DAY 7 of 12 – On the seventh day of our epic 12-day road trip around the Japanese island of Kyushu, we made the long drive from Kumamoto to Ibusuki. This city is at the southern tip of the island and is most famous for its black-sand spas known as sunamushi onsen.
On our way there, we stopped off at the Chiran Peace Museum. This airbase was the departure point for hundreds of kamikaze pilots during World War II. Many were just young boys and it was sad to think that this was the place where they spent their final night.
In the evening, we arrived at our hotel and tried out their sunamushi onsen. Natural steam beneath Ibusuki heats the sand and relaxing in it brings many health benefits. The sand is about 50 degrees Centigrade so, in just a few minutes, your body gets very hot and sweaty. You can only stand the heat for about 10 minutes before you need to jump into a pool to cool down!
Watch my video to see how I got on exploring these two interesting places…
Chiran Peace Museum:
► Website: https://www.chiran-tokkou.jp
► Google Map: https://goo.gl/maps/cCj9GSceK7gjUYxy9
Aoba Restaurant Ibusuki:
► Website: https://aoba-ibusuki.com
► Google Map: https://goo.gl/maps/732vLRd3ZbRetU5s5
Ibusuki Iwasaki Hotel:
► Website: https://ibusuki.iwasakihotels.com
► Google Map: https://goo.gl/maps/A8yT2e9TnmqLQ1Km8