Passeios por Kusasenri

Sun Peng, our guide, deserves full marks! He was incredibly knowledgeable about Kumamoto throughout the trip, explaining the unique features of each attraction. To be honest, the Aso Boy train wasn't really worth it, haha. 2300 yen per person just to see a mountain; it's not as beautiful as the Ghibli train I rode in Hakone, Tokyo. It was a shame we couldn't go boating in Takachiho Gorge today, but the scenery was still good, though slightly less impressive than Hokkaido's Blue Pond. However, my only complaint about the guide is that he sent us to Takachiho Shrine. It's fine to go, but the path is genuinely difficult, so be prepared. But on the way back to the parking lot, the guide told us to follow Google Maps to the third parking lot, which would have been a disaster! You absolutely must return to that slope and head straight for the third parking lot. When you go to the shrine, there's a fork in the road on that slope; pay attention to the sign indicating the direction to the third parking lot. It's only 300m that way. Do NOT follow the map! A large group of us followed the map, but luckily I had seen the sign on the way there, otherwise, we would have been completely lost trying to find our way back! The cheese mini-bread recommended by the guide was decent, and the cream puffs were also good, filled with ice cream. I didn't try the summer iced tea special. The horse sashimi and barbecue were okay, but don't have high expectations; it's not as good as grilled beef. Next, regarding the guide's recommendations at Kusasenri: I didn't buy the keychains, didn't buy the horse oil cream, but I did buy a fridge magnet. The green house was a bit hard to find, so look carefully. The beef burger was sold out. The only thing I think is worth recommending, which the guide didn't, is the ice cream. If you go, remember to try the ice cream at the museum! Oh, and I also want to mention that the time at Kusasenri is actually very short. If you climb to the observation deck and then come down, and also want to eat and shop, it might be quite rushed. Be prepared to just have ice cream! The fridge magnet is very cute and worth buying for 800 yen! Finally, the Tenkaippin ramen was a bit disappointing; the firm noodles were very salty and not as good as Ippudo in Osaka, haha. Ippudo is also salty (apparently ramen is meant to be paired with sake). As for the Osmanthus fried rice: it tasted like something any Chinese restaurant could make; no need to specifically try it in Japan, hahaha! Overall, this group tour was actually pretty good, just a bit rushed. Of course, that's because there were many places to visit, and it wasn't a self-guided trip, haha! I would still consider a group tour again if I have the chance!

The tour guide, Mr. Ohashi, was incredibly helpful and knowledgeable. He successfully arranged the boat ride, allowing us to have a wonderful and memorable experience on this trip. I truly appreciate his assistance in ensuring my family, as first-time visitors to Kyushu, had such a great time.

Although it was stated that the tour guide only spoke Chinese, he could speak both Japanese and English perfectly. I am Vietnamese and only speak Japanese, so I received maximum support. He arranged for me to sit in the first row and constantly checked on me, as I was the only foreigner on the bus ☺️. If anyone wants to go, feel free to book it! 👍👍

We really like our guide Carson!! He asked about our preferred language when we first met, since my Chinese speaking skills are pretty bad lol so we were gonna talk to him in English but surprisingly he could speak Cantonese as well! during the intros he would speak in Chinese and English (we could understand both) and if we had any questions we could use Cantonese which was just perfect. I really liked the mountains and had time to do some shopping and take photos. I personally don’t really enjoy onsens but I was happy to see a chubby cat there and those unique buildings. Carson also reminded us about snakes because it was the first sunny day after days of raining. Carson was very helpful and full of information, we really liked him as our guide which was one of the main reasons we trusted this company and went on another trip.

Fukuoka seyahatimiz için verdiğimiz en iyi kararlardan biriydi! Jiang Cui harika bir tur rehberiydi ve deneyimimizi gerçekten keyifli ve unutulmaz kıldı. Tur esas olarak Çinli turistler için tasarlanmış olsa da, yabancı misafirlerle iletişim kurmak için içten bir çaba gösterdi, ki bunu gerçekten takdir ettik. Misafirperverliği ve nezaketi bizim için çok şey ifade ediyordu ♡ Ziyaret ettiğimiz yerlerin hepsi de çok güzeldi. Böylesine güzel bir deneyim için teşekkür ederiz!

Overall it was a great experience despite the rainy weather! Would recommend for sure!

This tour was really good if you love animals and want to see them up close. I enjoyed the guide Zhu Zhu was so sweet and even she spoke little English she was so great and made sure I was able to follow along with rest of the group. She was so delightful and kindhearted, helped me order all the foods form all the shops and stores and offered me her umbrella and even the sweet apples. I highly recommend this route you get to see lots in one day!

The view is panoramic 😍. Take the mini train, it's quite fun. On your way back, remember to pay attention to a small volcano; it looks like a pudding 🍮. Ning Ning has been such a sweet and passionate tour guide. We really love her ❤️; she's the one who made the journey great.