What this area is like
Hitoyoshi is a small castle town on the Kuma River with hot springs and dozens of rice-shochu distilleries. Aoi Aso Shrine has thatched halls that are a national treasure. The area was badly flooded in 2020 and is still rebuilding.
Plan your visit
Rail links were damaged in the 2020 floods; highway buses from Kumamoto and Fukuoka are the easiest way in.