form a 7-piece singing group called Franchouchou and promote Saga Prefecture.
That’s a very odd story concept — outrageous, even — but I have to admit that it’s very interesting. Obviously, this is fiction (duh), but the great thing about it is, Saga Prefecture embraced it!
In fact, at the observation deck of the Saga Prefectural government office building, you can enjoy a projection mapping show featuring Zombie Land Saga. It culminates in an exclusive animated concert. but that’sikke alle.
Fordi mange af indstillingerne i serien var baseret på de faktiske steder, der findes i Saga, blev disse steder øjeblikkeligt turiststeder, da flere anime fans oversvømmer. En af dem er det tidligere Karatsu City Historical Folk Museum, som blev præsenteret på showet som Franchouchou’s hjemmebase. Andre steder omfatter Karatsu Castle og Drive-in Tori.
SAGA BALLOON FIESTA.
En anden ting, som saga er berømt for? Varm Air Baloons!
Hvert år i de sidste 40 år afholdes Saga International Balloon Fiesta i Saga City. Dette er Asiens største luftballonkonkurrence, og piloter fra hele verden deltager. Besøgende flok til denne del af Kyushu for at beundre de utallige luftballoner, der udsmykker himmelen. Dette sker i fem dage, normalt i oktober eller november.
Saga Balloon Museum.
Hvis din timing er lidt væk, kan du besøge Saga Balloon Museum i stedet og nyde livlignende videoer af ballonfiesta! Åbnet til offentligheden i 2016, dette er den allerførste af sin art i Japan med flysimulatorer og udviser at fortælle historien om ballooning i Saga.
ANDRE Tillæg: 500 yen
Timer Åben: 10 AM-5PM
Lukket: Mandag og nytårsferie
Adresse: 2-27 2Chome, Matsubara, Saga City
Nærmeste togstation: JR Saga Station. Herfra kan du tage bussen fra nærliggende buscenter til Kencho-Mae busstoppestedet. Det er en kort gåtur derfra. Du kan også gå lige fra Saga Station, men det tager mindst 20 minutter.
Sagajoka Hinamatsuri (Doll Festival)
En anden årlig begivenhed, du bør forsøge at fange er Sagajoka Hinamatsuri (Saga Castle Town Doll’s Festival), som sker omkring Saga Castle-området, Chokokan og Nagasaki Kaido.
Japanske dukker (skudt i Oita, ikke i Saga)
Held fra midten af februar til midten af marts, festivalen ushers i forårssæsonen. Under fejringen sættes hundredvis af elegante traditionelle dukker på displayet, herunder dem fra Nabeshimas hus, en af de mest magtfulde klaner tilbage på dagen og sølvdukke tilbehør fra Kuroda Clan of Fukuoka.
Ōuo shrine (flydende torii porte)
Bortset fra lækker frisk fisk og skaldyr er byen Tara hjemsted for at ōuo helligdommen, der er bedst kendt for sine Vermilion Torii Gates.
Legenden har det, at i 1700’erne blev en hadede magistrat forladt i Okinoshima, en ø midt i Arike Hav ud for Saga’s kyst. Da han ikke har noget tegn på redning, bad han om frelse. En kæmpe fisk syntes og reddede ham. Da han kom tilbage til Tara, byggede han ōuo-helligdommen til ære for fisken. Ōuo betyder “stor fisk”. Torii-portene er arrangeret på en måde, der peger på Okinoshima Island, hvor det hele startede, ifølge legenden, det vil sige.
Stedet er mere populært kaldet “Floating Torii Gate of Oouo Shrine”, fordi de ved høj tidevand synes at være flydende, da vandet stiger over bunden af strukturerne. Men ved lavvande kan du gå gennem portene på tørt land.
Adresse: 1874-9 Tara Oaza, Tara, Tara-cho, Fujitsu-gun, Saga Prefecture
Nærmeste station: Tara Station
Saga Beef.
Når det kommer til japansk wagyu, er de første ting, der ville komme til at tænke på, Kobe oksekød eller Matsusaka oksekød. Men Japan har andre mærker, der også er fejret for deres høje kvalitet. En af dem er saga oksekød.
Ligesom Kobe oksekød kommer saga oksekød fra japansk sort kvæg hævet og fodret i præfekturets ideelle miljø. Ligesom de bedste kvalitet Wagyu mærker er det bedst kendt for den smukke marmorering af kød og fedt, lys smag og øm, næsten smeltet i din mund tekstur.
Sicilian Rice.
En anden saga-delikatesse, som du bør prøve, er den såkaldte sicilianske ris. Ingen ved virkelig præcis, hvor den fik sit navn eller hvordan det er relateret til den italienske ø halvvejs rundt om i verden, men det er blevet en regional specialitet.
Siciliansk ris er ret simpelt – ris toppet med stegt kød, grøntsagssalat og et stænk af mayonnaise. Hver restaurant, der serverer den, har deres egen version, topping det med en mere kompleks dressing eller ændre typen af kød. Mere eksklusive virksomheder tjener det med saga oksekød eller vildsvin kød, andre med regelmæssigt oksekød eller kylling. Nogle tilføjer andre ingredienser. Men i sin kerne er den sammensat af ris, kød og salat.
Ureshino Tea
Mange byer i Japan lægger krav på oprindelsen af japansk grøn te. Uji i Kyoto og Hirado City i Nagasaki markedsføres begge som fødestedet for denne elskede drink. Men saga præfektur kan ikke diskonteres. Ligesom de andre tilfælde er Saga’s påstand forankret i Eisai, en munk krediteret for at bringe te blade fra Kina. Et af de steder, hvor han menes at have plantet te planter var Mt. Sefuri, der ligger i Kanzaki, Saga. Senere spildte det over til nabo Ureshino, hvilket omfavnede det helhjertet og tog det til et andet niveau.
I dag er der en stærk tekultur i denne del af Saga. Ureshina har de rette betingelser for dyrkning af kvalitet. Dens landskaber er domineret af terrasserede lande, der er dækket af lunde.
Grøn te serveres i de fleste virksomheder i Saga. Nogle tjener endda samplere, ligesomKiHaKo of YOSHIDAYA Cafe, which will allow you to taste three types of local green tea.
Ureshino Onsen
Tea isn’t the only thing that keeps the town of Ureshino hot and steaming. It’s also famous for hot springs!
Ureshino Onsen is a hot springs town in southern Saga. like most onsen towns, it is great place to just take a dip, relax, and recharge. but Ureshino’s alkaline water is also believed to have great benefits to the skin. around 60 ryokan and other establishments dot the map of the town.
When using an onsen, always remember the following:
No bathing suit or underwear allowed. strip down to your birthday suit. The thought of going completely naked can be unsettling, but trust me, no one gives an eff.
Wash and shower before you take a dip. sit on the provided stool while you wash. You’ll find liquid soap and shampoo near every shower space.
No swimming, jumping, diving, or any other disturbing activity!
Don’t let your hair or towel touch the water.
No loud noises. Vær stille.
Dry yourself with a towel before heading back to the locker room.
In most public onsen, people with tattoo are not allowed, at least not those with the big ones.
You’ll also find foot bath facilities around town!
Tosu premium Outlets
Modeled after a southern California town, the site feels a bit out of place in Saga, but it is one of the most popular shopping stops in this part of Kyushu. This vast shopping destination houses 160 outlet stores featuring both Japan’s homegrown brands and international labels including Coach, Gap, Citizen, Kate Spade, Vans, Under Armour, Ralph Lauren, Seiko, and Takeo Kikuchi.
If you’re not that much of a shopaholic (like us), there’s a food court where you can stuff your face with ramen, takoyaki, and more!
Hours open: March-January 10am-8pm; February, 10am-7pm
Address: 8-1, Yayoigaoka, Tosu-shi, Saga, Japan
Nearest train station: Yayoigaoka Station. From here, you can take the bus to Tosu premium Outlets.
How to get to Saga
Saga has its own airport, Saga airport (HSG), but it serves a very limited number of flights, mostly to and from Tokyo, Taipei, Shanghai, and Incheon. If you’re coming from other cities overseas, you are most likely going to land in Fukuoka international airport (FUK).
From here, you need to get to Hakata Station. Here’s how.
Once you’re at Hakata Station, catch a train to Saga. If your destination is Saga City, the cheapest way is by boarding the limited express Kamome train.
Travel time: 40-50 minutes.
Fare: ¥1,130 (one way)
Seat Fee: ¥840 (unreserved)
Total cost: ¥1,970 (one-way)
To see the schedule, you can check Hyperdia.
If you’re traveling from Fukuoka to Saga or you plan to explore many parts of Saga Prefecture and other prefectures, consider getting a JR Kyushu Rail Pass to save a lot on fares! On our most recent trip, JR Kyushu shouldered our journeys by giving us a free JR Kyushu Rail Pass so we could use it first-hand and see for ourselves how far it could take us.
The JR Kyushu Rail Pass comes in three versions: Northern, Southern, and ALL Kyushu. but let’s focus on the two passes only: northern and ALL Kyushu.
If you’re interested to see Saga, Fukuoka, Nagasaki and the northern halves of Oita and Kumamoto prefectures, the JR northern KYUSHU area PASS should be enough.
– Can be used for: local trains, limited express trains, and Hakata-Kumamoto Shinkansen
– Price: ¥8660 (3 days); ¥10,190 (5 days)
– number of seat reservations allowed: 10 (for 3 days), 16 (for 5 days)
If you’re also going to Miyazaki and Kagoshima, consider getting the ALL KYUSHU area PASS instead.
– Can be used for: local trains, limited express trains, and Hakata-Kagoshima-chuo Shinkansen
– Price: ¥15,280 (3 days); ¥18,330 (5 days)
– number of seat reservations allowed: 10 (for 3 days), 16 (for 5 days)
To give you an idea on how much savings you can get, here’s an example. Let’s say that yo