Beppu City, Kyushu,South Japan.

Room rate are about 16,000 Yen ( S$200) for a single adult staying one night (two meals included).

One of Japan's Three Great Hot Springs, Beppu is also known as the Las Vegas of Japan, a reference more to its extensive sex industry than gambling. The resort has been attempting to clean up its image though, with limited success.

Get in
By plane
The nearest airport is in Oita, from which shuttle buses run to Beppu (¥1450, 40 minutes).

By train
The Sonic limited express train runs twice an hour from Fukuoka (Hakata) and Kokura, stopping at Beppu before terminating in Oita. If you are coming from Honshu on the San'yo Shinkansen line, switch to the Sonic at Kokura station. From Kokura, you can reach Beppu in 75 minutes at a cost of ¥4290 each way (no charge with the Japan Rail Pass).

An overnight train, the Fuji, runs from Tokyo Station to Beppu in 17 hours, departing Tokyo at 6 PM. If you want reach Beppu in a shorter amount of time, you can take the 10 PM Sunrise Izumo/Sunrise Seto to Himeji, take the San'yo Shinkansen to Kokura, then take the Sonic to Beppu. (12 hours)

By car
The Oita Expressway runs from the south, passing a few miles to the west of the city. Exit at the Beppu Interchange. National Route 10 runs north-south through the city center, along the shore of Beppu Bay.

By boat
Kansai ferries runs a service from Osaka to Beppu, stopping in Kobe and Matsuyama on route.

Get around
The Foreign Tourist Information Office (Tel. 0977-23-1119; open 9:00am-5:00pm) has two branches in the city center. One is near the east exit of JR Beppu Station, and the other is on Ekimae-dori, between the Ginza and Yayoi shopping arcades. Both offer free internet access, maps of the city, bus passes and discount coupons for the jigoku.

Most of the sights can be reached by the Kamenoi bus system. Departures are from the terminal outside the west exit of JR Beppu Station. The Foreign Tourist Information Office sells one-day bus passes for ¥900 (¥700 for students). Destinations are listed in English, but many of the routes overlap with each other, so take care. An extra hand-written English route map is available upon request.

Food