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Two blue-and-white porcelain vases with painted flowers on a wooden shelf

Saga

Saga: Places to Visit

Food · Things to do · Where to stay

Saga's main places for visitors are its pottery towns and hot springs: Arita, the birthplace of Japanese porcelain; Karatsu, with its castle and the Rainbow Pine Grove along Karatsu Bay; and the onsen towns of Takeo and Ureshino.

Saga is reached from Hakata in Fukuoka by JR limited express, and local JR trains reach Saga Station in about 35 minutes. Limited expresses from Hakata reach JR Takeo-Onsen in as little as 70 minutes, and the Shinkansen from Nagasaki takes 23 minutes. Karatsu is reached from Fukuoka by subway and the JR Chikuhi Line.

Places in Saga

  • Arita — The birthplace of Japanese porcelain, and the home of Arita ware.
  • Karatsu — Karatsu Castle and the Rainbow Pine Grove, a black pine forest running 5 km along Karatsu Bay; on the JR Chikuhi Line.
  • Takeo Onsen — A hot spring town about 10 minutes on foot from JR Takeo-Onsen Station.
  • Ureshino Onsen — Counted among Japan's three best hot springs for beautiful skin, and known for Ureshino tea; about 30 minutes by JR bus from Takeo-Onsen.
  • Yutoku Inari Shrine — Counted as one of Japan's three major shrines to Inari, its inner sanctuary standing on a platform above a flight of 117 steps.