Originally Posted by
RichardInSF
I propose you fly to/from Fukuoka. If you plan to do day trips when there, there is a less expensive JR Kyushu pass you can buy:
http://www.jrkyushu.co.jp/english/railpass.html
You can probably spend three days in Northern Kyushu alone, that pass only costs Y7,000 per person.
That's a killer deal. For the OP Mt Aso is a great place to visit. Nagasaki is also fantastic apparently. Fukuoka itself is a great city too, great place to get the feel of urban Japan without the overwhelming scale of Tokyo or Osaka. And it has Hakata ramen.
